"You wanna be a big cop in a small town? Fuck off up the model village."
Hot Fuzz is a 2007 British police comedy. A Deconstructive Parody of, and homage to, American buddy cop movie tropes, set in sleepy town in England... with dark secrets!Nicholas Angel is the top London bobby who pretty much single-handedly keeps crime down. He is, in the words of his former girlfriend Janine (an uncredited and heavily disguisedCate Blanchett), incapable of "switching off". His superiors think he is doing too good a job, making the rest of the Met look bad, so they promote him out of the way and make him a sergeant in the sleepy town of Sandford, Gloucestershire. Sandford is the winner of the Best Village In Britain award for several years running; a village renowned for having no crime... but many accidents. Being set in The West Country means all the typical stereotypes of that region are present, such as thick Somerset accents, farmer folk, tweed and wellies and some good old "Oo-ars!"Nick doesn't fit in at all. His duties are extremely banal, he immediately clashes with the laid-back cops there, and he is saddled with Danny Butterman, a rather fat young police officer who desperately wants to be a Cowboy Cop like in the movies (in Bad Boys II and Point Break, to be precise).Then a series of grisly incidents occur, leading Angel to suspect foul play.Written by Edgar Wright (who directed), starring Simon Pegg (who co-wrote) and co-starring Nick Frost (who plays Danny), this is a top-notch comedy action thriller that references plenty of tropes and ends up using them in the brilliant final act, which is possibly the most epic fight scene ever seen in a comedy, after Nicholas specifically says how wrong they are. It's also filled to the brim with Ho Yay — to the point where the creators indulged in writing slashfic on Twitter a while later, just to toy with the characters some more.Second part of Wright's planned "Three Flavours Cornetto Trilogy", preceded by Shaun of the Dead and followed by the in-production The World's End.Compare the earlier Bad Eggs and later The Other Guys.
This film contains examples of:
The Ace: Nicholas is actually a deconstruction of this trope, being an insufferable workaholic who annoys everyone with Insistent Terminology and who makes the rest of the London Service look bad. It's reconstructed later on.
Before the NWA begin their nighttime meeting, they had to make a quick announcement —a couple in the town had named their new born children, and they were all invited to the Christening.
"Model Villages" are not entirely uncommon in small British towns, and would almost be a requirement for a place trying to win "Village of the Year".
Nicholas Angelis a real name. It's the name of the film's music supervisor.
Always Identical Twins: The Sgt. Turners (although Nick doesn't know it 'til the end of the film)
Annoying Laugh: Played straight as multiple characters points out that Eve Draper has an annoying laugh, so much so that the NWA kills her because of it.
Aside Glance: A particularly funny one, too. At the pub scene just before the second "accident", Timothy Dalton accidentally looks straight down the barrel of the camera. The director loved it so much, he put in the sound of a cash register to accompany it.
"Action movie lore dictates that the ratio of bullets expended to targets hit is always disproportionately high."
Wright and Pegg even go so far in the commentary for the pub shootout to jokingly claim they wanted to take the A-Team's record for most ammunition expended in a scene without anyone getting hit. Quote:
"The A-Team were hamstrung by their inability to hit people."
Artistic License - Gun Safety: Nick Angel sure demonstrates atrocious gun safety for an uber-competent cop. The rest of the cops are no better. Intentional, given the subject parody matter. Even funnier when one pauses certain parts of gun battles. One of the cops closes one eye while aiming, but the eye that's closed is the one that's supposed to be looking down the sights.
Badass Driver: Nick improved his skill base with courses in advanced driving and advanced cycling. These skills (at least the first ones) come in very handy later, as he is embroiled in several high-speed car chases. Danny later gets in on the act after constantly irritating Angel with questions about high-speed chases. (He probably got his license after cutting his teeth on those very roads, too.)
Badass Moustache: Both the Andys though Paddy Considine's is truly spectacular. Timothy Dalton has a pencil thin, evil variation which is completely awesome.
Badass Preacher: Reverend Shooter has two derringers packed in his cassock sleeves, and is the second to actually harm Angel, who, so far, has only been hit once in the shoulder by the villains.
Bad Bad Acting: The Romeo and Juliet tribute. The reason why the leading actors involved are killed.
Bad Guy Bar: Subverted, and played straight — the pub owners are evil. Everyone else who isn't Skinner there isn't... and eventually dead.
Bad Santa: The appropriately-named Nicholas is stabbed by an evil Father Christmas (played by Peter Jackson).
A Birthday, Not a Break: Nicolas and Danny chase down clues and compiling research, confirming Nicolas' theory about a conspiracy behind the deaths. After spending the day doing this, Nicolas feels bad when he discovers he dragged Danny into it on his birthday. Danny doesn't mind, though - he thinks getting stuck into a real, serious police investigation is the best thing he could have done.
Danny Butterman: How's Lurch? Nicholas Angel: He's in the freezer. Danny: Did you say "Cool off"? Nicholas: No, I didn't say anything, actually. Danny: Shame. Nicholas: There was a bit earlier on that you missed when I, uh, distracted him with the cuddly monkey. And then I said "Playtime's over", then I hit him with the peace lily. Danny: You're off the fucking chain! (cocks shotgun)
And later, at the very end of the climax:
Nicholas: I feel like I should say something clever here. Danny: You don't have to say anything at all...
