Member review

Edgar Wright’s usual recipe for a successful film is pretty concurrent throughout this "The World's End": Dark, witty humour meets a talented cast with a storyline bordering on mad and all tied up within a montage like rapid editing style. And as per usual, it works.

The story follows 5 men (once childhood friends) in their attempts to finish the pub-crawl they failed at on their final day of school. Simon Pegg as a young-spirited Gary King leads this motley (and somewhat reluctant) crew in their adventures. His comedic timing is superb and he firmly holds his own as the lead of the group. The rest of the group were also enjoyable to watch. Whilst some of their characters were mildly stereotypical it fit well with the general idea that this was just a mundane group trying to complete a common challenge in a normal town.

The plot of the film is undoubtedly where its strengths stem from. The way in which Wright directs leads the audience to believe the story will follow an entirely different path/genre. It's a very twisted plot and the comedy fits perfectly with the bizarre nature of it!

The film is visually a pleasure to watch. The rapid editing style is engaging and the colour grading and cinematography of the film, particularly for a comedy, is notably well done. I found myself on numerous occasions appreciating the symmetry within shots, something that became almost a theme within the film. The occasional call, subtle callbacks to childhood events we were told of at the start of the film only aided in creating the realistic setting key in making this film so surprising and humorous. The setting of the film in the small town of Newton-Haven I also found particularly effective. We all know that small, mundane town where the staple features of the town are its pubs - it starkly contrasts the events that take the place in the town and helps make the plot even more quirky.

Whilst I personally love the rapid editing style, it does create some flaws within the film. The plot moves so quickly as a result of it that I found myself lacking the time to properly comprehend some plot points and differentiate between characters. However, I can see why Wright chose to do this. The characters themselves also have little time to understand and comprehend what’s happening but I feel that the occasional scene at a slower pace would have greatly benefitted the viewing experience.

Overall, as per usual with Wright’s films, I found ‘The World’s End’ incredibly enjoyable. Quite frankly it had me somewhat cackling with laughter throughout! Wright knows what he does well and sticks to it firmly. The comedy is sharp, the film is visually pleasing and the cast fits perfectly within their characters. I look forward to seeing more films like this in the future.