Review of The World's End (2013) by Abigail U — 22 Sep 2015

Anyone who's a fan of Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz will be familiar with the concept of needing to watch a film twice in order to catch everything they missed the first time around. Edgar Wright fans will be pleased to know that The World's End, the third instalment in his comedy trilogy starring Simon Pegg and Nick Frost is no exception to this rule. Where Shaun of the Dead is a zombie film spoof and Hot Fuzz takes its tropes from buddy cop movies, this newest member of the trilogy, affectionately known as the Cornetto Trilogy, parodies the apocalyptic genre (hence the title). It's got explosions, emotions, beer, robots, a single female character mainly used to play out the apocalyptic movie romance trope, and, of course, the end of the world as we know it.

As per the usual conventions of Wright's films, the first half is chock full of foreshadowing - everything from pub names to the colour of a character's outfit is carefully placed foreshadowing that all makes sense the second time around, and you'll be either kicking yourself for not noticing before or praising Wright for slipping it in there so seamlessly.

However, that's not the only reason The World's End should be watched twice. The first time around, it's a typical British sci-fi comedy full of drinking, swearing, sexual humour and fight scenes. Pegg's character, Gary King, is hilarious at best and annoying at his worst, a drunk teenager in the body of a grown man, overexcited and difficult to keep up with in a way that'll have you in fits. It's not until a second viewing that it sinks in just how emotionally damaged Gary is. Every ridiculous line of his that you laugh at during your first viewing will bring nothing but pain the next time around because - that's right, you guessed it - everything is foreshadowing, and every word out of Gary King's mouth is a clue as to his issues. Fans of the Cornetto Trilogy may also be surprised at how fleshed out the characters are; the film could almost be mistaken for some sort of soap opera with how well you get to know the main five characters. That is, right up until the first encounter with the robots filled with blue stuff, or 'blanks' as they come to be known.

Technologically speaking, although not a big-budget Hollywood movie, The World's End does pretty well for its special effects, from world-ending explosions to smashed heads oozing blue ink. Another asset that stands out is the amazing choreography, and not only in the fight scenes; pretty much every second of the film is choreographed spectacularly. Forget those fight scenes that are all too common where everything is a blur and you can't tell who's fighting whom and end up dazed and confused; the film is choreographed in a way that allows the viewer to follow the action and appreciate each character's individual fighting styles, while still maintaining that chaotic feeling of being in the middle of a bar brawl. In near every other scene, background characters are choreographed so precisely and often matching the unusual soundtrack, creating a surreal and comical setting.

The way the film ends is a bit of a cliché, and could be a little unsatisfying. It is, however, a parody, and should be viewed with this in mind. If you're looking for an ending that subverts the clichéd apocalypse movie ending where the characters tell the story of how the world ended around a fire to a grubby-looking younger generation, The World's End is not your movie. Then again, if you're really looking for subversion from overused tropes, one would question why you're watching a parody in the first place. But if you're willing to see past the clichés and remember that it is a parody and intended to mock those genre tropes, there's a lot you can get out of the ending.

All in all, if British humour is what tickles you and you enjoy other works of Pegg and Wright, The World's End certainly won't disappoint. It is recommended that you watch it twice to fully appreciate the complexity of this film. However, if a silly, comical apocalypse movie parody is what you're looking for then, by all means, watch it once. Just don't think too deeply about it.