Bleep Dammit: when Angel is getting a tour of the new precinct, a Swear Jar is shown. Each swear is given various rates, while some letters are replaced by Symbol Swearing. Except the word with the highest rate, Cunt.
Bloody Hilarious: This movie doesn't shy from bloodspray in the least. Tim Messenger gets his head smashed by the tip of a church spire in one of the goriest scenes ever seen in a comedy movie, and it's so over the top, it's bizarrely humorous.
There's a reason they call it "the Blood and Cornettos Trilogy."
Nicholas: No, I got a brainwave. Get us back to the station. Now!
Danny after trying to swallow his Cornetto whole: ARGH!
Brainwashed: Played with. Angel says it outright that Frank had brainwashed the police officers into believing that all the murders going on were really accidents. They weren't good old mind-slaves, it worked like a Weirdness Censor, which they all snapped out of, when Angel finally pulls the wool from over their eyes.
The Andys mock Nicholas by suggesting he go through the phonebook, starting with Aaron A. Aaronson. Aaron A. Aaronson actually exists (causing a double-take from Nick) and plays a minor role in the climax.
Frank Butterman's reference to ice cream in the station. After Skinner impales his jaw on a model church spire, he whines and says he'll need lots of ice cream for that. Angel says, you guessed it, they have plenty of ice cream in the station.
Broken Pedestal: Uncle Derrick. He inspired his nephew to be a cop...and later got arrested for selling drugs to students. Which makes for some nice foreshadowing, since Danny also became a cop because of a close male relative (his father) and sees that role model go bad too.
The Cameo: Cate Blanchett as Nick's ex-girlfriend, and Peter Jackson as a homicidal Santa Claus (both uncredited — and Blanchett is masked!). Edgar Wright, the director and co-writer, also has a brief moment as a supermarket worker pushing a trolley, at the supermarket where he used to work. The exteriors were shot in the director's home town.
The Best Village judges are played by Simon Pegg's mum, Edgar Wright's mum, and Wright's former drama teacher.
Camera Abuse: When Tim Messenger is murdered, blood splashes on the camera.
Captain Obvious: Combines with Ask a Stupid Question... when Angel asks P.I. Staker what the swan looks like. It's a swan. It's spelled out further in an outtake.
The Cavalry Arrives Late: Complete with a Michael Bay-style shot of a helicopter flying overhead, and the variation where they were never actually called (on-screen) in the first place. (Though, realistically, the big ol' shootup in the town square probably had something to do with it.)
Character Development: Nicholas and Danny both get this, though it's more obvious with the latter.
Chekhov's Armory: Nearly everything in the first half of the film sets up something for the second half. And in a literal sense, Webley's Barn, then the Evidence Room.
Chekhov's Boomerang: At first, the swan is a wild swan chase through Sandford. Later on, when trying to apprehend a shoplifter, the swan pops up again, forcing Nicholas to choose: Swan or Shoplifter. (He chose shoplifter.) It pops up again near the end as the obstruction in the road that ends the car chase. At this point, Angel finally gets the swan in a police cruiser. However, it still isn't finished; serving its last purpose by keeping Frank Butterman from getting away from Sandford.
Danny Butterman:Have you ever fired two guns whilst jumping through the air? Nicholas Angel: No. Danny: Have you ever fired one gun whilst jumping through the air? Nicholas: No. Danny: Ever been in a high-speed pursuit? Nicholas: Yes, I have. Danny: Have you ever fired a gun whilst in a high speed pursuit? Nicholas: No! [Either one or both of them proceed to do all of these things throughout the movie, except for firing one gun whilst jumping through the air—unless you count that as part of firing two guns whilst jumping through the air]
Early on in the movie, there are a pair of swords on the hotel wall, and a pair of antique pistols and a Victorian police cloak in Frank Butterman's office; Frank dons the Victorian cloak when he appears at the NWA meeting; the weapons are both used in the epic battle near the end, Bernard with the swords and Frank with the guns.
The paper bin, which the Andys usually throw at people's heads (noteworthy at Nick and Danny). Nick later uses it to knock out the last NWA member, who intruded the Police Station and shot Danny. He stumbles backwards into the Evidence Room, and causes the sea mine to detonate.
Chekhov's Gunman: Every member of the NWA appears in at least semi-minor roles long before they're revealed as the evil cult. Especially notable is the plaque on the fountain which lists all of the bad guys.
Danny pretends to stab his own eye out with a fork by hiding a packet of ketchup in his hand and stabbing that instead. He later uses the same trick to fake killing Angel.
Angel has several of them:
In the opening scenes, Angel is shown to be an expert fencer. This comes in handy when Bernard attacks Angel with a sabre, with Angel fending him off with his police baton.
Angel holds the police record for the hundred-yard dash. Comes in handy when Reaper's mother tries to shoot Angel with a shotgun. Angel is able to sprint over and take her out before she's finished reloading.
Angel's skill with guns, having served with SO19. Useful when he starts a shootout with the NWA... or a friendly game of carnival air rifle.
There's about three shots of Angel exercising his hands before he goes to sleep. When he's fighting Skinner, Skinner catches his punch and starts to deliver a beatdown. Half-way through, Angel catches Skinner's fist and crushes it with a audible crunch.
