Hot Fuzz Review

Hot Fuzz, Edgar Wright's satirical action comedy that is the second film in his famous Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy.

Hot Fuzz follows Simon Pegg as Sgt. Nicholas "Nick" Angel, the London's police most dedicated cop on the force, or rather the "service," after he is transferred to the seemingly quiet village of Sandford, Gloucestershire. In the village, there have been a series of murders and Nick must solve the case, although the movie is a lot better than it sounds. While Edgar Wright's previous film, Shaun of the Dead, which brilliantly parodied zombie flicks, Hot Fuzz parodies the action and buddy cop genre with an even better effort that contains plenty of satirical wit. In the UK, the word "fuzz" is a common slang word for the police or any other similar authority, and it often has a negative association.

Directed by: Edgar Wright

Genre: Comedy, Action Comedy, Satire, Black Comedy

Release Date: 20 April 2007

Running Time: 121 minutes

MMPA rating: R

The Good: Intelligent parody and satire of action movies and buddy cop flicks, Competent plot, Intriguing mystery element, Memorable quotes, Often hilarious, Fun action scenes, Strong performances, Witty humor, Unique direction by Edgar Wright, Movie references, Pegg and Frost's chemistry is great,

The Bad:

Plot: 9.1/10- Considering that Hot Fuzz is a comedy that is intentionally parodying the crime and mystery genres, the mystery and plot is surprisingly competent.

Among similar crime mystery movies, Hot Fuzz's plot is well written and the mystery is intriguing. Enough information is actually given so that the viewer can figure out the mystery, while also being a smart satire on the genre. At some points, the movie actually feels like a serious, well written mystery with some great humor thrown in.

Characterization: 8.2/10- As with Edgar Wright's Shaun of the Dead, the two main characters in the film have satisfying character arcs. Nick Angel is a likable protagonist, and his extra dedicated demeanor often results is some great humor.

Action: 7.7/10- Towards the end of the movie, there are several fun action scenes. While some aspects of the action are intentionally comedic, they are entertaining nonetheless.

Acting: 9.2/10- Simon Pegg plays the serious and comedic aspects of the role to perfection! And his chemistry with Nick Frost continues to be a highlight of the film.
As for Frost, his character is more likable than the one in Shaun of the Dead. Other members of the stellar British cast include Timothy Dalton, Martin Freeman, and Bill Nighy, all of which are positively fantastic.

Soundtrack: 7.8/10- Hot Fuzz's score is a lot of fun and fitting for the humor. Also, the licenced music, mostly British rock, is exactly what the movie needed.

Humor: 9.3/10- As stated previously, Edgar Wright's British satirical humor is right up my alley, and Hot Fuzz is full of it. While the movie is not necessarily hilarious all of the time, the jokes rarely miss, especially if you are an action movie fan. Again, the crude is limited to one joke, while the majority of the humor is very smart jokes and a satire of the action genre, which is my type of humor. Also, the movie is rated R for a reason, and the deaths in the movie are gruesome with plenty of blood, almost to comedic extent, providing you have a sick sense of my humor like myself.
Humor Percentage
Hilarious: 40%
Very Funny: 50%
Mildly Funny: 7%
Not Funny: 3%

Entertainment Value: 9.4/10- From beginning to end, Hot Fuzz entertained me throughly. When I was not laughing, I was intrigued by the mystery, there was not a dull moment in the film.

Overall: 9.0/10- Overall, Hot Fuzz is an intelligent and often humorous action comedy that also has one of the best and most competent plot of any comedy. Edgar Wright's is a genius when it comes to comedy and satire, and Hot Fuzz is his best work to date.

Closing comments: As with Shaun of the Dead, if you are not a fan of Edgar Wright's British humor, you will likely not enjoy Hot Fuzz. On the other hand, if it is your thing, Hot Fuzz should be a blast!

Recommended for: Action fans, Action comedy fans, Satire fans, British humor fans, Simon Pegg fans, Black Comedy fans,

Click here to check out more of my movie reviews.

If you want to contact us or have any questions please send an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World Review

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World combines three of my favorite things, video games, comic books, and anime into one quirky, entertaining, and stylist live-action package.

After failing at the box office, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World became a cult classic of sorts. It is the type of film that is designed to appeal to specific audience members, and if you are not a part of that group, you will likely not find the movie particularly entertaining. If, however, you are a part of the intended audience, you will likely find a lot to enjoy.
The film is directed by the popular Edgar Wright, who is most notable for making the Cornetto trilogy (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, and The World's End), and his fast editing and directorial style is presence throughout Scott Pilgrim. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World is also based on the comic book, Scott Pilgrim, and just like the comic book, the movie contains many references and the visual choices that resemble video games, anime, and manga. For example, when someone dies, they explode into coins and points pop-up where they die just like a video game, and that is just the beginning. There are tons of visual and even plot points that mimic video games, and if you expect to take the movie seriously or for it to explain why all of these people have crazy powers, then you will disappointed. The original comic book was written by a Canadian, but took a lot visual cues from manga (Japanese comics) and anime, which is evident throughout the film. At one point during the movie, one of the characters' faces turns into an anime type face, which was hilarious!

