The
2004 flick “Shaun of the Dead”
was a surprise hit from British director
Edgar Wright. “Shaun”
starred Simon Pegg and Nick Frost,
veterans of a television show called
“Spaced” and not only
friends of Wright, but also best friends
themselves. “Shaun of the Dead”
was a perfect spoof of the conventional
zombie movie. However, it was easy
to tell that it was also a tribute
to those types of films. It was also
a highly intelligent movie.
The year 2007 brings audiences their
second major effort, “Hot Fuzz.”
The movie stars Pegg as Nicholas Angel,
a super cop who is re-assigned from
London’s busy streets to the
small rural town of Sandford. Angel
was re-assigned because he was making
“everyone else look bad”
with his 400 percent higher arrest
record.
Sandford is noted as the “safest
town in all of the country.”
In a hilarious scene, Angel tells
the department’s chief inspector
that the rest of the department won’t
take his transfer well and storms
out of the inspector’s office
to find that the rest of the department
has gathered already to wish Angel
farewell.
Upon relocation, Angel realizes that
in Sandford, no one seems to take
his or her job seriously. He quickly
(and grudgingly) makes friends with
Danny Butterman (Frost), an overweight,
inept officer who plays an excellent
funny man to Pegg’s straight
man. The two are an excellent on-screen
duo, having a natural chemistry as
close friends.
Nicholas realizes that there may be
something suspicious about Simon Skinner
(a scene-stealing Timothy Dalton),
a man who runs a local supermarket
and is well liked in the community.
The movie mostly follows Angel’s
investigation into Skinner and a series
of apparent “accidents”
throughout the city.
This is a top pick of 2007 so far.
The movie is side-splittingly funny,
but not in an over-the-top way. It
uses a bit of several types of comedy.
Frost and Pegg have hit another perfect
stroke when it comes to “Hot
Fuzz” which placed sixth at
the box office despite a rather limited
release. This movie is great action
and great laughs.
Rating: 4.5/5
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