Strangely, Angel's superb skill with bicycles never comes into play.
Close On Title: The title card does not appear until the very end of the film.
Comically Missing the Point: One of the Turners sees Angel leave the station after his supposed death, packing a metric shit-ton of heat, and muses that no-one told him that Sandford had a mounted division.
In the scene with the underage drinkers at the pub:
Cool Shades: The cool shades are retro style, an obvious nod to 70's and 80's detective shows.
Coordinated Clothes: The Andys are two inseparable detectives who, though not very good at their job, certainly dress for it.
The Coroner Doth Protest Too Much: Thinking the brutal deaths were accidents. Subverted, as Sandford does not have a coroner. It only has a doctor; who in fact is involved in all the murders at best. The actor who plays Dr. Hatcher bears a striking and ever so slightly worrying resemblance to Dr Harold Shipman, who was found guilty of the murder of 15 of his patients. It's been said that the similarity between the two is entirely coincidental... but then they would say that, wouldn't they?
If you look closely at the crossword, one of the words filled in is 'swan'.
Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: The Sanford Police Service pull themselves together for the final battle; whatever their individual faults, they turn out to be really good at armed response.
Interestingly, this one actually turns out to be a plot point: Nicholas cuts her short before she can say "himself", postponing The Reveal that "Cousin Sissy" is actually Simon Skinner.
Dateless Grave: Played straight with dateless newspapers, subverted with an actual gravestone with a date.
Even then, Angel rattles off some dates at one point, and Danny can be seen reading the Vocab Guidelines for 2006 - the movie apparently takes place in Spring of 2007.
Death Faked for You: Danny does this to an unaware Nicholas to help him escape an armed mob of the murderous townsfolk whom he foolishly tried to arrest all together at once after discovering them.
Decon-Recon Switch: For cop movies. The first half shows off just how bland a hero cop would be, how disliked by his peers he is for his heroic actions, how much Angel actually hates violence, and how actual cop work mostly consists of busting small town troublemakers. The second half gives us massive explosions, Guns Akimbo, firefights, car chases, police cars, and every trapping every police movie has ever had.
Defrosting Ice Queen: Sgt. Nicholas Angel, as he gradually learns to "switch off".
Followed up by a stereotypical British laugh riot.
Devil in Plain Sight: Simon Skinner, who makes ominous veiled threats every time he's on, complete with appropriate music and chilling demeanor. Set to be the obvious choice, but he doesn't have the wounds that match when Nick chased the hooded figure that stabbed the florist. Double Subverted when he's shown to be part of the NWA.
Edgar Wright had even planned on Lampshading this by including a sign pointed at Skinner in his first scene which let everyone know he was the villain but was unable to fit it into the Camera shot.
Dirty Old Man: PC Walker doesn't say much, but the stuff he does is pretty dirty. "Tits."; "Cocks."
Disproportionate Retribution: Angel gives The Summation of the complex and intricate series of motives for the various murders. Turns out they were actually all for minor infractions against the village's perfect reputation, like the journalist making spelling errors and wrong dates.
And also inverted. After Danny almost drunkenly runs over a police officer, he's punished by...having to buy the other officers ice cream for a month.
Gets flipped on its head at the end: Nick makes one and Doris jokingly calls him a dirty bastard.
Dramatic Gun Cock: Parodied with a scene in which a group of heavily-armed officers charge toward a building accompanied by the sound of literally dozens of gun cocks as each of them cocks his/her weapon four or five times. Without cocking it.
Droste Image: That shot of Simon Skinner's smiling face in front of a photo of himself smiling.
Dual Wielding: Employed impressively early, with pens, and later played straight with handguns.
Eagle Eye Detection: Angel utilizes this to build on his theory that the murders are being committed as part of a scheme for a property deal. Plausible, but wrong.
Entertainingly Wrong: Nick's original accusation, and what drives him. The truth is far, far more silly... and dangerous.
Eureka Moment: The shop keeper questioning Danny on the 'killers' and Danny's response ("It's just one killer actually...") is what clues Angel in to one of the main flaws of his original theory: that there was only one killer.
Evil Teacher: While the schoolteacher herself is not shown as evil to her students, she is a member of the murderous NWA. And during the final shootout, uses akimbo pistols whilst riding A FUCKING BIKE, and is one of two characters to actually hit Nicholas.
Evil Is Petty: The reason behind the murders is generally silly reasons, like an annoying laugh, bad acting, and wanting to move away.
Expy: According to the DVD Commentary (one of them, anyway), Skinner was based on the manager at the supermarket Wright worked at once - Affably Evil minus the Evil, apparently.
Failed a Spot Check: Angel pretty much walks right out of police headquarters with a crapload of guns from the evidence room and strolls right by Frank's big-windowed office with Frank none the wiser. Weaver also misses him on all the cameras: it takes the shopkeeper to finally notice, and by then, he's already in the town centre.
He doesn't go entirely unnoticed, however; Sgt. Turner at the desk does inform Angel that he has a call from London, but a moment of having Angel glower at him fully tooled up and ready to unleash hell is enough to convince him to leave it well alone.
Felony Misdemeanor: Everyone murdered in Sanford was killed for petty reasons like having an awful laugh, lots of typos in the newspaper, or having an ugly house. And let's not get started on the underage drinkers, that shoplifter, those crusty jugglers, the weapons-owning farmer, and THE LIVING STATUE.
