nick frost – NZ Film Freak

Paul

Director: Greg Mottola
Writers: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost
Released: March 2011
Starring: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Jason Bateman, Kristen Wiig, Bill Hader, Blythe Danner, John Carroll, Lynch Sigourney, Weaver Seth Rogen
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From the director of Superbad, and the creators of Hot Fuzz and Shaun of the Dead, comes Paul.

A story about a laid-back alien called Paul (Seth Rogan) who is on the run from the government across the States before getting picked up by a couple of geeky tourists, Graeme (Simon Pegg) and Clive (Nick Frost). Graeme and Clive attended Comic-Con before travelling to various locations where UFOs have been sighted in an RV, until they get a closer encounter than they expected!

A concept that was thought-up on the set of Shaun of the Dead, but was not to be a part of the ‘Cornetto Trilogy’ with Edgar Wright. Looking into it, Pegg and Frost decided on an American director instead of their usual collaborator to keep an American tone.

Paul is a fun film, but can become a bit of a drag to watch because it feels like a never-ending chase without enough funny moments along the way to sustain your attention.

It’s an epic road trip film, which is entertaining enough with it being neither hilarious or a total write-off. Because of the writers’ previous epics – Hot Fuzz in particular – I was expecting a faster-paced script with cooler moments. But I guess the humour was tailored for an American audience.

Nevertheless, Pegg and Frost are brilliant writers and the casting was great. Seth Rogan was a good choice to be the voice of the CGI alien, whose attitude is severely laid-back, even in the most stressful of situations.

The cast is quite large for a relatively simple storyline, and I wonder how many of the characters were necessary.

Paul is essentially a love letter to the science-fiction genre, and Steven Spielberg in particular whose voice makes a guest appearance over the phone in one scene. So if you’re a science-fiction fan, you’ll probably enjoy this more than the Cornetto Trilogy fans would.

Jodie’s rating: 5/10

Top 5: Favourite On-Screen Duos

I was thinking about Ant and Dec, and the unfortunate circumstances that led to Dec having to do the Saturday Night Take Away on his own. I thought, without taking away from their obvious talent, how one can’t do much without the other. You always see them together, and they are at their best together.

It’s the same with the Australian equivalent – Hamish and Andy. They bounce off each other and their energy is great together. But something’s missing when they’re on their own.

I guess these television duos are contractually obliged to stay together now for the good of their careers and pay-packet, but I get the feeling that they love being with each other off the screen too.

That got me thinking about film duos – the actors we always see together on-screen, but get the feeling they hang out off-screen too.

Owen Wilson and Ben Stiller

Good-guy Wilson and funnyman Stiller are always working together! Ever since the 1990s actually. It almost seems weird seeing one but not the other in movies. Sometimes they include their third wheel Vince Vaughn, which is cute.
The Cable Guy
Permanent Midnight
Meet the Parents
The Royal Tenenbaums
Zoolander
Starsky & Hutch
Meet the Fockers
Night at the Museum
Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian
Little Fockers
Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb
Zoolander 2

Ben Affleck and Matt Damon

I feel like these two were the smart-cool guys at school. Like, if Owen Wilson and Ben Stiller were the ones who screwed around in class, Ben Affleck and Matt Damon were the ones who knuckled down in class, getting good grades, while winning American football games on the weekends. If they’ve written the movie (i.e.: Good Will Hunting), it’s definitely going to be a good one!
School Ties
Glory Daze
Good Will Hunting
Chasing Amy
Dogma
Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
The Third Wheel
Jersey Girl

Nick Frost and Simon Pegg

Carrying on the school student theme, these guys would be late for school because they were staying up all night playing video games and writing their own comic books. Nevertheless, they are involved with some of the best comedy/action films ever.
Shaun of the Dead
Hot Fuzz
Grindhouse
Paul
The Adventures of Tintin
Ice Age: Continental Drift
The World’s End
The Boxtrolls

