The World’s End (2013)
By Keeva Stratton
For Gary King (Simon Pegg), the last day of high school was the best day of his life—truly.
Following school on that fateful day, he and his four closest male pals took on the local challenge known as ‘The Golden Mile’: 12 pubs (ending at the famed drink hole ‘The World’s End’), 12 pints each and a whole lot of shenanigans along the way.
Unfortunately, the shenanigans won out (as did the copious amounts of alcohol) and the mile was never finished, leaving a hole in Gary’s life that he has never since managed to fill.
Over 20 years later, Gary still pines for his boyhood zenith, and having tried to find meaning elsewhere, decides it is high time he and his high school pals got together once more to finally finish the golden mile.
Unfortunately, having found greater meaning in their own lives, the other four members of the group are not as keen to reminisce; and getting them to return to their hometown takes more than a little convincing.
There is a particular grudge held by his dear friend Andrew (Nick Frost), but in the name of mateship, pity for Gary and nothing much better to do, they acquiesce and soon find themselves heading back to their small home town—back to their… err… glory days?
With some reluctance, and the realisation that at least one of them no longer drinks, they begin the pub-crawl like before. But, of course, it can’t be like before, and as the boys work through their varying histories of angst with one another, they soon realise their internal problems pale in comparison to an issue the town is facing—one that could really lead them to the end of the world!
From Hot Fuzz to Shaun of the Dead, the well-tested comedic pairing of Simon Pegg and Nick Frost is either one you utterly enjoy, or one you avoid. For the former, The World’s End is yet another opportunity to indulge in their unique slap-up bromance humour.
The film perfectly captures the tragic need some have to cling to their ‘glory days’ while the rest of us just choose to move on. But it does so with humour, exaggeration and a fantastical twist.
Funny, whacky and just warm enough, the World’s End is serious fun.
Directed by: Edgar Wright
Starring: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Rosamund Pike, Martin Freeman
Runtime: 109 mins
Release Date: August 1
Reviewer rating: 3/5
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