Let's not forget a woman was murdered for trying to move and the NWA didn't want her sharing her gardening talents with another community. It turns out she was NWA also, but still. Then there were the Traveling Irish. The NWA even killed the travellers' dogs for pooping in the streets. Brutal.
A Fête Worse Than Death: The main plot. Humorously, the phrase appears word for word on a newspaper.
Foreshadowing: Everything in the first 3/4 of the movie is foreshadowing. Everything. (Seriously! You can watch the movie 5 times and still find something new.)
Too much to list completely - for example, in the very first scene, "You can't just make people disappear." "Yes, I can. I'm the Chief Inspector."
A conversation fairly early on:
Andy: Everybody and their mums is packing 'round 'ere.
Guess who are the first armed citizens of Sandford Nicholas comes across in the film's climax?
In a conversation Nicholas has with Danny about how 'something is always going on', he points out three people that he thinks could be suspicious. One is caught shoplifting a couple scenes later, and the other two turn out to be part of the town's conspiracy; in addition, Nicholas points out that Mr. Treacher could be hiding something under his large, fairly unnecessary coat. He is.
After watching Point Break, Nicholas points out that that amount of chaos would come with a lot of paperwork. Guess what everyone in the station is doing after the town-wide shootout?
"You're not going to get stabbed here, Inspector".
Simon Skinner hustling a carnival game at the church fundraiser called "Splat the Rat". Guess what happens when Tim Messenger tries to talk to Nick?
Reverend Shooter announcing "Tim, your number's up!" at the tombola.
An early one is Tony Fisher's introduction. The bubble chart is neatly framed behind his head with various negative terms pointing to him such as "Unfit", "Indecisive", and "Lacks Leadership Skills".
Funny Background Event: Skinner's smile after telling Nicholas to look through the security footage perfectly mirrors the photo of himself directly behind him, and later one of security cameras shows him holding a newspaper.
Any time Nicholas is doing his "top cop" schtick and Danny's in the shot, he's shown reacting and learning from it.
Not "Funny" so much as "Relevant", but the NWA members are often in the background of wide shots, and people who should have been there gradually ...aren't, as the film progresses.
Fun with Acronyms: The NWA. Straight Outta Sandford? No, just the Neighbourhood Watch Alliance. And they really don't like this particular policeman...
Genre Savvy: Danny, who is hopeless at actual policing, has this as his other strength.
Getting Crap Past the Radar: A split-second gag when the camera passes Doris at the fete, looking at the hog spitroast.
Glasses Pull: Janine yanks off her goggles dramatically while arguing with Angel, probably as a deliberate poke at CSI: Miami. For added hilarity, she's part of a CSI unit investigating a murder.
During the scene in the pub at the end, this trope is parodied for all its worth as pretty much every character either does a dramatic glasses pull or a dramatic riot helmet visor lift... or both.
Guttural Growler: Nicholas picks this up in the gas station after fleeing Sandford, and continues to growl like a chain smoker through most of the final showdown.
Hoist by His Own Petard: Many examples, some of them quite subtle, but here's a big one: Skinner slips on a model van sporting the logo of his own supermarket and lands on a model of the church roof, which he previously used as a murder weapon.
Human Shield: Skinner tries it, only to have the shield bite him in the arm and make a break for it.
Also, Angel uses Danny, only for the Genre SavvyBig Bad to call him on it.
The final fight reverses their roles, and Nick calls out the Big Bad, Butterman, saying that since this all started with the death of his wife, he couldn't let it end with the death of his son.
Hypocritical Humor: The priest pulling two guns then shouting "Jesus Christ!" after being shot down. This was preceded by him yelling for Angel to stop the violence, then saying 'fuck'.
More specifically "Fuck off, grasshopper!"
The NWA discussing the death of the hoodies in the village, while wearing dark cloaks and hoods!
Tom Weaver, the most visible and worried member of the NWA, screaming at Angel that he's a busybody in the post-climax showdown. Weaver's also the one responsible for watching the town's CCTV camera network (i.e. spying on everyone).
Idea Bulb: Not literally, although Nick actually says "Idea!"
If I Can't Have You: A variation. This is the reason Leslie Tiller is murdered. The town doesn't want her horticultural expertise going elsewhere.
Impaled Palm: Constable Angel is stabbed in the palm by Santa Claus.
With the person impaled having earlier pushed the spire off the real church to impale/crush Messenger's head. Maybe.
Imperial Stormtrooper Marksmanship Academy: One of the villains has a clear shot at Nicholas from short-range at an elevated position using a scoped rifle. Despite this, she doesn't use the scope and misses him several times.
Improbable Aiming Skills: Played straight and subverted, as Angel is remarkably good at shooting to disable. The best example would be shooting the strings of a flowerpot above a woman's head with a rifle from several yards away, which neatly severs the chain without damaging the pot or the beam they're hanging on. Subverted when he goes diving through the air, Guns Akimbo, in classic Woo style, and hits bugger-all... which is exactly what happens when you try that in real life.
Most of the other coppers don't hit a thing with the shotguns from the evidence room. One can only assume they were loaded with rock salt so as not to accidentally kill anyone.
Also notable when Nicholas hurls a spray paint can at a fleeing suspect in a large arc; he gets a direct hit and knocks the guy out cold.