Scott Pilgrim comic

Directed by: Edgar Wright
Genre: Action, Action Comedy,
Release Date: August 13, 2010
Running Time: 112 minutes
MMPA rating: PG-13

The Good: Awesome visuals, Impressive action scenes, Tons of style, Video game and anime references, Often humorous, Unique is almost every respect, Great direction, Chris Evans is a lot of fun, Smart parody of pop-culture, Fast-paced, NegaScott FTW,

The Bad: One incredibly annoying character, Occasionally too corny for its own good,

Plot: The following plot summary is copied from Wikipedia.com.
In Toronto, 22-year-old Scott Pilgrim, the bass guitarist for the band "Sex Bob-omb", begins dating high schooler Knives Chau, much to the disapproval of his friends. Soon, Scott meets an American girl, Ramona Flowers. Ramona begins appearing in Scott's dreams, and he becomes obsessed with Ramona, losing interest in Knives. While playing in a battle of the bands sponsored by one "G-Man Graves" for a record deal, Scott is attacked by Matthew Patel, who introduces himself as the first of Ramona's "evil exes". Scott defeats Patel and learns that, in order for them to date, he must defeat all seven of her evil exes.
Watch the movie to see what happens next.

Plot: 7.9/10- Scott Pilgrim vs. the World's plot plays out much like an old video game with Scott having to defeat Ramona's seven evil exes, which makes the plot somewhat simple, yet that is also the appeal. Plot points follow elements of video games and even anime to a lesser degree. While not as apparent to me as it was for others, there are some metaphors about dating, and it almost makes fun of it to a certain degree. It seems as though the romance in the movie is more parody than anything believable, which works to the movie’s advantage in the end.

Characterization: 7.9/10- For the most part, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World's characters are fun and cartoony in the best way possible with one exception. Scott Pilgrim is timid and almost a wimp in many respects on the outside. However, he is a competent fighter, and from what is revealed from his past, he is not a complete social failure, as his stereotypical “nerd” appearance might suggest, which makes for an interesting juxtaposition. Ramona Flowers is the girl that Scott falls for, and she is mostly a good character, although her tsundere traits might annoy some viewers. Wallace Wells, Scott's friend, is the most annoying and worst character in the movie; he almost ruins the movie.

Action: 8.8/10- Surprisingly, the fight scenes in the movie have a lot of strong choreography and anime style action. From the insanely cool weapons to the hand-to-hand fights, there is not a single frame of shaky-cam. Also, the fight scenes, just like the movie, ooze with flashy video game/anime style.

Acting: 7.5/10- Some members of the cast in Scott Pilgrim vs. the World seem to be intentionally overacting, especially the Evil Exes. Sometimes the overacting works brilliantly like Chris Evans and Brandon Routh as two of the Evil Exes, while, at other times, it feels a little too corny.

Having not seen Michael Cera in any other film prior to watching Scott Pilgrim, I cannot fault him for playing the same role again, because I have no frame of reference. As Scott Pilgrim, Cera does a good job with the wimpy aspects of the character. Mary Elizabeth Winstead nails the tsundere character type, although she can be a tad grating at times. Ellen Wong as Knives Chau is a ton of fun in her role, and having Anna Kendrick in a minor role as Scott's sister is never a bad thing. Also, Aubrey Plaza is excellent as always in a role that perfectly suits her style.

Special effects: 9.5/10- Not only are the special effects surprisingly good, Edgar Wright's direction is superb! His quick cuts and generally fast editing is absolutely perfect. The use of on screen text and comic book like "Bang" and "Pow" visual aids are often humorous and add to the video game/manga aesthetic. Some of the special effects seem to be intentionally absurd, and it usually works.

Soundtrack: 8.1/10- While I am no fan of punk rock, the songs used in the movie are actually quite good. The score by Nigel Godrich nails the video game feel with a lot of 16-bit electronic sounds.

Humor: 8.8/10- Even though it is not entirely a comedy, Edgar Wright's tongue-in-cheek and satirical wit and humor is absolutely perfect for the movie. If you get the references to video games and other geeky tropes, you will find a lot of humor to enjoy.

Entertainment Value: 8.8/10- A few parts of the movie were a little too corny for its own good, which took me out of the movie, and Wallace annoyed me to no end, but for the majority of the film, I was most certainly entertained.

Overall: 8.6/10- Overall, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World is a fun, stylistic, and insanely unique movie with a style all its own. While it has its flaws and does not always hit the mark, it is yet another stellar movie by Edgar Wright, too bad it failed at the box office.

