The action movie is a summer movie staple. It often features shootouts, explosions, car chases and, usually, a monstrous amount of stock characters and plot points. How many times have you seen a renegade cop team up with an unlikely character, fight the odds and save the day? Plenty, I’m sure. Well, prepare to see these things again, only done with tongue planted firmly in cheek while offering up a sincere homage as well.

“Hot Fuzz,” brought to you by the guys who made “Shaun of the Dead, a movie described as a rom-zom-com (that’s romantic zombie comedy, for short), is a loving tribute to the action genre with plenty of big laughs and even bigger action sequences. Simon Pegg plays Nicholas Angel, London’s top cop - think a straight-laced Dirty Harry. He’s a guy who plays by the rules and always gets his man. The rest of the police force is embarassed with their performance in comparison to him, so they ship him off to a tiny, peaceful village.

The serenity of Angel’s new home is driving him up the wall, but things soon heat up when a number of residents die in terrible accidents. Angel doesn’t think the deaths are so accidental and teams up with Danny Butterman, the Chief’s tubby son, and starts to investigate.

Obviously, Angel finds that there is actually a lot of criminal activity going on in town and he brings a ton of firepower in to shut it down at the end. There are shootouts, hand to hand battles, car chases, explosions and more. Avid movie fans are sure to catch shout-outs to some of the best (and worst) action films of all time.

Pegg and Nicholas Frost (Butterman) are a very talented pair and they play off each other wonderfully. Though Frost’s character is only slightly more motivated than his character in “Shaun,” Pegg is completely different. He is an English version of the typical American action hero and he is great. There are also solid performances from Jim Broadbent, Timothy Dalton and Paddy Considine.

Be warned, there are several gory moments. They are done for shock value and they work. However, much of the film is just plain funny and it is definitely worth a viewing.

***1/2

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