Improbable Cover: A massive explosion that takes out a whole building is survived by the people inside it. They do this by hiding behind some old sofas — how they did this is 'explained' in the extras.
Improvised Weapon: At one point, Nick's ironically named Peace Lily, then later (in rapid succession): Trolleys, a wet floor sign, and thrown fruit and jars. Earlier, a waste basket, car doors, and some beer barrels were used to smack someone in the gob. Earlier still, a hoodie's spray paint can.
"It's the police service; 'force' is too aggressive."
"She's a police officer; being a man or woman has nothing to do with it."note Yes, it does, I've seen her bra!
"Traffic collision; 'accident' implies there's no one to blame." (Obviously, that one's not so much meant for comedy. Later becomes a Plot Point AND Foreshadowing).
This is also shown at the end of the movie to show the Character Development of both main characters. Danny is the one to make the vocab guideline correction, showing that he's starting to take the not-so-action-packed moments of being a police officer a little more seriously, as he actually knows some of the guidelines. Angel is then the one who responds with a Double Entendre, showing that he's not taking himself quite so seriously anymore, and isn't as obsessed with being a model police officer every single moment of every day.
Ironic Echo: About half the dialog in the last half-hour or so qualifies, including "You're a doctor. Deal with it." and "What're you thinkin'?" "Pub?"
And the Greater Good.
The Greater Good.
Shut it!
"crusty jugglers!"
"A great big bushy beard!!!"
That Sergeant Angel's back... check out his horse.
The idea of there being multiple killers responsible for murder is inspired by Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express. Apologies for the spoiler. It has been out for 33 years.
Jerkass: The Andys, who seem physically incapable of opening their mouths without saying something condescending.
Jerks With Hearts of Gold: They are, however, good guys who side with Angel as soon as they realize what's going on.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Angel himself is this. He's quite cold and has no sense of fun. Until he gets to know Danny. Even in the DVD commentary, Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright said he was meant to be this.
Knows a Guy Who Knows a Guy: "That's Auntie Jackie's sister's brother's boy". That he doesn't just say 'my cousin' suggests complicated relationships... or just Rule of Funny.
Angel himself hammies it up at the end with his Guttural Growler and his hardboiled acctidues.
Laser-Guided Karma: After covering up their victims' deaths as "accidents," three of the villains at the end of the film wind up becoming victims of actual accidents.
Lawful Stupid: Nick gets this occasionally, most notably when he spies on the NWA at the castle, listening to their explanation of how they murdered a large number of people, including a police officer who was on to them and then pulls out his badge and tells them they are all under arrest, as if they would really listen to him.
Not to mention he wasn't even carrying a gun. (Of course, he only knew Skinner was waiting there...)
This can be a fairly large part of Angel's character in general throughout the movie; while he's certainly no imbecile, he is overly devoted towards following the rules and regulations to extremes at times, thus coming off as a rather anal and humourless individual.
Loads and Loads of Characters: Though the story generally sticks to the main characters, it is worth note that there are 24 conspirators in Sandford's cult. Only two of them die. Mrs. Tiller is killed by her fellow members when she decides to move and Weaver is killed by the sea mine. There are around 50 characters that had speaking lines. Then there's the swan a.k.a. "Sandford's most wanted..."
Parodied in one of the trailers, where the characters all get captions with their actors' names. As do the effects, the guns, the locations...
Lock and Load Montage: Nick takes very nearly the police station's entire safe full of contraband weapons. so much that when he stomps out he sounds like he's wearing Powered Armor; the rest of the officers grab what's left later.
Logo Joke: On the UK release, the sirens going off at the beginning are timed to go along with the Universal Pictures logo as the word UNIVERSAL makes its way around the globe. Not in the US due to Universal using a sub-label, Rogue Pictures.
Looks Like Cesare: The cashier at the petrol station where Nicholas buys supplies for his return to Sandford. He also speaks very slowly, and never changes his expression, making him extremely zombie-like. Possibly justified as he's working the graveyard shift.
Married to the Job: Nick's defining trait, which ruined his past relationship with Janine and nearly wrecks his new one with Danny.
Meaningful Echo: Nick's reason for not wanting to leave London. Repeated when he turns down the offer to come back;
Nick: No offense sir, but I kinda like it here.
Meaningful Name: For the biggest example, see the bottom of the page.
Additionally, a well stocked armoury is found in the barn of a man named Webley.
Several of the characters' names have violent meanings. Skinner, Shooter, Reaper, Staker (who doesn't engage in any violence).
Eve Draper is clearly named for Evelyn Draper in Play Misty for Me. Her lover's name is Blower.
And according to the DVD commentary, Eve Draper's name comes from the word eavesdropper, that being what she is in her private life, and fiance Blower is a solicitor, which means he blows a lot of hot air.
A doctor who delivered Danny is named Hatcher. A florist is named Tiller. A journalist is named Messenger. A successful businessman is named Merchant.
According to the trivia track, most of the people in the village still carry traditional tradesman's names in order to indicate the lack of intermarrying (and therefore purity) of their family lines, pointing to their severe xenophobia.
In a sneaky example, the giant generally known as Lurch is mentioned offhand to be named Michael Armstrong.
Merciful Minion: Danny fakes stabbing Nick in order to prevent the Neighborhood Watch Alliance from killing him for real.
