Hot Fuzz

Short Fun Review

Wow! Shabang! Kablooey!

Not actual quotes from the film, but they should have been.

Exactly like Shaun of the Dead, but better! And even that's underselling it. I haven't laughed that hard since I first saw The 40 Year Old Virgin.

Score: A+
This includes a small bonus score for seeing the Ghost Rider trailer, and a massive bonus for the last 20 minutes of the film.

OQ: Bring the noise! (Oh, and no clips in the trailer were missing from the film, which was nice).

Long Boring Review

Can a film parody a genre while imitating it at the same time? Hot Fuzz certainly seems to think so. It takes all the elements of a cop/buddy movie, and twists them. Some are played straight, others are played just for laughs and the best part is, it works! It really really works!

The cast reads like a who's who of British comedy, yet there's no annoying stereotyping, everyone is playing against your expectations, which worked brilliantly. There's also no annoyingly cute celebrity cameos, thank god! (unlike the upcoming Carmen Electra film I Want Candy. I was shuddering at that trailer. Plus I don't think I'll be able to eat pears for a while...)

The only way to describe this film is: it's exactly like a roller-coaster (or possibly a streetcar in San Francisco with no brakes). It starts slow (like all Simon Pegg movies), then it gets fast and takes a sharp turn, then it gets faster and turns upside down, and gets faster and faster right up to the end. Totally engrossing and fun.

If you liked Shaun of the Dead, you'll like this. If (like me) you thought some of the jokes in Shaun of the Dead just missed the mark, then you'll love this. If you ever wanted to see what Bad Boys 2 would look like if it was set in England (the buddy part of it), you'll get more than a giggle out of this.

Do not, do no, do NOT read any spoiler reviews before going to see this, as it will spoil your enjoyment of the film. Most of them give you just about enough plot to guess the ending, and you don't want to guess the ending.

Score: A+ This includes a small bonus score for seeing the Ghost Rider trailer, and a massive bonus for the last 20 minutes of the film.

OQ: You've got a moustache...
(Oh, and no clips in the trailer were missing from the film, which was nice).

Trivia: As usual, some sad b*****d has noticed something no-one else spotted or cared about, namely the fruit machine appearing in the village pub is the same fruit machine that appeared in The Winchester in Shaun of the Dead.

Shaun of the Dead DVD appears in this film, with the title changed to Zombie Party.

Sandford, the "fictional" setting for the film, is the name of the town used as the setting for all Police training role plays.