Hot Fuzz (2007)

Hot Fuzz
Release Date: February 14, 2007
Director: Edgar Wright
Starring: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Jim Broadbent, Timothy Dalton
Rated: R
Runtime: 121 minutes



The Slant / Made it, Ma! Top of the World!



Hot Fuzz is everything I expected from the team that produced Shaun of the Dead, and so much more. I enjoyed Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg's first outing in 2004, but Hot Fuzz is on a whole different level.

Simon Pegg stars as London Police Officer Nicholas Angel, who excels in his duties to the point that his superiors become jealous of his awards and commendations. The opening montage detailing Angel's achievements as a police officer (never call him a policemen) drags the viewer in and never lets go. Angel's superiors decide to promote him to sergeant and ship him out of their hair to the small country village of Sandford, where he will pass his days in quiet anonymity, or so they hope.

Of course, Sergeant Angel does not find a peaceful village. Sandford boasts a crew of incompetent police officers that Angel tries to whip into shape, with lackluster results. At first, it seems as if the town's quaintness and the police department's apathy will get the better of Angel, who grows bored and irritable from what he sees as incompetence among his fellows and lack of real action in the town. On his first night, he expels some underage boys from the local pub. Angel insists on taking a hard-line approach even when the pub's owners declare that they let them drink there "for the greater good," since it keeps the kids off the street and out of trouble. This kind of gray area is foreign to Angel, who follows the letter of the law in all circumstances.

Eventually, a string of deaths breaks the peace in Sandford, although everyone but Angel strives to reconcile the deaths as an unfortunate string of accidents. Angel believes something much bigger is going on and investigates further with the help of his new partner Danny (Nick Frost). They uncover a terrible, if a little ridiculous, plot that reveals the town of Sandford is not at all what it seems.

One of the most surprising aspects of Hot Fuzz is how realistic it is, at least to a point. In Shaun of the Dead, for instance, the whole movie was an over-the-top send up to zombie flicks. While Hot Fuzz gives the same treatment to cop movies, until the final shootout everything that transpires could actually happen in an English country town. To be sure, the characters would probably not be so irreverant, witty, or entertaining, but everything at least seemed plausible. Once the explosive and brilliant final showdown begins, all bets are off and Hot Fuzz really comes into its own. In fact, the movie shifts gears so abruptly that it is almost shocking. Still, the lead-up and fraternal bonding between Angel and Danny make the final clash that much more exciting and even emotional. You really feel like you know the characters and hope they make it out okay. And then you also want to see Sgt. Angel with a veritable armory strapped to his back, delivering flying kicks to elderly (and evil) women threatening to gun him down.

The movie is exquisitely cast. Pegg is brilliant as the super-cop Angel and brings an effortless humor to the role. While not as over-the-top as his recent portrayal of Scotty in Star Trek, Pegg improves upon his earlier starring role in Shaun of the Dead. His chemistry with sidekick Nick Frost seems to have grown too, and the scenes with the two of them (and there are plenty) are rife with laughs as well as tender moments. Here is another installment in the oft-repeated label of bromance movies. The supporting cast is just as great, though Timothy Dalton excels above the rest as the overly-friendly and suspicious owner of a local supermarket. He elevated the humor whenever he was on screen. Jim Broadbent also adds to the movie's levity, playing Angel's superior in such a deadpan manner that rivals Buster Keaton himself.


Hot Fuzz is one of the best comedies in recent memory. It's slow build-up might not work for some viewers hoping only for mindless action, but the film's climax should keep them satisfied while others can enjoy the first half for its dry British wit. The film is rated R, but it is most assuredly a soft R; the film could easily have been edited to a PG-13 rating if Wright had decided to throw out a few choice words. This harder edge enhances the film, however. Hot Fuzz has few dull moments and many surprises that should delight its viewers. Let's hope Wright and Pegg reunite in the near future for another classic outing.