Hot Fuzz (2007)

Pegg, Frost And Wright Are Back In Hot Fuzz!

- The company that gave you Shaun Of The Dead (2004) - Simon Pegg, Nick Frost and Edgar Wright - return for another truly unique and hilarious comedy in 2007: Hot Fuzz!

Excelling at his academic and on-the-job police work and unwavering in his by-the-book professionalism and honesty, policeman (oh, sorry: "police officer") Nicholas Angel (Simon Pegg) is cleaning up the streets of London one thug at a time. Nicholas is so good at his job, in fact, that his superiors have decided to put his talents "to better use" by reassigning him to the small town of Sandford because, as his Chief Inspector put it, "you're making us all look bad."

As one might suspect, Nicholas is not happy about being taken out of the intense action of London and being put into the dull life of Sandford - and to make matters worse, Nicholas is partnered up with the clueless but good-natured Danny Butterman (Nick Frost). But the quiet country life of Sandford turns mysterious with the coming of many so-called accidents that have left people dead, and it is up to Nicholas and Danny to figure out if these accidents are just a string of tragic occurrences or the work of a dangerous killer.

Similar to Shaun Of The Dead in its placing of clever and eccentric comedy into a frightening situation, Hot Fuzz is a hilarious but different kind of comedy; packing this serious murder/mystery story with tons of laughs. Director Edgar Wright brings the same energetic pacing of Shaun Of The Dead to Hot Fuzz, helping to create not just a funny movie but also an exciting action flick.

So much of the film's comedy comes from the cast. Leading the way are Simon Pegg with his highly individual comedic style as the heroic and ready for action Nicholas Angel and Nick Frost with his bumbling and silly portrayal of Danny Butterman. Pegg and Frost really drive the film, their comedic back-and-forth is absolutely hilarious and the "buddy" relationship they create adds some meaning to the film.

Hot Fuzz definitely sees more internationally known stars than Shaun Of The Dead (many of them in fantastic cameo roles): The Oscar-winning Jim Broadbent brings his great veteran presences to the film as Inspector Frank Butterman (yes, there is a relation to Danny), versatile character actor Paddy Considine plays one of the very crude "Andys" and former James Bond Timothy Dalton shows how well he can do comedy as the enigmatic Simon Skinner.

Perhaps, in the end, not at the exact same high level as Shaun Of The Dead, Hot Fuzz is still a very creative, hilarious and action-packed film - one of the best comedies of its time.


CBC Rating: 9/10