Scorching

Rating: 9/10 (6 February 2007)

I feel compelled to put a comment in on this film. I am a big fan of the Wright/Pegg/Frost combination, and was hoping for something in the vein of "Spaced" or "Shaun of the Dead" - which i wouldn't call this. The homages to film and television are still there (i'm sure it will take three or four viewings to spot them all), but Simon Pegg and Nick Frost don't have the comfort of basically just playing themselves this time - they have characters to portray, and they both pull it off admirably (especially Pegg, who he has demonstrated his acting skills on a number of programmes previously in the UK).
This film is also more plot driven than "Spaced" or "Shaun...", and as such i think more accessible to audiences who maybe won't see or aren't interested in the *nudge-nudge* pop culture references. There are belly-laugh funny lines that don't require an intimate knowledge of George Lucas's universe, "Resident Evil" or electro music; (some lines WILL be much funnier if you've seen "Shaun of the Dead" first, though). The cameos alone (just glance through the cast list...) will be enough to satisfy those of us who would have appreciated an homage-o-meter to spot all the single shot or two-word references to films both classic and cheesy.
Anyway... skip to the end...
I do have reservations about the last two minutes or so, and it isn't the trickiest 'whodunnit' to work out (obviously i can't be specific - i'm not writing any spoilers in this one, but it isn't as blatant as i've made it sound either); but these points certainly weren't enough to ruin what was a top-notch piece of cinematic entertainment. Apart from an open air showing of "Enter the Dragon" at Glastonbury, it was the happiest, loudest, liveliest cinema audience i've ever been privileged to sit amongst.