Hot Fuzz

Release date: April 20, 2007
Directed by: Edgar Wright
Starring: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Timothy Dalton, Jim Broadbent

Let's just get this out of the way: yes, Hot Fuzz is every bit as good as Shaun Of The Dead. But what may really surprise you is that it might actually be better than everyone's favourite zom-com.

In Hot Fuzz, Simon Pegg plays Nicholas Angel, London's top cop who, evidently, is doing his job a bit too well. His arrest rate is 400 per cent above the rest of the precinct, and thus his commanding officers (played wonderfully by Steve Coogan, Bill Nighy and Martin Freeman), realizing that he's making the rest of the force look bad, transfer Angel to sunny Sandford, the safest place in all of England. Upon arrival, the supercop is met with intense boredom, and resorts to arresting teenagers for lack of better things to do.

Angel reluctantly slips into the small town mindset after meeting his partner, Danny Butterman (Frost). The two dole out speeding tickets and reprimand shoplifters before Nicholas stumbles upon a string of murders seemingly involving the town's always-smiling supermarket owner, Simon Skinner (Dalton).

Where Shaun Of The Dead was a straight-faced homage to zombie films, Hot Fuzz is a completely straight-faced homage to both English murder mysteries and American action movies, both of which are subtly and not-so-subtly referenced throughout the film. The first two acts set up the mystery, which although somewhat transparent, is still fairly amusing. The real meat of the film, which delivers the biggest laughs, comes in the third act when Hot Fuzz kicks into high gear and becomes a full-fledged action flick, equal parts tongue-in-cheek humour and loving tribute. What makes it work, though, is that you will bust a gut regardless of whether you're familiar with the films Bad Boys or Point Break.

Wright and Pegg have made a script that fires on all cylinders, so even if you don't get the note-perfect references, you can still enjoy watching an old woman get drop-kicked in the face. It isn't all visual gags, though, as the dialogue is what makes Hot Fuzz a top-notch comedy. Danny's constant quizzing of Nicholas about cop films is hysterical, and supporting characters The Andys (two cartoonish detectives with matching Tom Selleck moustaches played by Paddy Considine and Rafe Spall) provide line after line of quotable dialogue. It's the kind of movie you could watch a dozen times and still find something new with each viewing, and that's what makes it stand head and shoulders above recent comedies.

It's hard to imagine hardcore fans of Shaun Of The Dead not instantly falling in love with Hot Fuzz. It contains the perfect mix of killer writing, great acting and spot-on direction that made the former a modern classic. Instead of worrying over which film is better or worse, fans should simply enjoy this incredible movie by one of the best comedy teams of our time.