Funny, smart, and thrilling, Hot Fuzz is a masterful send-up/salute to the American cop movie

Rating: 9/10 (7 December 2014)

In 2004, Simon Pegg and Edger Wright unleashed Shaun of the Dead, a gory, over the top parody of the zombie genre which delighted critics and audiences alike. Now, with Hot Fuzz, they've done the same for the buddy-cop genre. And they've made a film even better than their first. They've packed in more action, more laughs, and somehow, even more gore.
Hot Fuzz stars co-writer Simon Pegg as Sergeant Nick Angel, London's best cop. So good in fact, he makes everyone else look bad by comparison. Thus he receives a less than welcome to be transferred to England's most crime free town and is partnered to the most inept officer in all the United Kingdom. (Nick Frost.) Before long though, a series of grizzly deaths sweeps the village. The local cops shrug them off as accidents, but Nick is convinced that the deaths and connected, and that he knows who's at the bottom of it. But the conspiracy may run much deeper, and be far more ridiculous than he could ever imagine.
Like Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz works largely by collecting every cliché of the genre, and then dialing it up to eleven. And I do mean every cliché, including but not limited to: the woefully mismatched partners who eventually become the best of friends; the by the book big city officer who alienates his small town counterparts with his insistence that everything be done properly; the endless shoot-outs in which hundreds of rounds are fired but only the guys can hit anything; the high speed chases filled with jumps, 1800 turns, and near misses; the cop with a theory no-one believes in; and lots of massive, gratuitous explosions. And just in case you thought of any I didn't mention, don't worry, they're lampooned as well.
And are they ever lampooned! For instance, at one point Angel and his partner engage in an adrenaline pumping foot chase down alleys, through backyards, and over fences, encountering every manner of obstacle- to catch a shoplifter. It's ridiculous, and yet they manage to play it totally straight, with as much action and heart pounding music as if they were after a killer. And that shoot out I mentioned involves nearly every single person in the entire town, right down to the doctor and the priest. And throughout, the level of gore and melodrama are ratcheted up well into the realm of absurdity. The reporter's death in particular is on par with Reservoir Dogs' infamous ear scene. This movie proves beyond a doubt that over the top action can be funny on purpose- take that Michal Bay! But Hot Fuzz isn't just a satire of cop movies; Pegg and Wright have managed to pay homage to some of their favorites while spoofing them at the same time. Nor is all of the film's comedic potential derived from deliberate overstatement. It also effectively utilizes a good deal of screw ball, fish out of water, and old fashioned slapstick, as well as a fair amount of humor relating to some of the village's more odd residents, such as the totally incomprehensible old farmer. Add in some clever (and sometimes dirty) wordplay and gut busting plot twists, and you have a very well rounded comedy.
Of course Hot Fuzz is also an action movie, and a very good one at that. The gunfights, especially the final one, are beautifully staged, the pyrotechnics are first rate, and the fight scenes are both brutal and hysterical. The supermarket showdown is a real treat, as is the brawl in the miniature town. The chases, both vehicular and on foot are top notch as well, delivering both action and laughs. Note should also be taken of the acting. Pegg and Frost's chemistry from their previous films is fully intact, and Timothy Dalton puts in a wonderfully suave yet creepy performance as the town grocer.
Quite simply, Hot Fuzz is one of the funniest, smartest, most action packed, most original, and all around brilliant comedies that Britain (or any other country) has produced in years. If you liked Shaun of the Dead, you'll love this one.