If you're a fan of British humor or just comedy in general, then you've hopefully heard of the "Three Flavors Cornetto" trilogy. Three unique genre spoofs united by the brief appearance of Cornetto ice cream in each one, the movies introduced Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg, and Nick Frost ― who had earlier collaborated on the awesome British sitcom Spaced ― to the world. They got the trilogy rolling lampooning zombies and romantic comedies in 2004 with Shaun of the Dead, before getting back together in 2008 to have a go at action movies with Hot Fuzz. But the trilogy has to come to a close, which is where the appropriately-titled The World's End comes in. The movie takes Wright, Pegg, and Frost into science fiction territory with an alien invasion, and The World's End makes for a fine ending to the Three Flavors Cornetto saga.
Gary King (Pegg) has long viewed June 22, 1990, as the happiest day of his life. It was on that day that he and four friends ventured out onto the "Golden Mile," a twelve-stop pub crawl in their hometown of Newton Haven. They didn't make it to the end of the Golden Mile, but just making the attempt was so much fun that Gary has spent the two intervening decades trying to recapture that thrill.
Now an irresponsible man-child in his forties, Gary wants to make another attempt at finishing the Golden Mile. His old friends ― Andy Knightley (Frost), Steven Prince (Paddy Considine), Oliver Chamberlain (Martin Freeman), and Peter Page (Eddie Marsan) ― initially want nothing to do with him. They've all grown up, started families, and moved on with their lives, while Gary hasn't grown up one bit since 1990. But being the master schemer he is, Gary succeeds in convincing all of them to join him on his quest.
Their return to Newton Haven gets off to a somewhat rocky start, as Gary's off-the-wall antics serve as a continuing reminder why the others stopped hanging out with him in the first place. Another wrench gets thrown into the gears when Oliver's sister Sam (Rosamund Pike) arrives in town visiting some old friends, rekindling Gary and Steven's old rivalry for her affections. But it isn't long until they begin to notice something truly amiss. It starts simple, as the pubs all look alike and the townsfolk all seem oddly subdued. Things escalate when a fight between Gary and a local teenager leads to the discovery that Newton Haven's residents have secretly been replaced with mechanical duplicates from another world. You would think that an alien invasion of this sort would warrant fleeing town and never looking back, but Gary is bound and determined to see the pub crawl through and drag the others kicking and screaming to the Golden Mile's final stop, a fabled pub called The World's End.
If The World's End is indeed the grand finale for Wright, Pegg, and Frost's Cornetto saga, then that trilogy has ended with a high note. I won't lie and call it the best of the three, but The World's End is still a satisfying flick that I genuinely enjoyed. It's a tremendous blend of action, adventure, humor, and heart, a rare gem in a summer that was full of disappointing and mediocre blockbusters.
Like the two previous entries in this so-called trilogy, Edgar Wright sits at the helm of this particular adventure. His movies have all been comedies in some form or fashion, but he's approached each of them with a different, unique flair that makes them all stand out in their own ways. The World's End is no different, and is further proof of just how talented a director Wright can be. He manages to visually capture a sense of wistful nostalgia for the first half of the movie, and as the movie transitions from a simple comedy into an all-out alien invasion, Wright creates some big action sequences out of modest tools.
With a moderately low budget and a small town setting, a less-than-capable director might not have been able to pull off what Wright does here. He excels in making movies feel bigger and grander than their budgets would probably allow, and that's none more evident than in this movie. Things start low-key and it flows quite well, but when things get kicked into high gear during the second half of the movie, Wright brings us some awesome action sequences. You would think that fight scenes involving incredibly drunk businessmen in their forties against robots from another planet would be more silly than anything else, but Wright constructs them in such a way that they're both funny and exciting. One particular sequence sees Simon Pegg's character try to avoid spilling a pint of beer while maneuvering through a brawl, and it's some of the most entertaining action I've seen in a while.
Wright and Simon Pegg's script, meanwhile, is strong despite some flaws. Those flaws are more in the narrative than anything else. I mean, I know the characters are all three sheets to the wind, but who in their right minds would continue on this pub crawl after everything that happens to them? The characters even debate fleeing more than once but keep at it anyway! Granted, I would expect Pegg's character to keep at it regardless, but one would think that the other characters would retain even a little common sense or self-preservation instinct despite their inebriation. But then again, we wouldn't have much of a movie if the cast ran away forty-five minutes into it, would we?
Beyond that, though, Wright and Pegg have written a fine script. Their takes on zombie movies and action flicks were obviously love letters to those genres written by diehard fans, and they've done the same for alien invasion movies with The World's End. They've written what is basically a comedic spin on Invasion of the Body Snatchers with a dash of The Stepford Wives thrown in for good measure, and while I didn't think it was quite as witty in regard to parodying the genre's tropes as Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz were, Wright and Pegg have still successfully written something fun.
The jokes come fast and are all hilarious, but Wright and Pegg have written more than just a comedy. It's basically a movie centered around the old saying "you can't go home again." This is none more evident than in Pegg's character. Nearly two and a half decades have passed since Gary and his friends attempted to run the Golden Mile, and he's spent every waking moment of his adult life wanting to relive that day. He still wears the same clothes, drives the same beat-up car, listens to the same music on the same cassette tape he had that day, all in an effort to find a happiness that was in one fleeting moment so long ago.
His friends have all grown up and moved on, while Gary's unhealthy focus on his glory days have led him to a not-so-glorious present. He's possibly the most fascinating character Wright and Pegg have ever written, due to his vulnerability and complexity. He wants to be the cool, Fonzie-like guy, but beneath the surface is a boy who was ill-equipped to deal with the pressures of adulthood. Wright and Pegg use this to make The World's End deeper than it would initially lead you to believe, and the movie is better for it.
But where the movie shines brightest is its cast. The group of actors assembled here each provide something to the movie, no matter how small or poorly defined their roles may be. In roles so tiny they might as well be labeled cameos, David Bradley and Pierce Brosnan are a ton of fun. Rosamund Pike is sadly underutilized in an underwritten role, but she still does her best with what she has to work with. Martin Freeman provides some funny moments, while Eddie Marsan is likable and sympathetic. Paddy Considine, meanwhile, is understated in his role. He doesn't stand out quite as much as the other four members of the group, but he still makes a fine contribution regardless.
But the stars of the movie are undoubtedly Simon Pegg and Nick Frost. Their usual roles are reversed this time around, with Pegg as the troublemaker and Frost as the straight man. Frost is actually great in his role, playing the part with a bit of seriousness I've never seen out of characters he's played in the past. Pegg, on the other hand, alternates between a wild, madcap demeanor and a deeper sadness that lies just under the surface. I noted earlier that Pegg's character is a man who never really got a handle on the stresses of adulthood. He's trying to cover the depression that's caused with a "party all the time" attitude while drowning his sorrows in gallons of booze, and Pegg's performance brings that to life. It's a fine bit of acting that Pegg should be proud of.
The World's End hasn't exactly set the American box office on fire since its release a few weeks ago. That doesn't stop it from being a great ride, though. The movie is an absolute blast from beginning to end, with cool action sequences, hilarious jokes and gags, and the feeling that it was made by a group of people who truly believed in what they were doing. You can tell that The World's End was a real labor of love for everybody involved. The movie's got a few flaws, sure, but they've made a great flick that's worth your time. And I don't drink, but if I knew I'd get to fight some alien robots, I'd go on pub crawls all the time.
Final Rating: ***½
No comments:
Post a Comment