Review
'Hot Fuzz' slightly funny, not impressive
April 27, 2007
"Hot Fuzz," another cop movie, rolls off the fingertips of Hollywood onto the big screen for laughs, I thought. The premise of the story had its clichés, and the genre itself is cliché enough for me to avoid it. Once the mention of creators Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg of "Shaun of the Dead" was heard, I immediately grew eager about the ridiculous crime movie awaiting my viewing.
Although I can say that "Shaun of the Dead" was more enjoyable than the latest "Hot Fuzz" solely because it had zombies versus cops, the British comedy is what won me over. Writer and lead actor Simon Pegg is Sergeant Nick Angel, who has been transferred from London's police force to the tiny town of Sandford, mainly for making the other London cops look bad. So we have a big cop in a small town and what he finds in Sandford's incident reports is that there are more freak accidents than crimes. Angel and his partner Danny Butterman (Nick Frost) are determined to crack the mystery of the town's recent deaths, which everyone else perceives as accidents rather than murders.
It was predictable yet enjoyable, packed full of one-liners mostly from Butterman as the cheery, tubby cop. I found myself laughing at jokes that I didn't even think were funny and realized the British humor struck me with its flatness. The delivery and performance of the funniest scenes and lines brought on the laughs. The term "timing is everything" has never been more true until this movie.
If you're looking for blood in this shoot-'em-up cop movie then see "Smokin' Aces." Here we have over-the-top deaths and the most massive gun collection ever seen on film. You'll see deaths by architecture, old-lady kicking and supermarket hijinks with shopping carts, spaghetti sauce and box cutters.
There are moments in which I believe that these types of movies are only made for its references to other films or to touch at subcultures for personal laughs. "Bad Boys," "Jurassic Park," "Mad Max" and many more were in there. Even the camera shots and angles paid homage to predecessor cop movies. An Edgar Wright-style of zooming in for close ups and not-so-funny moments brought out the subtle humor in some scenes. This technique is also good for faking the ridiculous action scenes with the elderly. The unrealistic aspect of the scenes did well for this comedy genre.
For those who loved "Shaun of the Dead" they will have a grand time laughing at this one. It's another comedy poking fun at law enforcement; but if you're starving to be amused, then see "Hot Fuzz." I got the most pleasure out of the geography of the plot with references to "the city" referring to the big heads in London. Also, what really got me gob-smacked was hearing characters of the movie call each other "wankers."
Teresa Aviles is a student at UW-River Falls.