Hot Fuzz. Superpolicías

Hot Fuzz satirizes American action films in a way that an American satire would not. Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg don't simply spoof the plot threads and the car chases. They know the smaller details of Hollywood's formula, as they exemplify with its continuous references to the scene in Point Break where Keanu Reeves fires his gun into the sky in anger and the scene in Bad Boys II where Martin Lawrence, in a circling tracking shot, says, "S*** just got real." Not only do they tackle those less clear characteristics of Hollywood, they also perfectly portray people who talk about awesome scenes in action movies, hilariously by Nick Frost. The film is brilliantly in precise tune with the American mainstream action adventure.

The irony in this film is that it takes place in the serenely beautiful English countryside. In some ways, the film is very important for Americans to see. It delves very deeply into the conscious social mannerisms of the English, and parodies the timid insular English village life. Perhaps the most brilliant element of Hot Fuzz is the intertwining of a big-budget action film with gimmicks and a desperately fast pace and a quaint, atmospheric English village given the secrets-of-its-own flavor and a Agatha Christie-style expository structure.

The film-making style in and of itself is complicit in the satire. The cinematography and editing is a product of the school of Tony Scott and Guy Ritchie. It's filled with jump cuts accompanied by loud and constantly changing sound effects, occasional strobe, and montages of grainy, bleached out, extravagantly lit shots edited together at machine gun speed. The soundtrack is that of any super-cool action film from Hollywood. This works so well not only as a dead-on impression of Hollywood film-making but also as a hilarious opposition to the English countryside.

Simon Pegg's performance is a work of comic genius. His character is so well-developed as a man of invincible and authentic confidence and incredible drive, a workaholic, a zealot, and also an action hero stereotype. Nick Frost is a great second banana because not only is he the punchline to Pegg's straight line, he's also funny in such a direct, adolescent way, an unlikely comic relief sidekick.

The film's great surprise is a comeback performance from Timothy Dalton. Not only is it a reappearance from the abyss he's been lost in since his two-year stint as James Bond, but also a vindication against all who've continually dismissed his credibility as an actor and doubted his comic ability. He's very funny and one of the film's great highlights.

I've rarely seen a comedy so cleverly written, beautifully directed, atmospheric, or intelligently ridiculous.

Hot Fuzz: The story tells us of an over-active 'policeman officer', Nicholas Angel (Played by the co-star of Shaun of the Dead, Simon Pegg) who is sent to work his duties out in the countryside, to avoid his use of excessive arrests. Suspicions arrive in the town however, as people start getting killed 'accidentally'. Coupled with his rather unprofessional partner Danny Butterman (Similiarily played by Shaun of the Dead star Nick Frost) they get themselves into suspicious circumstances Nicholas Angel fails to ignore.

But what can I say? It's just hilarious! An incredibly funny, witty, intelligent British comedy that manages to bring you to tears with laughter and also offers extremely well directed and executed action scenes! If you liked the likes of Shaun of the Dead, you'll love this, simple as that. I was oddly surprised to find that it was incredibly violent, albeit, in a cartoony way, but it will definitely make you squint. Plenty of cameo's by the likes of the hilarious Bill Bailey and a great cast will make this a action/thriller/comedy hard to forget! Excellent.

This film did not get too much play in the USA and I count myself fortunate that I'm close enough to the Canadian border to get these occasional gems broadcast from the CBC. Lucky indeed that the CBC is part of my cable package.

Simon Pegg is a too good to be true London police officer who is wracking up arrests and making his colleagues look shameful. It's decided that the place to go to cool that zeal off a bit is the quiet and peaceful rural town of Sandford. In the United Kingdom it's the most crime free zone in the whole country.

In fact Pegg looks like he's going to die of sheer boredom. He makes four collars for minor offenses even before he officially is on the job there. It looks like he is not going to be a good fit for this quiet town. The only friend that Pegg has on the Sandford PD is Nick Frost, the somewhat oafish son of Broadbent whom Pegg is assigned as a partner. Frost who just loves American action flicks with guns and car chases would love for there to be something afoot.

The story behind Hot Fuzz is really quite bizarre and you'd have to go to the American film The Stepford Wives for a comparison. There are no experiments going on to turn the Sandford women into docile feminine drones, it's a mindset that has taken control of the place. The most sinister character is that of Timothy Dalton who is very much like the Arthur Hill character in The Stepford Wives.

This sleeper of a black comedy is really quite a gem. I hope that Hot Fuzz gets discovered on this side of the pond.

After Shaun of the Dead, this second pairing of Simon Pegg and Nick Frost was very high on my wanted list, and it didn't disappoint in the least.

Hot Fuzz is crammed full of excellent characters, ranging from the eccentric to the diabolical, and every one gets at least one laugh during the course of the movie and most of them get many more. I don't mean to suggest that this film is wall to wall gags; in fact it is far from it, instead it is just very clever and often very subtle humour that runs continuously throughout the film.

Another pleasant surprise was the wonderfully impressive murder scenes, which were pretty gruesome and definitely stood out from the general vibe of the film, which made them far more involving. As well as the comedy and the murders, there is also a genuine sense of mystery surrounding these events and it definitely makes for compulsive viewing.

Just in case all that wasn't enough to satisfy you, there is a very action packed and explosive end sequence that is so out of place and ludicrous it works like a charm, and simply caps the film off in style superbly.

For me this film was every bit as good as Shaun of the Dead, and its definitely one of the best comedies ever made.

9/10

I was lucky enough to see a preview of this film for free after I attended a random screening of Scorcese's the Departed. Naturally hearing that the makers of Shaun of the Dead were behind this I had to go see it - if a group of people can make a romantic comedy with zombies, then a buddy cop film HAD to inventive and original.

I can safely say that it was. I haven't laughed as hard in a film as I did with Hot Fuzz. The parts are all cast brilliantly - in particular Pegg and Frost as the two lead police officers.

Pegg bringing the smart, intelligent, action hardened London cop to the sleep north England village works in a classic fish out of water scenario. It surprised me with it's direction and I will confess I couldn't have predicted how everything would pan out.

When this is fully released I urge you to go and see it.