Whats the Fuzz? (a review of the film Hot Fuzz) May 4, 2007

Well let me tell you! A new film from the lovely boys who did Shaun of the Dead worth a lookie loo? OF COURSE!

Last week we went to see this lovely parody and let me tell you, it was VERY much worth it. Absolutely completely and utterly hilarious. This film is a well thought out and witty parody of cop movies, like Bad Boyz and it lived up to my lofty Shawn of the Dead expectations.

Nicholas Angel (Simon Pegg) is reassigned from the rough streets of London to the small English country village of Sandford Gloustershire where he meets his partner in fighting crime PC Danny Butterman (Nick Frost). He quickly sets to work making sure the long arm of the law reaches even the grittiest villains in the village, from the under age kids in the pub to a swan on the loose, no job is too tough for the duo. But not everything is cakes and tea in this village and the two begin to follow a foul trail of grisly (and graphic) murders to the darkness that lies at the heart of the idyllic village.

Like Shawn of the Dead the wit in this film is razor sharp and the laughs don’t stop. Edgar Wright has once again created a film of comedic harmony with silly moments that make you laugh with glee to smart and witty comments that make you grin. This film is incredibly entertaining and definitely worth the 12 dollars to get in.

Unlike Shawn of the Dead, Hot Fuzz is lacking a strong story to bring it together, however the jokes are hilarious and watching Simon Pegg and Nick Frost chasing a swan is incredibly funny. Then again, when one parodies such an incredibly plot-less genre of films it may be necessary to create an equally inept storyline. If that was the intent, then Hot Fuzz delivers.

The acting is of course sublime, beyond the fantastic chemistry of Nick Frost and Simon Pegg the film rolls out some fantastic British actors. Bill Nighy is a favorite for me and I just love the fact that he is in this film, but cameos by Bill Bailey (fantastic British Comic – check out Part Troll – hokey cokey on You Tube), Jim Broadbent (Moulin Rouge, to name one of many), Timothy Dalton (Bond, From Russia with Love) and Martin Freeman (the British version of The Office, he’s a cutie pie) just increase the laughs.

So all in all, it’s very fantastic and I think you all should go see this it’s very funny and very light, simple and a great and you get to see Simon Pegg without a beard and it’s cute.

Fido – A touching story of a boy and his Zombie March 19, 2007

On Friday Zac, Nathan and I hustled our tushes over to the Globe Theatre to go see the premier Fido, the new Zombie movie featuring Carrie-Ann Moss, Billy Connelly and K’sun Ray (to name but a few) followed by a Q&A session with one of the producers.

I have to admit I’m not a huge fan of the whole Zombie gross out/gore genre, that being said I LOVE Shaun of the Dead and the silly fun that movie produces. Fido effectively takes the story of Shaun of the Dead to the next level moving it from “the night of the Zombies” to somewhere in the future, after the Zombies have attacked and having a collared/docile Zombie is the latest gadget that everyone must have, like a dishwasher and a slave all in one.

 This film brings to mind the whole 1950s scrubbed clean look with a very simple pallett of colours and a very “Leave it to Beaver”/”Pleasantville”/Lassie feeling. The only difference with this story is that it includes everyone’s favorite character, Zombies .

 Thematically the film brings to light ideas of love and loss and echos (though I’m not sure intentionally) the current political tendancies south of the border of “Security through containment”. Suggesting that love can be quiet and without words is something that echos an episode of Lassie but without the fluffy dog.

 Even though there is a distinctly interesting and very developed thematic core to this film, which really does give it heart, the writers have developed a very funny and humorous story with moments where Fido (the Zombie played by Billy Connelly) brings the mother (Carrie-Ann Moss) to Timmy’s (K’sun Ray) rescue.  This is just a hint of the jokes that are incredibly prevalent in this fantastic film.

 

The acting does add to this film even more with all three of the principle characters playing their parts fantastically. A special note though must go to the performance by Billy Connelly as it was impressive to see the Glaswegian comic with out his iconic long hair, beard and huge accent. He relies soley on eye movements (much like Lassie) to indicate what Fido is feeling at any given time. The sublety of this performance is fantastic and really does make the film even better (look for Fido’s smile, it made me giggle, alot).

 The costuming and set are gorgeous, certain moments are quite obviously set in Kelowna (for anyone who has ever been there)  and the costuming with it’s limited technicolour pallet is gloriously 50’s.

 Frankly this is probably one of the funniest movies I’ve seen in ages this might not be in the Borat, ” I can’t believe he’s actually doing that” way but in a more subtle and soulful way.

 From what we heard from the producer this film has been a long time in the coming and had been shelved for a number of years, that being said it had recieved huge backing by a number of people in the industry and even though it was a struggle with such a stellar cast and a fantastic story it should go quite far.

So go see Fido, it is FUNNY, it is CUTE and it is CANADIAN!