FILM REVIEW
Funny British film not for children

“Fuzz” is a common British slang word for police. But whether it’s shown stateside or across the pond, Rogue Pictures’ “Hot Fuzz” is hilarious.

The makers of the 2004 zombie comedy “Shaun of the Dead,” Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright have struck satirical gold once more with an exaggerated take on police buddy action films.

Officer Nicholas Angel, played by Pegg, is one of the best tough London cops in town. He is so good at his job that he makes everyone else look bad.

At the outset of “Hot Fuzz,” coworkers conspire to get him promoted to sergeant and then transferred from London to the seemingly sleepy village of Sandford in the English countryside.

Upon his arrival, Angel is stunned by the lack of professionalism that greets him at the local police station, but unrelenting in his dedication to his work, he makes five arrests the night before his first day on the job. Just days into his tenure in Sandford, a series of “accidents” begin occurring and Angel becomes suspicious of foul play in the quaint village.

Murders are made to look like accidents and no one but Angel is suspicious of the cause of the multiple deaths.

As he adjusts to life in Sandford, Angel befriends coworker Danny Butterman, played by Nick Frost. Butterman — an overweight and underachieving cop — gets Angel to watch cop dramas which ends up inspiring Angel to take action against the murderers ransacking the village.

Angel and Butterman grow into the partners they watch in movies, making each other better professionally and personally through their relationship with one another.

Although the film is violent and crass at times, the ultimate lesson is an exaggerated one regarding the negative effects of pride and selfishness. While searching for the motive inspiring the village murders, Angel discovers the reason for the killing to be petty illustrations of the aforementioned vices.

Throughout the film Sandford villagers are preparing to compete for the title of best village in England. In fact, their passion for this award becomes an unhealthy obsession that leads to their moral demise as they take any and all steps they see as necessary to attain the recognition they desire.

Although “Hot Fuzz” is hardly appropriate for children, it does teach a basic lesson about the dangers of passions that lead to negative actions. Passions that elicit negative actions are evil and this point is made clear throughout the film. The villagers seem to lose all compassion as human beings in their pursuit of the relatively petty glory of being named England’s best village.

The plot is secondary in quality and importance to the nuanced performances of the men and women portraying the villagers. There is a myriad of villagers introduced throughout the film, but each one manages to remain distinctive in the continuity that is Sandford.

The actors and actress that comprise the Sandford police force are continually hilarious as cleverly-constructed caricatures. The gravitas with which the comedic performers approach each unique character is the key to successful satire in the film.

“Hot Fuzz” runs long and drags a bit at times, but will leave viewers smiling as long as it is not taken too seriously. It is certainly meant to be satirical, and to watch “Hot Fuzz” with any other mindset would not only lessen the potential enjoyment of the film, but also simply frustrate the viewer.

The graphic nature of police dramas is prevalent in the satirical version of the genre, but not as realistically gory or serious as in the majority of partner-cop films. Casual cursing is also frequent.

There is not a lot of depth to the film, but it is clever and engaging throughout. One will not learn much about police work, morals or British villages in “Hot Fuzz,” but will be entertained.

Rebecca Bostic is a regular contributor to The Catholic Sun. Comments are welcome. Send e-mail to letters@catholicsun.org.