James Franco and Seth Rogen

At school, these would be the party animals. But probably not the super-cool kind, but the kind who are super funny and get invited because they’re a laugh. I can’t help but think many of their films are based on personal experience?
Knocked Up
Pineapple Express
The Green Hornet
This is the End
The Interview
Neighbours/Bad Neighbours
Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising/Bad Neighbours 2
The Sound and the Fury
Zeroville
Sausage Party

Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly

The brothers from another mother! These guys are the classic angry man-children that we all love. Strangely, they haven’t been in as many films together as I thought they had. But they seem to stick to together like white on rice. I feel like if they were at school, they’d pretend to be the teacher and be sent home for hitting the other children.
Stepbrothers
Anchorman 2
Tim and Eric’s Billion Dollar Movie
Holmes and Watson
Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby

I know I said ‘top five’, but here is a sixth… But they’re not ‘our favourite’ duo so they don’t really count…

Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham-Carter

At school, these guys would be in art class or in a dark drama room somewhere. They don’t tend to do anything without Tim Burton. I used to loved all their movies but I feel I’ve grown out of my gothic phase, and I can’t relate to them as much anymore. Nevertheless, their films are entertaining, if not a tad samey.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Corpse Bride
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Alice in Wonderland
Dark Shadows

Who’s your favourite on-screen bromance? Who would be your best friends at school?

Hot Fuzz

Director: Edgar Wright
Writer: Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg
Released: July 2007
Starring: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Jim Broadbent
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A brilliant action-comedy from writers Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg. It’s one of my favourite films, and I can’t believe I’d never gotten around to review it.

Hot Fuzz is the second instalment of what is referred to as the ‘Cornetto trilogy’ by Edgar Wright fans (due to the ice cream’s frequent appearances). Shaun of the Dead being the first, The World’s End being the third.

This is my favourite film of the three because it is so cleverly written and very funny. It follows the story of goody-two-shoes London policeman (rather “police officer. Being a man has nothing to do with it.”) named Nicholas Angel (Simon Pegg) who gets transferred to a small, rural village against his wishes.

Sergeant: …we’re making you sergeant.
Nicholas: I see.
Sergeant: [mumbles]
Nicholas: In where, sorry?
Sergeant: In Sandford, Gloucestershire.
Nicholas: But that’s in the country…
Sergeant: Yes! Lovely!

The straight-laced Sergeant Angel is frustrated by the Sandford police who prefer to turn the other cheek rather than causing a fuss when someone breaks the law. He soon discovers there is a reason for this.

So, with amateur officer Danny Butterman (Nick Frost) as his sidekick, Angel’s love for the law is put into full swing as they begin a full-on investigation into what is going on in the village.

Inspired by stereotypical action films, the writers have made fun of the genre by including all the sorts of characters you’d usually see in an action film. They even go as far as re-enacting popular action movie scenes, or quoting them. They’ve studied the genre very well!

Danny: Where’s the trolley boy?
Nicholas: In the freezer.
Danny: Did you say “cool off?”
Nicholas: No I didn’t say anything…
Danny: Shame.
Nicholas: Well, there was the bit that you missed where I distracted him with the cuddly monkey then I said “play time’s over” and I hit him in the head with the peace lily.
Danny: You’re off the fuckin’ chain!

This entertaining and fast-paced film is littered with hilarious one-liners and nods to action film tropes and quotes. The script for this movie is so clever – it must have taken ages to work out how it was all going to piece together.

The script has a lot of fore-shadowing all through it, weaved through an intriguing mystery of murders and outrageous characters. My favourite being two officers, both named Andrew – AKA ‘The Andes’ played by Paddy Considine and Rafe Spall.

The editing is incredible, which is classic Edgar Wright. We studied his work for an entire year at high school; I can see his influence a mile off now, even in his most recent film, Baby Driver.

If you love gun fights, car chases and a good belly laugh, then this is the perfect film! A classic date night movie too, I think. Just like Shaun of the Dead and The World’s End, it’s a great blend of genres to keep everyone happy.

For me, some of the action scenes were a bit long-winded, and just when you think the film is finished, it doesn’t. But maybe that’s because I don’t actually like action films all that much.

