HOT FUZZ

BY CHRISTOPHER HASKELL
AUGUST 27, 2013

Not quite to the level of Edgar Wright’s previous success in zombie-spoof, “Shaun of the Dead,” his latest venture, “Hot Fuzz,” still proves stylistically on par yet lacks the thoughtfulness and ingenuity brought by his first film. Parodying blow-em up action films, “Hot Fuzz” relies once again on Simon Pegg and Nick Frost to deliver hilarious scene after scene and eventually lands some decent action sequences. Still, for the most part, with a lot of British humor lost on me, I question the ability of this film to stand on its own, without Wright’s initial success. With much more of an ensemble cast and a mystery-slasher film plot structure, the film is by and entertaining throughout but does not quite hold the same comedic pacing as “Shaun of the Dead.” Had the dialogue spread out and not been so repetitive and had Pegg’s character been a bit more dynamic, the film would not feel as flat and would have reached a much wider audience. Carrying many of the same basic ideas that Wright originally introduced and continuing his comedic editing, “Hot Fuzz” will still land as a success in my book. However, it still leaves the door wide open for Wright to produce something even better.