Closing comments: Scott Pilgrim vs. the World is the type of movie that is made for a very specific audience, and if you are not a part of said audience, then you will not find much to enjoy. On the other hand, if you do like video games, anime, comic books, and Edgar Wright, you are sure to at least enjoy the movie and its quirky humor and stylistic direction.

Recommended for: Anime fans (Otaku), Comic Book fans, Edgar Wright fans, Action fans, Action comedy fans, Manga fans, Video game fans,

Click here to check out more of my movie reviews.

 If you want to contact us or have any questions please send an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.

Shaun of the Dead Review

Shaun of the Dead, Edgar Wright's satirical zombie comedy that is the first film in his famous Three Flavours Cornetto Trilogy.

Shaun of the Dead follows Shaun, his friend Ed, and Shaun's girlfriend, Liz, after a zombie outbreak spreads across London. Unlike most zombie movies, director, Edgar Wright, takes a witty and satirical approach by adding a lot of very smart humor into a surprisingly strong zombie narrative. Compared to most comedies, Shaun of the Dead actually has a surprisingly well developed cast of characters, and some elements of the plot are taken seriously at times, but it never forgets the humor. Also, while I am not the biggest zombie fan, after watching becoming a fan of The Walking Dead, my interest in genre has grown quite a lot.

Directed by: Edgar Wright
Genre: Comedy, Zombie, Satire,
Release Date: 24 September 2004
Running Time: 99 minutes
MMPA rating: R

The Good: Loaded with smart and witty humor, Edgar Wright's direction is superb, "Don't Stop Me Now" scene, Simon Pegg and Nick Frost are hilarious together, Many memorable jokes and quotes, Effective zombie plot, No crude humor, Parodies zombie tropes, Absolutely perfect ending,

The Bad:

Plot: 8.1/10- For a comedy, Shaun of the Dead's plot is astonishingly smart. The movie starts out by showing the day to day life of Shaun before the outbreak, which works well to establish the characters, yet those scenes are often humorous.

The zombie outbreak aspect of the movie is rather standard fare in terms of story; however, being similar to other zombie movies is part of the satirical elements, so it works. Towards the end of the movie, it goes for a more serious tone, and while it is a tad jarring at first, it works, and the ending is positively perfect. The only issue with the more serious tone is that if you are expecting there to be genuine horror movie thrills, you will be disappointed. One thing to note is that the movie's pacing in the beginning may be a tad slow for some viewers.

Characterization: 8.7/10- Considering that most comedies have flat characters that are only present to create laughs, Shaun of the Dead's characters are surprisingly likable and the main ones even have character arcs. Shaun is the most developed character, and he is a character that is easy to like.

Action: 7.5/10- As one would expect with a zombie flick, there is some zombie killing action. A lot of the action is played for laughs, which is for the best.

Acting: 8.9/10- Simon Pegg delivers the dialogue with the perfect amount of dry wit, and he even makes the few dramatic scenes work. Nick Frost has excellent chemistry with Pegg, making them one of the best comedic duos in years. Bill Nighy plays Phillip and even though it is a small role, he is positively hilarious. Kate Ashfield as Liz plays her role well, and Martin Freeman makes a very brief appearance.

Special effects: 7.9/10- Considering the $6 million dollar budget, the zombie effects look fine for what they need to be.

Soundtrack: 7.6/10- Pete Woodhead and Daniel Mudford's score does its well job, although it is not particularly memorable. What is memorable is the hilarious use of Queen's "Don't Stop Me Now" song.

Humor: 9.4/10- Edgar Wright's brand of humor is British, and therefore, it is dry and witty rather than crude. Since humor is entirely subjective, if you do not like British humor, you will likely not enjoy Shaun of the Dead's comedy.

On the other hand, if you are like me, then you should find the movie humorous. Also, there is quite a bit of dark humor with the zombies. To me, crude humor is not funny most of the time, and by crude humor I am referring to sexual humor. Fortunately, Shaun of the Dead's humor is mostly very smart and satirical, which is one of my favorite types of humor. The dialogue is well written, and Edgar Wright's quirky directorial style is bold and unlike anything else; I love it!
Humor Percentage
Hilarious: 35%
Very funny: 55%
Mildly Funny: 5%
Not Funny: 5%

Entertainment Value: 9.1/10- Even though the first 15 minutes did not instantly attain my attention, after that, Shaun of the Dead entertained until the end.

Overall: 8.6/10- Overall, Shaun of the Dead is a smart comedy with surprisingly well realized characters and a unique directorial style by Edgar Wright, which results in my favorite zombie flick to date.

Closing comments: Shaun of the Dead's unique style and humor is both its strongest weakest aspect depending on your personal preference of humor. If you are a zombie fan however, you should most definitely give Shaun of the Dead a viewing.

Recommended for: Zombie fans, British humor fans, Simon Pegg fans, Comedy fans,

One last thing, a big thanks go to my best friend Jamie for recommending the movie and convincing me to watch it.

Click here to check out more of my movie reviews.

If you want to contact us or have any questions please send an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.