At every dead end is usually a left turn just out of sight. ........
At every dead end is usually a left turn just out of sight. ........
Member since:24.05.2006
Reviews:55
Members who trust:19
(Please note - I will not be reviewing Special Features as have not yet had the chance to watch these)
I originally went to see Hot Fuzz at the cinema with The Boyfriend – purely because the ‘chick flick’ I had wanted to see was sold out and The Boyfriend was practically wetting himself with excitement at the thought of seeing this film so I gave in – and I loved it! I know I’ve thoroughly enjoyed a film when I’ve come out of the cinema and spent ages talking about it with whoever I’ve gone to see it with and saying ‘the so and so bit was great wasn’t it’ and ‘what about when he said….’ Which is exactly what happened with Hot Fuzz. The Boyfriend and I were talking about it for hours in fact and we both eagerly awaited the release on DVD (which we finally bought yesterday after 2 hours and 3 different supermarket trips to find it!)
I was a bit sceptical about seeing this at the cinema as I hadn’t particularly enjoyed Shaun of the Dead (despite the massive success!!) - Simon Pegg’s and Edgar Wright’s debut film – and so was apprehensive that Hot Fuzz wouldn’t be any better but thankfully I was not disappointed and I was entertained throughout the full 2 hour film. I found Shaun of the Dead to be irritating and a little dull in places and just completely absurd but Hot Fuzz was completely different, in direction, writing
and the overall genre.
Pegg plays the role of Sergeant Nicholas Angel, undoubtedly the best Police Officer with the Metropolitan Police. Makes the most arrests and absolutely devoted to the job – to the detriment of his relationships – and so great in fact that they send him off to the country village of Sandford in Gloucestershire as he is making the other Officers look bad.
Arriving in the quiet town of Sandford, Sergeant Angel immediately makes himself unpopular by upholding the law to the letter and does everything by the book, which has never happened in Sandford before. Shoplifters are merely slapped on the wrist and told not to do it again, rather than arrested. However, Angel quickly befriends PD Danny Butterman (Nick Frost), who watches all the cop related action films such as Bad Boys and Point Break and so thinks that Angel – coming from London – must be a big city cop like in the movies, using witty one liners and arresting criminals with guns a blazing.
Angel is getting tiresome of the petty jobs he is sent to do, such as retrieving an escaped swan and patrolling the village fair, but then incidents in and around the village soon appear far more sinister and Angel does not believe them to be accidents, which the other Officers and locals put them down to (think Midsomer Murders meets NYPD Blue!!) He takes it upon himself – with Danny by his side – to investigate into these strange goings on, much to the irritation of the other villagers.
I wont go into the plot in too much detail or I’ll give it away!
This film certainly worked very well in generating laughs and entertaining the audience. The clear ‘piss take’ (though not in a derogatory way) Pegg and Frost portrayed throughout of action packed Cop movies such as Bad Boys, added to the humour and enjoyment and kept it interesting.
The special effects are impressive and the death scenes look fantastic (if a little gory at times!). All the scenes and camera angles etc run smoothly into the next. It certainly contains all you would expect from an action blockbuster – gun fights, car chases etc – whilst implementing humorous scenes throughout to keep it light.
The acting was also good throughout (though nobody particularly standing out as exceptional) and although Pegg and Frost have worked together before and seem to have a real chemistry with nothing seeming forced, there were more accomplished actors (such as Bill Nighy, Timothy Dalton and Steve Coogan) who seemed to take more of a back seat and some of them only appearing in a couple of scenes.
The soundtrack is also worth a mention here - packed with soft rock tracks that can be expected in a great action film – and represents the best of British. The tracks do seem to have been chosen very well and are cleverly placed at appropriate times throughout to aid the scene it is being played
It is when a great British film comes out, like this one, that it makes me feel proud to be British. Pegg and Wright have proved that British films can also stand out with excellent writing and direction and this is definitely one of my favourite British films for a long time. If you like a good spoof film with the added benefits of action scenes then I think you will definitely enjoy this. If you didn’t like Shaun of the Dean then don’t be discouraged as I thought Hot Fuzz was so much better (and I do appear to be the only person that didn’t enjoy SOTD) and is a different style of genre etc so on a different level.
