After turning the zombie movie on its head with Shaun Of The Dead, director Edgar Wright and star Simon Pegg wrote the script for Hot Fuzz. This time it's the good old Hollywood cop movie that gets a ribbing, with high-octane action rocking the cobbled streets of a sleepy English village. It's a "refreshingly British comedy" that scored well on home ground and has become a cult hit in the US.

Styling The Fuzz

Wright pitches the film as "Rural Weapon" in a half-hour 'Making Of' documentary on disc two. Between interviews with cast and crew (including Bill Bailey, Edward Woodward and Timothy Dalton) there's plenty of behind-the-scenes footage. It's readily apparent that everyone is having a blast, especially when the guns come out for the big shootout at Somerfield supermarket. Thirteen video blogs provide more evidence of chaos in the leafy environs of Wells, Somerset. The good old English weather dampens everyone's spirits for a short while, but they partake of spirits of a different kind on location at a 900-year-old pub in Beaconsfield…

Eight behind-the-scenes featurettes give a brief overview of the various departments. The design crew set about dressing the shop windows of Wells with flowers and frippery, while Wright comes to grips with hi-tech cameras. As well as steadicam and crane-cam, there's 'rickshaw-cam', which added a fresh level of realism to the shoplifter chase scene. An alternative version of the famous 'fence jump' is thrown in among 22 deleted scenes. There are also alternative versions of the opening sequence and the epilogue. In an optional commentary, Wright explains that much of the footage was cut because he wanted to avoid giving his audience "gag fatigue". Elsewhere, Simon Pegg makes silly faces and fluffs his lines in over ten minutes of outtakes.

Zero Tolerance

Pegg joins Wright in one of four commentaries for the film. Naturally they talk a lot about their writing process, which involves listening to glam rock. In one of the behind-the-scenes featurettes they even allow us to view their script notes. Thank goodness they ditched the Chinese chip shop idea (something about chips cooked in mandarin oil!?). They also chat about visual effects and the use of CGI - also investigated in the featurettes. Plus, Pegg reveals that the secret of a great stunt skid, ie, lots of KY Jelly on the floor. Other commentaries bring in the cast for a patrol down memory lane, and there's even a track by 'the real fuzz' who find other uses for KY Jelly. (Two words: cavity search...)

Hot Funk, a reel of edited TV highlights throws a different spin on the Hot Fuzz concept, with cops spouting phrases like "Fudge off!" and "Peas and rice!" Three plot holes in the film are also explained in a handy storyboard format with voiceover. For instance Pegg reveals that a mindful hedgehog saved the entire Sandford PD from a fiery death in the sea mine explosion (Obviously). Wright's first stab at a cop film - a riff on Dirty Harry - is also thrown in along with an optional commentary and 'Making Of' featurette. There's even room for a trivia trick and flick-book animation. It may be two-discs of fluff, but it's hot fluff.

EXTRA FEATURES

Hot Fuzz: Special Edition DVD is released on Monday 11th June 2007.