Hot Fuzz - Editing

Editing connects one shot with another and another and another until the film is stitched together. One major thing to consider in editing is continuity. It emphasizes smooth transitions between shots. Time and space are usually condensed. In Citizen Kane, there is a famous scene in which Walter Thatcher tells the boy Kane “Merry Christmas…” and is cut to the next shot many, many years later where he finishes “…and a Happy New Year.” Despite the passage of time, it’s seamless.

The editing in the film varies. Nothing seems feels out of place and flows well with most of the film. Minimal action sees minimal edits and cuts and fast action sees more and quicker cuts. The action shots are aggressively cut to enhance the action. According to editor Chris Dickens, the film used more than 5,500 cuts - roughly 45 cuts per minute (Peters). Due to the research done by Wright and Pegg, in which they watched countless action/thriller films, they both wanted the film to be “fast-paced.” Wright, especially his work with Pegg, is known for his fast cutting. Considering the amount of cuts in the film there are very few long takes. The longest takes aren’t any longer than five seconds.

Combined with the mise-en-scene, the editing can help the viewer piece together the outcome of the film. Similar to how Hitchcock had done, at times, Wright didn’t give enough time to digest everything that’s in a scene. There are enough clues thrown in throughout the film that if the viewer is paying enough attention they can piece together which direction the film is going.

In one particular scene in which Angel pulls over a speeding Martin Blower, the actual chase is a mere five seconds but contains eight cuts. Wright has said that he intended the sequence to hold the record for the shortest car chase in film history (Wright and Pegg, Hot Fuzz). This edit stimulates and creates suspense to a rather dull event that might have gone a mere 1,000 feet down the road. In the scene where Angel confronts a shoplifter at the grocery store, before the chase ensues, there are nine cuts in ten seconds. In one of the “slower” scenes in the film, both Angel and Butterman go to the Am-Drams to see Romeo and Juliet. The sequence is just about 55 seconds, yet still contains 25 cuts (seven between the officers and the stage) – a majority of them come towards the end of the scene as the play is ending.

Hand-cranked cameras were used for the booking and paperwork shots and for some of the shots during the shootout at the end of the film (Peters). In this sense the cutting is manipulative. There is nothing exciting about paperwork or booking a criminal. This was something that, during their research for the film, police officers said they never saw dramatized in film, so they filmed those scenes like fight scenes.

Editing is a major language in the film, as it is in most films, but in Hot Fuzz it definitely adds to the story.

With today’s films, a current trend seems to be faster and faster cuts. Some believe that to be based on the MTV generation. Hot Fuzz is no exception. It has a very high rate of cuts and a very short length of shot. On the complete opposite end of the spectrum, one film that did a complete 180 on that theme was the 2002 historical Russian drama, Russian Ark, which was a one shot, 96-minute film.