BLU-RAY REVIEW

Hot Fuzz

Featured In Issue 124, October 2007

Picture5
SoundNR
WSR Score4
Basic Information on new release titles is posted as soon as titles are announced. Once reviewed, additional data is added to the database.
(Studio/Distributor):
Universal Studios Home Entertainment
(Catalog Number):
62100068
(MPAA Rating):
R
(Rating Reason):
Strong language and violence
(Retail Price):
$39.98
(Disc Type):
Single Side, Dual Layer (HD-30)
(Widescreen Edition):
Yes
(Full Screen Edition):
No
(Running Time In Minutes):
121
(Color Type):
Color
(Chaptered/Scene Access):
Yes
(Closed Captioned):
Yes
(Regional Coding):
Not Indicated
(Theatrical Year):
2007
(Theatrical Release):
Yes
(Direct-To-Video Release):
No
(Disc Release Date):
07/31/07
(THX® Digitally Mastered):
No
(Director):
Edgar Wright
(Screenplay/Written By):
(Story):
(Music):
(Director Of Photography):
(Production Designer):
(Visual Effects):
(Costume Designer):
(Editor):
(Supervising Sound Editors):
(Re-Recording Mixers):
(Executive Producers):
(Co-Producers):
(Producers):
(Academy Awards):
(Principal Photography):
(Theatrical Aspect Ratio):
(Measured Disc Aspect Ratio):
(Disc Soundtrack):
Dolby Digital+ 5.1
(Theatrical Sound):
(Theatrical Re-Issue Soundtrack):
(DTS Bit Rate):
(Dolby Digital Bit Rate):
(Additional Languages):
(French Language):
(Spanish Language):
(Chinese Language):
(Subtitles):
(Cantonese Language):
(Mandarin Language):
(Japanese Language):
(Italian Language):
(German Language):
(Portuguese Language):

Big city over-achieving super-cop, Nicholas Angel (Pegg) is so good at his job he makes the other officers on the police force look like a bunch of pathetic slackers. When the head of the police department "promotes" him to the sleepy rural village of Sandford, it is more about saving the reputation of his department than rewarding the hard working police constable for his dedication to his job. After a series of tragic "accidents" Hot Fuzz Angel is suspicious that all is not as it seems in this idyllic country hamlet. (Stacey Pendry)

Special features include The Man Who Would Be Fuzz (30 seconds), ten minutes of deleted scenes, an option to view the film with storyboards, Fuzz-O-Meter option to view with trivia captioning, four theatrical trailers, Danny's Notebook—a 15-second flip animation clip, a commentary option, Fuzball Rally clips from the United States promotional tour, and Hot Funk, a four-minute TV trailer.

The anamorphically enhanced 2.34:1 DVD looks very good, with solid black levels and well-rendered shadows. Details are crisp with good resolution and contrast is balanced nicely. Color bleeding can be noticed at times, but it is not consistently so. Compression artifacts and pixilation are not much of a problem, but jagged edges can be noticed at times. Edge enhancement is not overly noticeable. The VC-1-encoded HD DVD looks superb, with incredible depth and very nicely rendered details. The superb shadow delineation shows off the fine fibers in the dark fabric of the officers' uniforms. Contrast is fairly well balanced, but whites can bloom somewhat. The color bleeding that was apparent in the DVD is not recognizable. (Danny Richelieu)

The Dolby® Digital 5.1-channel soundtrack (incorrectly labeled as Dolby Digital Surround EX™ in the disc's menu) features acceptably pure fidelity with deep, tight bass delivered through each of the channels, dropping below 30 Hz at high levels in the front full-range channels. The LFE channel is pumped extra hot in the fight scenes, but they aren't necessarily system threatening. Dialogue generally sounds good, although it can at times sound muffled and unrefined. The mix is exciting, with each of the channels incorporated well in the sound design. The HD DVD's Dolby Digital Plus 5.1-channel encoding provides the same electric mix, but improves upon fidelity ever so slightly. Still, the soundtrack can sound bright at times, and occasionally dialogue can sound sibilant. (Danny Richelieu)