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<\/a><\/p>\nFolks have been asking what I thought of Hot Fuzz<\/em>. (In fact, when I spoke at Seattle\u2019s Chesterton Society last Thursday about the complicated questions facing Christians in the moviemaking arena, the very first question after my presentation was: \u201cSo what did you think of Hot Fuzz <\/em>and Shaun of the Dead<\/em>?\u201d Long awkward silence. I blinked, stammered a bit, and shifted into fanboy mode\u2026 but it was an awkward shift.)<\/p>\n Why haven\u2019t I bothered to write about it? Maybe it\u2019s because, while I enjoyed it, I found it slightly disappointing, and I just couldn\u2019t muster the enthusiasm to blog. It\u2019s much easier to write about a film if I\u2019m either intrigued, excited, or really <\/em>disappointed.<\/p>\n Anyway\u2026 Hot Fuzz <\/em>was not as satisfying, for me, as Shaun of the Dead<\/em>, but it\u2019s still much funnier and more inventive than any recent American comedies. Shaun<\/em> took more risks, was more reckless and inspired. Hot Fuzz<\/em> is very entertaining, and it finds plenty of opportunities for mayhem in this Bad Boys Meets Miss Marple<\/em> premise. But it goes for the obvious punchline too often. Where Shaun<\/em>\u2018s unique appeal came from the hilarious incongruity of its mellow, everyday happenings and over-the-top zombie-movie madness, Hot Fuzz <\/em>feels a little more forced; everything is cartoonish from the get-go.<\/p>\n Still, director Edgar Winter has turned this into a surprisingly polished production, connecting scenes with flashy, noisy segues that seem to have been supplied by Guy Ritchie.<\/p>\n And, in the spirit of Monty Python and the Black Knight, there are a few unforgettably, preposterously bloody killings and injuries\u2026 which are meant to spoof the genre\u2019s preoccupation with grisly deaths, demises, and comeuppances. They\u2019re so outrageous that they can\u2019t be taken seriously\u2026 but that doesn\u2019t mean that they won\u2019t make a few viewers sick to their stomachs here and there.<\/p>\n But my favorite thing about the film is its brilliant casting. Simon Pegg has created a completely different character this time around, and his chemistry with Nick Frost is still greatly amusing. We\u2019re treated to memorable turns by Bill Nighy, Paul \u201cBelloq\u201d Freeman (yes, Belloq lives!), Jim Broadbent, and above all, Timothy Dalton in a sensational, self-effacing performance that gives the film real gusto.<\/p>\n Not only that, but Hot Fuzz<\/em> features one of the most inspired, uncredited, surprise-cameo appearances I\u2019ve ever seen (9 out of 10 people will miss it). When I think back on what impressed me about the film, that was the single-most inspired idea in the whole thing. (And when I enthused to the film\u2019s publicists about that cameo afterward, even they hadn\u2019t noticed it!)<\/p>\n Still, it ran too long for me, wrapping up with a few too many exclamation points at the end. Shaun of the Dead <\/em>had me laughing even as I flinched at the genre-required zombie gore. Hot Fuzz<\/em> was more amusing than hilarious.<\/p>\n Jason Morehead<\/a> (Opus) says, \u201cIn the end, Hot Fuzz <\/em>is \u2026 a whole lot of good, plain cinematic fun. Consider it the filmic equivalent of a bacon double cheeseburger with a big side of greasy fries. It doesn\u2019t necessarily attempt to subvert or deconstruct the action genre (though there are scenes that could possibly count as such). Rather, it attempts to simply relish in the genre, to tease out and enjoy every single one of its ludicrous aspects. To that end, it\u2019s a wild success\u2014and the fact that it also features some of the most memorable characters, some of the best dialog, and some of the funniest moments of any movie so far this year is just an added bonus.\u201d<\/p>\n Manohla Dargis<\/a> (NY Times<\/em>) says, \u201cA wee bit of plot tucked amid a fusillade of film-geek jokes and charming nonsense, bang-bang, hee-hee, Hot Fuzz<\/em> trots out the predictable verbal and visual allusions to modern Hollywood action movies great and forgettable, hitting the highs (Point Break<\/em>) right along with the lows (Bad Boys II<\/em>). \u2026 Think of it as The Full Monty<\/em> blown to smithereens.\u201d<\/p>\n David Edelstein<\/a> (New York Magazine<\/em>) writes, \u201cHot Fuzz <\/em>is fun, and it\u2019s nice to see all the English character actors who aren\u2019t busy in Harry Potter films, but it lacks its predecessor\u2019s freshness. Small-town English Fascism has been spoofed at least as far back as The Avengers<\/em>, and the hero\u2019s odyssey doesn\u2019t have that archetypal Joseph Campbell kick. The ramshackle Shaun of the Dead<\/em> was held together by more than just gags. It was, at heart, the story of a child-man who gets the courage to grow up\u2014to take responsibility for his life, commit to a woman, and make peace with his mother. That he could do this and still get to blow off the top of her head with a shotgun\u2014that\u2019s the magic of movies.\u201d<\/p>\n Normally I would recommend Anthony Lane\u2019s review to you, but he describes in graphic detail the demise of the film\u2019s villain. How dare he?<\/p>\n Lawrence Toppman<\/a> (Charlotte Observer<\/em>) says, \u201cIf you see Hot Fuzz<\/em>, you\u2019ll never again watch a Michael Bay film without howling with disrespectful laughter. But if you already giggle at the countless crashes, bullet-spraying battles and clunky macho dialogue of these overblown extravaganzas, you\u2019re the target audience for Fuzz<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n Greg Wright<\/a> (Past the Popcorn) loved it. \u201cI enjoyed Hot Fuzz <\/em>immensely\u2014probably more than the movie itself warranted\u2014because it took me by surprise. If you\u2019re up for a salty-tongued, faux-violent, but otherwise raunch-free R-rated buddy-cop comedy, stop reading now and let this movie surprise you, too.\u201d<\/p>\n