film: review

> HOT FUZZ (2007)
"...looks and feels like every action movie you’ve enjoyed the past couple decades."

By John C. Lyons
Film Critic

Directed by: Edgar Wright

Written by: Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg

Starring: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Bill Nighy, Martin Freeman

Genre: Action/Comedy

Our Rating: 9/10

The action movie formula: good guys in slow motion shoot-outs, double-fisted handguns blazing, destroy everything and everyone in their path. Bad guys included. It’s been done time and time again over the years. And I eat that stuff up. Apparently so do the UK-based team of Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg, and Nick Frost because they really got it right. With Hot Fuzz they’ve not only put together a great ode to action cinema, they’ve crafted a top-notch movie of their own that’s got solid laughs throughout and pours on the action heavily in its last third.

Fans of Shaun of the Dead will be pleased to know that you’re getting more of the same here. Similar to Grindhouse, Hot Fuzz looks and feels like every action movie you’ve enjoyed the past couple decades. The cinematography, dialogue, music, and plot are perfect and there are plenty of in-jokes to discover in subsequent viewings. American viewers may miss a bit of the British humor and some of the violence may be surprising, but dark comedy fans should be in love. The film feels just a tad too long in the last few scenes, but nothing to ruin the experience. See it in a theater, if you can; otherwise kick yourself for missing it and definitely give it a rent. A must see for action film fans.

I saw this film at Cinemark’s Tinseltown 17 Theatres on Peach Street in Erie, PA. Click for showtimes.

related links:
Hot Fuzz - official site

MPAA rating: R
for violent content including some graphic images, and language

length: 2 hours