I picked this up from Asda for £12.99 but I think you can pick it from Sainsbury's for £9.99 at the mo and can get a copy from Amazon from £12.50.
Favourite Quotes:
Danny Butterman: Where's the trolley boy? Nicholas Angel: In the freezer. Danny Butterman: Did you say "cool off?" Nicholas Angel: No I didn't say anything... Danny Butterman: Shame. Nicholas Angel: Well, there was the part that you missed where I distracted him with the cuddle monkey then i said "play times over" and I hit him in the head with the peace lily. Danny Butterman: You're off the fuckin' chain!
Nicholas Angel: Danny, this is murder. Danny Butterman: It's not murder, it's ketchup. Nicholas Angel: We have to do something, Frank's appointed himself as Judge, Jury and Executioner. Danny Butterman: [agitated and defensive] He is not Judge Judy and Executioner!
Danny Butterman: Have you ever fired your gun in the air and yelled 'Aaaaaaaaah' Nicholas Angel: No I have never fired my gun in the air and yelled aagghh.
Thanks for Reading -x-
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Production Year: 1964 - Action/Adventure - Director: Cyril Endfield - Original Language: English - Classification: Parental Guidance - Starring:Stanley Baker, Jack Hawkins, Ulla Jacobsson, James Booth, Michael Caine, Nigel Green
Production Year: 2007 - Action/Adventure - Director: Paul Greengrass - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring:Matt Damon, Julia Stiles, Joan Allen, Edgar Ramirez, David Strathairn, Paddy Considine, Albert Finney
Production Year: 2002 - Action/Adventure - Director: Vincenzo Natali - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring:Lucy Liu, David Hewlett, Anne Marie Scheffler, Joseph Scoren, Matthew Sharp, Jeremy Northam
Re-rated based on Ciao's insistence that such reviews are no longer considered "Off Topic"
Soho_Black 08.07.2007 19:11
I see you've posted this as a DVD review, but you've not mentioned the DVD. Are there any extras? If so, what are they and are they any good? If you add to this, or if you change it to be posted as a "Film Only" review, which can be done by accessing "edit review" above the review and changing the drop down menu under the "Which format are you reviewing?" question at the bottom, please let me know and I'll re-rate.
shazzaspannered 29.06.2007 11:54
I thought this was a fantastic film – I love the 2 main actors, they have such a good on screen relationship ever since the old Spaced days x
A major British hit, a lorryload of laughs and some sparkling action? Well have some of ... more
that. Its fair to say thatHot Fuzzproves that Simon Pegg and Edgar Wrights brilliantShaun Of The Deadwas no one-off, serving up a superbly crafted British homage t...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
A major British hit, a lorryload of laughs and some sparkling action? Well have some of ... more
that. Its fair to say thatHot Fuzzproves that Simon Pegg and Edgar Wrights brilliantShaun Of The Deadwas no one-off, serving up a superbly crafted British homage t...
Postage & Packaging: Free! Availability: Usually dispatched within 1 to 2 weeks...
Messers Pegg and Frost return with this rollickingly hilarious take on the cop action ... more
movie. Top London cop Constable Nicholas Angel (Pegg) finds himself reassigned to the sleepy West Country village of Sandford. The quaintness is soon to be interrup...
Postage & Packaging: £0.00 Availability: 3-5 working days
![Hot Fuzz (2 Disc Special Edition) [2007] [DVD]](http://picnicb.ciao.com/uk/78050421.jpg "Hot Fuzz (2 Disc Special Edition) [2007] [DVD]")
Jun 12th, 2007
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