Hot Fuzz **** (2007, Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Martin Freeman, Bill Nighy, Billie Whitelaw, Timothy Dalton, Jim Broadbent) – Classic Movie Review 3314

The comedy team from Shaun of the Dead (2004) delivers the big laughs again with this triumphant spoof thriller that imagines British police such as the like of those shown in TV’s Heartbeat are filmed like it is Lethal Weapon.

Simon Pegg stars as a top London cop, PC Nicholas Angel, who is demoted to a quiet Agatha Christie-style English village called Sandford. There he gets a dumb but eager new partner, PC Danny Butterman (Nick Frost), the son of the police chief (Jim Broadbent), and he brings his tough methods to bear on a rash of small-time crooks.

Pegg and Frost prove an extremely funny double-act in this in-your-face take on Carry On Constable that starts very, very brightly indeed, though dips slightly in the second half with some wild over-acting and weak scripting by star Simon Pegg and director Edgar Wright.

Still, the best of it is absolutely hilarious and ex-007 Timothy Dalton enjoys himself extravagantly as the local Mr Big. The adverts claim ‘moderate violence’ but there’s some grisly stuff in the action and some very strong language.

© Derek Winnert 2016 Classic Movie Review 3314

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