Hot Fuzz is a successor of sorts to the amazing Shaun of the Dead, a satire/homage to Night of the Living Dead. Shaun of the Dead smoothly mixed Pop Culture references, commentary on our daily routines, great gags and kick ass horror action. You don't have to be a horror fan to enjoy the spoof aspects, but you do have to have an appreciation for pop culture and the consumerism it maintains. If you appreciate Taylor, Taffy and I...you will most likely love this movie.
Which brings us to Hot Fuzz, brought to us by the same team that made Shaun of the Dead a cult favorite, script by Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright, directed by Edgar Wright and starring the heterosexual life partners Simon Pegg and Nick Frost. This team started out together in the late 90's with a BBC Rom-Com called Spaced (which I have not have the pleasure of seeing) and are only now starting to see the fame they deserve.
Hot Fuzz is a satire/homage to action exploitation movies like Bad Boys , Bad Boys II...oh hell...virtually any Michael Bay film, but this satire is in no way like Naked Gun, Scary Movie, or Austin Powers. The movie never stops to mug for the camera, or random pause for the laughter to die down. The comedy, the character development, the pop culture references and the action come at you with perfect timing.
Simon Pegg plays Nicholas Angel a workaholic London 'policeman officer' who is so good at his job in the big city that his bosses decide to transfer him to a small town so that he will no longer embarass his fellow London officers. Nick Frost plays Danny Butterman the bumbling son of the smalltown chief inspector, who like father, helps keep piece in Sanford - the Best little Village in England. The story unfolds as a 'fish out of water' story with Angel searching for purpose in the low-crime village and befriending Danny who has an obsession with Action Movies in the Bay-Bruckheimer mold.
Like most action movies...and these days, reality TV shows...is the kinetic editing style that conveys "action". Hot Fuzz utilizes these kinetic edits to convey everyday activities like drinking coffee, drinking beer, urinating and watching a movie. These transitions keeping the everything interesting even during the character development bits.
The last half hour of the movie moves into full on Michael Bay action movie with guns blazing and cars chasing keeping you on the very edge of your seat until the final explosion.
As I mentioned above, the film never descends into mockery and although they are consistently employing the standard plot devices and conventions of the modern action movie to comedic effect it is obvious that they love these movies for their pop goodness.
So far Pegg and Wright have taken on Horror and Action movies, I can imagine a Bourne/Bond style Spy movie, Sci-Fi, Superhero or even a Lord of the Rings type fantasy film from the team.
If you have seen Shaun of the Dead, you are probably already buying tix to Hot Fuzz. If not...watch Shaun...go see Hot Fuzz and enjoy the pop culture goodness.
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