Mistaken for Prank Call: When Nicholas gets a call from one 'Peter Ian Staker' about a missing swan, he assumes it's a prank call (Peter Ian Staker = P.I. Staker = piss taker). It's not. That's his real name, and his swan really is missing.
Mood Whiplash: The movie likes to play with this, usually to help increase dramatic tension or humor value. For example, Sergeant Angel just got done relating his origin story in a heartwarming moment of bonding. Then Danny STABS HIMSELF IN THE EYE WITH A FORK!? Then he reveals it was a ketchup packet. From heartwarming to horrific to freggin hilarious.
Motive Rant: When Nicholas confronts the members of the NWA, all of them together go at length to explain why the murders took place, with a hefty degree of parody of similar rants, particularly their emphasis on the horrible things they were responsible for.
Mundane Made Awesome: This movie features dual-wieldingpens, dramatic paperwork, dramatic hitting-somebody-over-the-head-with-a-peace-lily, dramatic traveling-across-England-on-the-M4, dramatic leaving-the-apartment, dramatic putting-change-on-a-counter, dramatic saying "Cornetto", dramatic saying "Pub?", all with plenty of Whip Pan. Naturally, all intentional.
The dramatic pint-pouring.
And piss-taking.
And swan encounters.
And jittercam suspect-booking montages.
"Oh, Sergeant Angel? Someone from London called for you." (dramatic turning around with dozens of guns strapped to his body) "....I'll tell 'em you'll ring them back."
Lampshaded when Blower gets pulled over for speeding in possible the shortest high speed car chase ever.
Amusingly, Nick Angel is the real name of the music supervisor on the film. Confirmed as an in-joke on the commentaries. A picture of the real Nick Angel, playing the late Sergeant Popwell, was edited out of the scene it was shown in.
Never Trust a Trailer: The promotional materials made out the movie to be a send up of Buddy Cop Action movies, but a significant chunk of the film is an equally well-done send up of Slasher Movies. Well, before the ending.
Most of the second act can be seen as a send-up of British tea-cosy mysteries as well.
No Sense of Humor: Nick's complete and utter devotion to his job has made him a first-class police officer, but it's also rendered him completely humourless, pedantic and uptight.
Obviously Evil: Skinner, Skinner, Skinner. Angel immediately suspects him, thankfully, but his obvious evil ends up obfuscating the fact that he's not the only murderer.
His very introduction was designed with this trope specifically in mind. The filmmakers had the old expression "X may as well have had a sign saying BAD GUY over his head, it was so obvious!" in mind, and wanted to frame and block the scene so that something in a sign over a shop in the background when Skinner runs up to meet Angel actually caused it to look like that was happening. But try as they might, they just couldn't pull it off, so they nixed the idea and instead just had his first line be, "Arrest me; I'm a slasher!"
Off the Wagon: Angel isn't an alcoholic, but he doesn't drink (at the very least, not on duty). He immediately goes on a bender after a single beer, but still holds his liquor better than another patron...
Bender is a bit exaggerated. We see him drink three pints, and he seems no more than socially drunk.
Oh Crap: A variation of this with Tom Weaver who goes "oh god no" right before the sea mine goes off.
Only a Flesh Wound: The council are all, with a single very notable exception, more inconvenienced and angered by their gunshot wounds than anything, somewhat justified in that they are visibly shot in less immediately vital areas like the shoulder or the foot.
Nick's own wound in the arm is probably a better example of this - apart from the red mark on his shirt, the shot never bothers him or is referenced again.
Only Sane Man: The entire police force chuckles and jeers at Nicholas when he says the accidents are really murders, until he finally blows his top.
And then during the final shootout...
'Yeah, accidents happen all the time, what makes you think this was murrrderrr?' 'BECAUSE I WAS THERE!'
OOC Is Serious Business: When Angel states his belief that the "accident" at the Fete was murder, Frank, who's normally incredibly lax on the rules and standard police procedure, immediately mobilises everyone to investigate.
Likewise, Walker who's normally characterised as The Unintelligible, gets so annoyed about being stuck in the rain;
Walker: I think you're talking a load of shit.
Outrun the Fireball: Subverted twice. First, there's no explosion. Then, there's no time to run.
Pocket Protector: Subverted, but not in the way you might expect. "It's ketchup."
Possession Implies Mastery: The NWA expends a lot of ammunition trying to hit Angel, but really, when does a shadowy group ever actually want to run around killing their targets with loud firearms? Frank being the exception, of course.
Precision F-Strike: Angel goes the entire first half of the film without swearing, which adds a lot of impact when he finally exclaims that "Leslie Tiller was fucking murdered!"
And again at the end of the movie to indicate that Angel has lightened up considerably, he responds to have a waste basket thrown at his head with, "You cheeky fucker!"
Rare Guns: Tom Weaver decides to attack Angel with a blunderbuss which is an early type of shotgun that was obsolete by the mid 19th century. A modern day shotgun probably would have been cheaper - and were, in fact, widely available in the evidence room at the time - but it probably wouldn't have been kosher for him to keep a modern weapon within arms reach at the police station.
Reality Ensues: After the climax, the film switches to the cops doing reams of paperwork.
Additionally, after his encounter with the deranged Father Christmas, Nicholas is still performing physical therapy to get his hand back up to full strength as the movie commences.
