When it comes to comedy movies, what names pop to your head? Jim Carrey in Liar Liar (1997), Leslie Nielsen in The Naked Gun (1988), Will Ferrell in Anchorman (2004)? Or maybe if you have a more "sophisticated" taste, Woody Allen's Annie Hall (1977) or Coen Brothers' The Big Lebowski (1998)? All of these Hollywood films are fun and memorable in their own way, but there is a younger lad coming from the moores of England who has altered the understanding of comedy in cinema.
In this paper, I am going to discuss the cinematographic and storytelling differences in the realm of comedy of Edgar Wright's movies Shaun of the Dead (2004), Hot Fuzz (2007) and The World's End (2013), all of which form the famous "Three Flavours Cornetto Trilogy". Wright's films have to be analyzed in form and in content because they are exquisitly rich in both.
The Cornetto trilogy, named after a world known ice cream brand that appears in all films of the trilogy, is unusual in many ways. The films are bonded by the directorial style and the themes they handle, rather than character or narrative. Even the brand that gave the name to the trilogy makes only a short cameo in each installment and has no actual relevance to the events. Each film is connected with a different color and flavor of Cornetto: the blood-splattered Shaun with red strawberry, Hot Fuzz with police-blue Original, and science-fiction World’s End with green mint chocolate chip. It all feels appropriate, but it is in accrodance with the partation the films: They are parts of the same brand, having the same general apperance and aura, but they are three seperate tastes. The characters and the story in each film are different, but the main crew (Edwar Wright, co-scriptwirter Simon Pegg, producer Nina Park) and most of the cast (leads Simon Pegg and Nick Frost and a group of supporting actors) remain the same. However, these films are tied by more than just cast and crew. They all use genre filmmaking and pop-culture references to show satirically and insightfully the dangers of conformity and nostalgia. Let's begin with the first film of the trilogy, Shaun of the Dead, written by Wright himself and the trilogy's lead, now-well-known actor Simon Pegg. The film is about a young man named Shaun trying to get back together with his girlfriend Liz with the help of his best friend Ed. The twist of the film is, all of this take place during a zombie apocalypse. One should keep in mind that this movie came out when the zombie genre had not been taken up my mainstream filmmakers for over 30 years. But it pays homage to all of the zombie classics such as Evil Dead (1981), Night of the Living Dead (1968) and obviosuly Romero's Dawn of the Dead (1978). And the film's narrative is quite unusual as well. Instead of focusing on the undead and trying to get the laughs there, it treats the living characters as the main issue whose conflicts and arguments keep getting interrupted by annoying flesh-eaters. The film can be called a "comedy horror", just like one of Wright's favorite films An American Werewolf in London (1981), which he pays homage to, in this one. The reason why Shaun is one of the best examples of comedy horror …show more content…
The visual style. When it comes to directing a comedy, Edgar Wright stands out in the vast sea of film directors. He not only makes the audience laugh with the gags, but uses his camera to add comical elements. He has even coined a camera move as his own, "Edgar Wright's Whip Pan". Growing up as a movie geek, Wright has successfully observed a lot of different filmmakers and their films in variety of genres. Because of that he can find humor in places other people do not look. He is one of the few people working in comedy genre using the full range of what is possible. Edgar Wright never wastes a shot, every second of his films are filled with either visual or audial gags and clues. This is what seperates a mediocre director from a great one. The ability to take most single mundane scenes, and find new ways to do them. Great directors understand you can get a laugh just through
In this paper, I am going to discuss the cinematographic and storytelling differences in the realm of comedy of Edgar Wright's movies Shaun of the Dead (2004), Hot Fuzz (2007) and The World's End (2013), all of which form the famous "Three Flavours Cornetto Trilogy". Wright's films have to be analyzed in form and in content because they are exquisitly rich in both.
The Cornetto trilogy, named after a world known ice cream brand that appears in all films of the trilogy, is unusual in many ways. The films are bonded by the directorial style and the themes they handle, rather than character or narrative. Even the brand that gave the name to the trilogy makes only a short cameo in each installment and has no actual relevance to the events. Each film is connected with a different color and flavor of Cornetto: the blood-splattered Shaun with red strawberry, Hot Fuzz with police-blue Original, and science-fiction World’s End with green mint chocolate chip. It all feels appropriate, but it is in accrodance with the partation the films: They are parts of the same brand, having the same general apperance and aura, but they are three seperate tastes. The characters and the story in each film are different, but the main crew (Edwar Wright, co-scriptwirter Simon Pegg, producer Nina Park) and most of the cast (leads Simon Pegg and Nick Frost and a group of supporting actors) remain the same. However, these films are tied by more than just cast and crew. They all use genre filmmaking and pop-culture references to show satirically and insightfully the dangers of conformity and nostalgia. Let's begin with the first film of the trilogy, Shaun of the Dead, written by Wright himself and the trilogy's lead, now-well-known actor Simon Pegg. The film is about a young man named Shaun trying to get back together with his girlfriend Liz with the help of his best friend Ed. The twist of the film is, all of this take place during a zombie apocalypse. One should keep in mind that this movie came out when the zombie genre had not been taken up my mainstream filmmakers for over 30 years. But it pays homage to all of the zombie classics such as Evil Dead (1981), Night of the Living Dead (1968) and obviosuly Romero's Dawn of the Dead (1978). And the film's narrative is quite unusual as well. Instead of focusing on the undead and trying to get the laughs there, it treats the living characters as the main issue whose conflicts and arguments keep getting interrupted by annoying flesh-eaters. The film can be called a "comedy horror", just like one of Wright's favorite films An American Werewolf in London (1981), which he pays homage to, in this one. The reason why Shaun is one of the best examples of comedy horror …show more content…
The visual style. When it comes to directing a comedy, Edgar Wright stands out in the vast sea of film directors. He not only makes the audience laugh with the gags, but uses his camera to add comical elements. He has even coined a camera move as his own, "Edgar Wright's Whip Pan". Growing up as a movie geek, Wright has successfully observed a lot of different filmmakers and their films in variety of genres. Because of that he can find humor in places other people do not look. He is one of the few people working in comedy genre using the full range of what is possible. Edgar Wright never wastes a shot, every second of his films are filled with either visual or audial gags and clues. This is what seperates a mediocre director from a great one. The ability to take most single mundane scenes, and find new ways to do them. Great directors understand you can get a laugh just through