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2010s,

I saw Edgar Wright's The World's End earlier this week and loved it! - Film review

Edgar Wright's final third film in the Cornetto series The World's End is an absolute blast and a fitting finale to the trilogy. I had little expectation of The World's End I wasn't wild about Hot Fuzz or Paul but loved Scott Pilgrim vs. the World so my day could have gone either way but I went into the film with an open mind and was rewarded with one of this year's most entertaining cinema experiences.

The World's End Simon Pegg as Gary King (Click to enlarge)

The World's End is all about the King, Gary King (Simon Pegg) that is - who decides to get the gang; Andrew Knightley (Nick Frost), Peter (Eddie Marsan), Steven (Paddy Considine) and Oliver (Martin Freeman) back together for one last blast to relive their glory days.

The World's End  The boys are back in town (Click to enlarge)

Of course the rest of the gang have all moved on in their lives and quite frankly would rather leave the past, especially Gary, back in the past. But somehow our band of brothers find themselves returning to Newton Haven their home town and attempting to complete "The Golden Mile" a pub crawl from The First Post to The World's End - they started many years ago visiting where things go from bad to worse.

The World's End Poster (Click to enlarge)

Whereas Shaun of the Dead riffed on George Romero's zombies and Hot Fuzz drew inspiration from the cop Buddy films The World's End is Edgar Wright's hommage to John Carpenter's The Thing and other tropes of the alien invasion genre.

The World's End Keep calm and have a pint (Click to enlarge)

The World's End Martin Freeman as Oliver (Click to enlarge)

If I'm honest the alien aspects of the film are kind of cheesy especially towards the end but I didn't care because the focus of the film is firmly on the characters, their relationships and the journey they undertake. The chemistry between the actors pops off the screen and it is a marvellous thing to behold.

The World's End Paddy Considine as Steven (Click to enlarge)

There could be the most insane action type stuff going on but it will mean less to than what the characters are doing and saying. There are many touching moments that will induce nostalgia which is incredibly well balanced by the quick fire wit that doesn't stop and allows the characters to bounce off Simon Pegg's self-centered Gary.

The World's End Eddie Marsan as Peter (Click to enlarge)

The cast are great and keep an eye out for blink and you'll miss them appearances but I was particularly taken by Nick Frost as Andrew Knightley who for the first time in the Cornetto Trilogy isn't just the straight man or comedic sidekick and is finally given the chance to come into his own and a character of substance in the Cornetto universe.

The World's End Nick Frost as Andrew Knightley (Click to enlarge)

A special mention for Rosamund Pike as Sam who is pretty much some kind of wonderful and makes any film she is in better.

The World's End Rosamund Pike as Sam (Click to enlarge)

I could go on for longer but I think some of the magic of The World's End is that it is a fairly simplistic character based tale that would be ruined by too much information so avoid the bits below and go see the film. Besides I received the following in my email:

Thank you for coming along to the screening. We would love the audience to experience this film as you do and would really appreciate if you didn't reveal some of the surprises, twists and actors that do not feature in the trailers. Forgive me for asking, as I know you would never dream of doing such a dastardly thing. Thanks for your co-operation and I hope you enjoy the movie.

Edgar Wright

The World's End is in cinemas from today 19 July and well worth a watch on the big screen

The tale of The World’s End begins on June 22nd, 1990. In their suburban U.K. town of Newton Haven, five boys in the prime of their teenage youth celebrate the end of school by attempting an epic pub crawl together. Despite their enthusiasm and the downing of a slew of pints of beer, they fall short of seeing their quest through, to the last pub on their list, The World’s End.

Twenty-odd years later, “the five musketeers” have each left their hometown and are now husbands, fathers, men with careers – with the flashing-red-light exception of their voluble one time ringleader, Gary King (Simon Pegg), who is now a 40-year-old man trapped at the cigarette end of his teens. The irrepressible Gary, keenly aware of his estrangement from his onetime closest friend Andy (Nick Frost), becomes hell bent on trying “The Golden Mile” drinking marathon again.

He convinces Andy, Steven (Paddy Considine), Oliver (Martin Freeman), and Peter (Eddie Marsan) to stage an encore, and one Friday afternoon they are all reunited. Gary is in his element: the mandate is one night, five guys, twelve pubs – imbibing at least one pint apiece at each establishment. Arriving in Newton Haven, they re-encounter Oliver’s sister Sam (Rosamund Pike), for whom Gary and Steven each still carry a torch.

As the gang attempts along the way to reconcile their past and present, an increasingly insane and dangerous series of encounters with old haunts and acquaintances makes them realize that the real struggle is for the future, not just theirs but humankind’s. Reaching The World’s End is the least of their worries…

The World's End  It all ends tonight (Click to enlarge)

For more info head over to:

The World's End Official Site
The World's End Official Facebook Page
The World's End Official Twitter Page

The Establishing Shot: I SAW EDGAR WRIGHT'S THE WORLD'S END EARLIER THIS WEEK AND LOVED IT! - FILM REVIEW