Reasonable Authority Figure: Chief Inspector Butterman seems more inclined to believe Angel and act on his advice, in contrast to the other officers who all express everything from quiet loathing to outright mockery of Angel. Subverted, when it's revealed that Butterman is really the Big Bad
Red Herring: Simon Skinner, the Smug Snake manager of the local supermarket, is clearly being set up to be either the villain, or (for the Genre Savvy) a red herring with the actual villain being one of the eccentric village types the protagonist encounters. It turns out that all the eccentric locals, including Skinner, are involved. Furthermore the elaborate yet plausible motive involving adultery, greed, envy, and a land deal turns out to be wrong, as all the killings are happening simply because the victims are threatening the village's image.
Returning to the Scene: Skinner always shows up to the scene of the murders, despite having no business being there. This is just one of the reasons Angel believes him to be the killer and in the end, he's half right. Interestingly, Skinner never protests that part, when he could easily say he was out for a drive.
Rouge Angles of Satin: The reason the council kills the reporter from the local newspaper.
Rube Goldberg Hates Your Guts: One of the murders involves a house exploding in such a manner that it looks like an accident.
During the garden shop lady's monologue, which provides a possible explanation for all the murders, every time she mentions (God rest her) the name (God rest him) or names (God rest them) of the dead, she says "God rest him/her/them".
Sarcastic Confession: With Simon Skinner, who gives one to Nicholas Angel when they first meet.
Serious Business: The "Best Village in Britain" award is Serious Business. Danny's mother committed suicide when Sandford didn't win once. Her husband and the rest of the NWA killed people to make sure it would never lose again.
And again, when Angel's stabbed by Danny — he's got red on him!
Show, Don't Tell: A very triumphant example of showing and not telling. The script is incredibly tight, with almost no Filler or extraneous Word Cruft. Most of the character establishment is done through their actions, acting, or directorial decisions.
Shown Their Work: A lot of police officers were talked to in the discussion of this. They liked the paperwork scenes. If you have the DVD, you'll find out a lot more of what Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright found out on the "Fuzz Facts" trivia track.
For example, Sandford is the name of the fictional town traditionally used in UK police training exercises. And how the official vocabulary guidelines have to say "police service."
They also sat through dozens upon hundreds of cop movies and assorted subgenres, making sure they got all the cliches just right.
Shut Up, Kirk!: "Fuck off, grasshopper!" said in response to Nick trying to convince Reverend Shooter to go quietly.
Small Reference Pools: Throughout the film, Inspector Frank Butterman tells stories to Sergeant Angel about a predecessor, Sergeant Popwell, who had had a breakdown and was killed prior to the events of the film. The name "Popwell" is a reference to Albert Popwell, an actor who had different roles in four films of the Dirty Harry franchise, most famously as the robber at the receiving end of the "Do I feel lucky?" speech. Interestingly, Albert Popwell also had a role in a 1972 American movie simply called, of all things, Fuzz. The 1972 Fuzz was also a police procedural action comedy with the same tagline/Catch Phrase as this film ("Here come the Fuzz.") that involved the investigation of a murder-extortion racket. Does this make Hot Fuzz a loose remake?
One of the Inspector's stories about Sergeant Popwell having "a great big bushy beard!" becomes a Chekhov's Beard in the middle of the film, when Sergeant Angel discovers the corpse of a man with said beard in the catacombs, presumably Popwell, and heavily implying, if not outright confirming, that Popwell was one of the murdered Sandford residents.
Soundtrack Dissonance: a subtle one - while Angel's boss is reeling off his perfect career record, the music playing over it is Adam and the Ants' "Goody Goody Two Shoes".
The theme for Angel kicking everyone out of the pub is "Sgt. Rock (Is Going To Help Me)" by XTC.
Also when Skinner happens to drive by two of the 'accidents'. On passing by Eve Draper and Martin Blower's 'traffic collision', "Romeo and Juliet" by Dire Straits is playing on Skinner's car radio. On passing by George Merchant's exploded house, "Fire" by Arthur Brown is playing.
Spit Take: Nicholas does one when he and Danny are discussing Eve Draper's exploits.
Which is also a subtle Shout Out to Shaun of the Dead, where Shaun does a Spit Take when he and Ed are discussing another woman's exploits.
Stealth Hi/Bye: Skinner has a tendency to pop up in unexpected places, surprising Angel every time.
Stealth Pun: A blink-and-you'll-miss-it dirty pun at the very beginning of the town fair scene. Doris and the two men she's with see the hog-roast on a spit, to which she comments, "That's me after a few pints!"
Storming the Castle: Well, there's a literal castle, but it doesn't get stormed. The supermarket, however...
The Swear Jar: Nicolas Angel and Andy Wainright have a heated argument, and both turn aside to politely thank two other characters for paying in. The argument started with Nicholas paying in advance for his first swear.
Taking the Bullet: Danny takes a load of buckshot to the chest when the NWA head shows up in the epilogue to kill Nick Angel.
Could also count as a Shout Out, as a very similar scene took place between both actors in the Britcom Spaced...albiet with far less lethal ammunition.
Technical Pacifist: Nick Angel — While he does engage in a shootout near the end of the movie, he never kills anyone, instead either shooting them non-lethally or using the environment to incapacitate the others. He is, after all, still a cop.
