4 out of 5

Director: Edgar Wright

Similar to Shaolin Soccer’s Stephen Chow, director Edgar Wright has spit out movies that just cannot be pigeonholed as any particular genre, as they take pieces from many and do them all convincingly and – perhaps more amazingly – seamlessly. Chows had his hits here, but his tone still doesnt win as many American fans as it does in his hometown. The same goes for the very British Wright, who has scored some hits with Shaun of the Dead and now Scott Pilgrim, but still, on the whole, will probably remain on the cool fringes for making such insanely batty and yet smart films. Shaun is a horror comedy, but it goes beyond that. Its a definite zombie film, with good makeup and good gore, but actual characters that arent just there for jokes and dramatic moments that – while shot with energetic flair that gives them comedy – still function as drama. Shaun (Simon Pegg) is dating Liz (Kate Ashfield), who is getting tired of doing the same things over and over and hearing Simon promise to change. They break up. When zombies inexplicably (do we need an explanation? They give us flashes of news reports to satisfy the curious) take over the town, it gives Simon – with mate Ed (Nick Frost) in tow – the chance to step up, save the girl, and maybe make some changes in his life. It ends a little easy (and the relationship resolves a little questionably…), but the trek on the way there is a mystery smash-up of blood and laughs and great characters. Watching Wrights films always leaves me a little shocked at their energy and genre-hopping. Shaun doesnt feel as confident or deep as Hot Fuzz or Scott Pilgrim, but as Wrights first big step into film, it was definitely worth the attention it received.