Danny: Have you ever fired two guns whilst jumping through the air?
Nicholas: 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!

I love films that make fun of themselves, and this is the king of them all. I can recite the whole film, I think – I’ve watched it so many times!

Jodie’s rating: 8/10

The World’s End

Director: Edgar Wright
Writers: Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg
Released: July 2013
Starring: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Paddy Considine, Martin Freeman, Eddie Marsan and Rosamund Pike
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…what the hell did I just watch..?

So I’m guessing most of you are huge Edgar-Simon-Nick combo fans! I’m sure you were just as psyched when you heard about the final instalment of the Cornetto trilogy being released!

Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz and The World’s End – bring your check list for all of the similarities and shared jokes! It’s like being a part of a huge inside-joke.

Anyway! So I was so excited to see this film! But this was more wacky, more psychedelic, out of left-field, ‘what the hell’ material that I ever thought could be possible for these three guys to invent.

The movie started out awesomely! It was hilarious as they introduced the main characters.

The general storyline was that the five main characters wanted to complete the 12 pub pub-crawl they failed to finish in highschool. So these near-on 40 year olds begin their journey, until they realise the people in the town are super weird.

Many people in the town turn out to be blue-blooded robots. And a Shaun of the Dead-esk pursuit begins… It got pretty weird. Not going to lie.

Just on a deeper note, I felt the robots were a metaphor for being in the institution of 9-5 jobs and not fulfilling the more enjoyable parts of life.

Simon Pegg’s character is my favourite of all their creations within the trilogy! He was absolutely convincing! Fantastic!

Simon Pegg and Nick Frost had loosely swapped their Hot Fuzz characters around, as in, Nick Frost had the straight-laced character and Simon Pegg had the weird and lazy guy. It was cool to see a different side of them.

I wish more of the characters from the previous two films showed up in this one… Although I did adore Rosamund Pike! I’ve been a fan of hers since Made In Dagenham.

I felt bad noticing how old everybody looked in this film. But I LOVED how they wrote that into the script – their story is about 40 year olds rediscovering the freedom of their youth.

It was sort of nostalgic reflecting on how long ago Shaun of the Dead was made – 2004 and Hot Fuzz – 2007. For some reason, I think all of their fans feel like they’ve followed them on their journey for the last eight years.

I really want to see it again – I feel like it will be better the second time around. But, it’s definitely in third place within the trilogy, for me. I feel like the storyline was a little too similar to Shaun of the Dead, and it didn’t flow nearly as well as the other two films.

Just like the other two films, the structuring was impeccable. Although the ending was… Questionable.

However, the strong character development was enough to keep you totally engaged throughout the entire film. Let alone the well-choreographed fight scenes.

OMG I HAVEN’T REVIEWED HOT FUZZ YET! It’s on my priority list!

Jodie’s rating: 7.5/10
PS: You’re going to feel the urge for an ice cold lager after this movie.

Shaun of the Dead

Shaun of the Dead Poster

Director: Edgar Wright
Writers: Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg
Released: April 2004
Starring: Simon Pegg, Kate Ashfield, Lucy Davis, Nick Frost, Dylan Moran, Bill Nighy, Penelope Wilton
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The best black comedy of all time.

I have a weakness for zombie apocalypse movies anyway. However, this film has taken every zombie cliche` in the book and ends up pointing fun at themselves, which is hilarious!

The creators called it a “Rom Zom Com” aka a “Romantic Zombie Comedy” and the “perfect date film” because it has a heart line of a romantic comedy that happens to be set in a time where zombies are attacking the world.

It starts out with Shaun (Simon Pegg) and Shaun’s girlfriend Lizz (Kate Ashfield) at a bar on yet another date at the Winchester Pub, as Lizz bickers about how they never do anything different. The shot slowly widens to show, Lizz’s friends David and Di (Dylan Moran and Lucy Davis) and Shaun’s foul-mouthed best friend, Ed (Nick Frost). Of course, what better to change the monotonous situation than have their lives bombarded with the living dead!?

That’s what I like about the Wright-Pegg-Frost trio. Their ideas are crazy!
Yet they always work.