Thematic Series: It's the second movie in a thematic trilogy (alternately called "the Blood and Cornettos trilogy" and "the Three Colours Cornetto trilogy"), of which Shaun of the Dead was the first. The movies have no characters or plot points in common, but they're both extremely goryblack comedies that affectionately parody popular action movie genres and feature Simon Pegg and Nick Frost playing a pair of Vitriolic Best Buds who can't live without each other.
And ice cream.
Theme Naming: Most of the town have names that derive from traditional rural, working-class occupations and activities, such as Cartwright and Wainwright. Most of them (and a couple besides that don't fit that pattern) end in "-er," including Cooper, Porter, Turner, Skinner, Draper, Shooter, Prosser, Hatcher, Paver, Brother, Fisher, Walker, Thatcher, Weaver, Roper, Reaper, Staker, Messenger, Treacher, Cocker, Blower... Some of them are an 'old-world' echo of the modern professions these characters follow, e.g. Tim Messenger the journalist, Dr Hatcher who 'brought Danny into this world'.
The noteable exception is "Butterman": Nick Frost agreed to do the film on the proviso that he be allowed to name his character.
Thou Shalt Not Kill: Unlike most violent cop films that this film parodies, Nicholas Angel and his allies in the climatic action finale never shoot to kill. All the villains survived to be cooped up in jail, even though the final showdown with the villain was pretty gory.
With the exception of Tom Weaver, who most certainly died. Also, it is out-right stated that Mrs. Tiller was part of the NWA. She gets killed by her own when she tries to move away.
T-Word Euphemism: Comically subverted. The police station's swear box has a list of prohibited swear words and the corresponding fine, each of which is bowdlerized — except the most offensive one.
The Unintelligible: Two characters, both old men with ridiculously over the top West Country accents. (They get easier to understand as the movie progresses, though.)
One of them does. The other shows up dead the next time he's seen...
Inspired by a real life anecdote the writers heard about a cop who did need a local officer to translate for him.
Verbal Tic: Tim Messenger greets everyone with "Hi-Hi."
Villainous Valour: After the shootdown on the city centre, the police storm the supermarket. And what do the workers of the supermarket do? They fight a police squad clad in riot gear by throwing miscellaneous products and knives at them.
Visual Pun: Tony Fisher is first seen in front of a chart with several unflattering words — "Indecisive" "Late" "Unfit" "Rude" etc. — pointing at him.
Weirdness Censor: Danny rescues Angel from the NWA meeting he crashes by pretending to stab him, so he obviously thought that Angel was in mortal danger. In the next scene, he professes his ignorance of all the goings-on.
In short, he's in severe denial. This is briefly explored in one of the "Plot Holes" DVD extras.
Which is weird, as it would be possible for him to be in the dark (or in denial), and have followed Nicholas only to find him in mortal danger (having heard him on the radio with Skinner). Since the NWA never attacked or so much as suspected Danny in their zeal to get Nicholas, he came to the conclusion that he could pull the ketchup trick and safely get him out of town. Really, the only real plot hole is, how was he planning to explain his missing car? (But then, the NWA is pretty single-minded...)
For that matter, the entire local police service is convinced that officers transferred from out of town are paranoid lunatics, seeing every single obvious accident as a potential murder just because somebody died.
Wham Line: Doubly so, as it reveals that Frank Butterman is in on the whole conspiracy:
Nick: These people died for no reason! No reason whatsoever!
Frank Butterman: I wouldn't say that.
What Do You Mean, It's Not Heinous?: Crossed with Values Dissonance. The pub owners allowed teens to drink alcohol despite clearly being underage note It was so they wouldn't get in trouble with the law outside, ironically., but Weaver and the rest of the NWA are very concerned with minor or even nonexistant offenses, like loiterers, typos, and the extremely irritating living statue!
Weaver: It's a shame you couldn't do anything about those bloody 'oodies, standing around loitering... sitting!
What Do You Mean, It's Not Symbolic?: A single guy coming into town who uncovers and crushes its Dark Secret and Ancient Conspiracy? He's gotta be an Angel. Some also say that in the scene where he rides into town on a white horse, the large guns tied across his back are meant to resemble wings. (Though according to Wikipedia, the character was named after Nick Angel, the Musical Director.)
Also note that his badge number at the beginning of the movie is 777, the number of God. And to top it all, of course, he's an agnostic.
When he enters the hotel, the woman minding the desk remarks "It appears the heavens have opened". She's referring to the rain, but an Angel did just walk in...
As outlined above, his name is Nicholas and he is stabbed by a Santa.
Window Pain: Nicholas tosses his billy club through a glass pane door (to crack it), then leaps through it in order to chase a black-robed suspect.
One of the killers cuts their leg jumping through a greenhouse window (or would it be a wall...?)
Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds: The only villain to fall in this category is Inspector Butterman, whose wife loved Sandford and worked so hard to make it the "Best Village". But the day before the judges came, a gypsy family showed up and they lost. She then went insane and killed herself. Since then, Butterman started killing for the "greater good of the village."
You Watch Too Much X: When Nicholas outlines his theory on the conspiracy behind the murders during his attempted arrest of Skinner, Skinner accuses him of this. Danny chimes in, noting that, no, he doesn't.
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