(The World’s End, 2013, directed by Edgar Wright, starring Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, and Martin Freeman; written by Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright–now available on DVD)
reviewed by Zeke Teflon
The World’s End is from the same team (Pegg & Wright) responsible for Shaun of the Dead, and it shows. In a lot of ways it seems like a mashup of Shaun of the Dead and Invasion of the Body Snatchers, with “pod people” standing in for zombies. Unfortunately, The World’s End isn’t as funny as Shaun of the Dead, nor is it as frightening as Invasion of the Body Snatchers.
It begins as a standard drinking comedy involving five old friends on a road trip to their college town, and works well enough to keep viewers interested. There are enough laughs to make it worth watching. But as the film nears the midpoint of their drinking spree, our anti-heroes discover that the town has been taken over by what are in essence “pod people,” and the film devolves into a seemingly endless series of fight and chase scenes. There are still some–but not enough–laughs mixed in, but other than that there’s nothing out of the ordinary about these scenes.
Revealing more of the plot (more accurately, the series of events) would involve major spoilers, so I won’t. Suffice it to say that the plot is nonsensical, which isn’t the worst thing in the world in a light comedy. Especially if you’re drinking while watching it.
In the case of The World’s End, you wouldn’t miss anything essential if you were fairly soused while viewing it. And in that case you’d probably enjoy it if you were watching with equally soused friends. So, if that sounds like fun, do pick up a cheap used copy of the DVD, stock up on the adult beverage of your choice, invite a few friends over, and have at it.
¡Salud!
* * *
Zeke Teflon is the author of Free Radicals: A Novel of Utopia and Dystopia.
He’s currently working on the sequel.
Related articles
Sharp and Pointed 