These zombies are the classic, lazy walker-types where unless you got trapped or are a really slow walker, you would probably not get caught, unlike the kind that is on the TV series The Walking Dead where they run when they are desperate. But these zombies imitate the world we live in – we wake up, go to work, come home again, miserable. So it does have a bit of a wake-up call feeling to it.

Edgar Wright’s signature fast pans, quick cuts and cut always were present which definitely suited the shocking humour and gruesome occurrences.

Another of my favourite things about this film is the parallels between the start and the ending. Such as the trolley boy collecting stray trolleys in the car park of a shopping centre with little enthusiasm. By the end, the remaining zombies are trained and take over the chore in an equally unenthusiastic way… I don’t know. I just find it amusing…

This is the best black comedy because, unlike some others I’ve seen of the same genre *cough* Zombieland *cough*, the comedy element runs through the entire film, not just random crucial parts. Shaun of the Dead make fun of the terrifying situation at every turn.

This is a must-have item in every film-watcher’s collection.

Jodie’s rating: 8/10

The Boat that Rocked

Director: Richard Curtis
Writers: Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Hilary Bevan Jones
Released: 2009
Starring: Philip Seymour Hoffman, Bill Nighy, Rhys Ifans, Nick Frost, Kenneth Branagh, Emma Thompson
—

If you love groovylicious music and cool fashion from the 1960s, then you are going to LOVE this film!

It’s a film about the pirate radio stars during the sixties who played rockin’ music, whilst trying to keep the government off their backs who didn’t like the kind of influence the radio stations had.

It’s the kind of film where its characters are used to target the typical main-stream movie audience who are in their twenties, but it’s ‘historical’ enough to capture the reminiscing kids of the sixties, yet, unique enough to entice the indie teens, and overall AWESOMENESS to be absolutely: Way. Cool.

It’s an exciting film about each radio host’s personal triumphs as well as the overall capturing story of essentially giving the middle finger to society. The contrast between the conservative government workers versus the wild rock and roll supporters from the boats in the North Sea was drawn which was great to see two sides.

You can also see the same sort of contrast being drawn between the children and their parents. The children being the rebellious worshippers of the DJs who hide radios in their bedrooms, and the parents being the BBC listeners who frown upon the culture of pop and rock and roll music.

The humour was a bit hit-and-miss for me occasionally, but that’s probably because I have a dry sense of humour… As in, I find Napoleon Dynamite hilarious. The majority of the audience would enjoy it very much, I’m sure.

Fantastic music OBVIOUSLY, which compelled me to buy the double-disc album which was incredible! Think of your favourite artist from the sixties, and it’ll be on there… Except for The Beatles… That was a bit of a disappointment, actually…

A loud, crazy, colourful and hilarious depiction of the sixties’ uprising which was almost successful. I felt quite upset at the end when I saw the ship sink and I went into a deep daydream of how the Government should have let the ships be, how it could have been, how they should never have made laws against them and how spectacular the sixties was… and the WAY COOL music… The ending was a bit of a downer, but accurate nevertheless. (Reinforcing my ‘Golden Age Thinking’ as explained in Midnight in Paris)

The Boat That Rocked is an entertaining film where anybody could pick out a favourite bit, moment or character, making it a movie that’s easy to talk about. It is a perfectly orchestrated story with fewer stereotypes than I expected.

The wardrobe was absolutely stupendous (I wish there was a “The Boat That Rocked Shop”) and the cut-aways to the everyday listeners was probably one of my favourite bits, because it gave you a huge scope of the world they lived in – since it could have been very isolated to the life on the boat.

This isn’t just a film worth watching, this is a film worth buying and then replaying. You will finish watching the film and feel an urge to carry a stereo around with you, liberating the boring and monotonous people of the 2000s with epic sounds of the sixties.

You will feel the need to stick it to the man and be rebellious… But you’ll probably just put the film on repeat instead, and that’s cool too.

If American Graffiti represents America in the 60s, The Boat that Rocked represents the UK in the 60s.

Jodie’s rating: 8/10