Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘The World’s End’

Written by Scott Edwards 

Any regrets? That is the question everyone asks themselves at least one time in their lives. The timing of when this question is asked will allow you to either take action or just look back and wonder how your life would have changed. The only regret Gary King has is not finishing the magical Golden Mile Pub Crawl with his friends twenty years earlier.

Friendship is a funny thing as The World’s End shows. Gary King is bound and determined to get his old band (of friends, but he was in a band as well) back together to embark on the historical pub crawl once again. Even though his old pals have moved on with their lives, they have fallen back under the allure Gary brings to the table, following their fearless leader once more.

The plan is simple: One Night, Twelve Pints in Twelve Pubs in Newton Haven, their old home town. Seems like nothing would be able to stop them from attaining greatness for the evening, even as they are pulled over entering the town. Little resistance is in store for the group as they let the bed and breakfast owner know of their intentions for the evening, well at least Gary does, before setting out to achieve what once seemed to be the impossible. Are you lost yet? Don’t be. The World’s End moves at a very fast pace, so you don’t want to get out of your seat. Pegg, Wright and Frost deliver once again with a different genre movie. The rest of the assembled cast delivers as well, with call outs for Paddy Considine (Steven) and Rosamund Pike (Sam) who just brighten up the story line with innocence or kick-assory.

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It's been twenty or so years since the boys have been home and the town has certainly changed.  Everyone seems much more somber and nobody seems to remember the great Gary King, or the rest of the group for that matter, except for the local drunk and drug dealer, but they will not lead on as to what has happened to the town after all this time and why everyone seems to be, for lack of a better term, blank. Then the battle begins, against a couple kids at first, but it turns out to involve the entire town. Their resistance could be futile. 

Even though this movie is a bit darker than what you may be used to in Shaun of the Dead or Hot Fuzz, it still delivers on the laughs, along with action. Now I am not sure how a bunch of drunk guys could be so efficient in bar room brawls, but this group pulls it off. Guys, these action sequences are meant for you and there is no shame in being able to name off some of the moves they perform since they'll remind you of the WWE matches you watched growing up. Ladies, there is more of an action story line in this film than a love story, but there is a sweet moment at the end so disregard when the dreamy Adrian is seen across a busy dance floor, since he's been dead for so many years.

If you are still thinking of regrets from your life, or anything you think should not be left unfinished, you will need to go see this film for some additional perspective. You can see the trials and errors of yourself or your group, you may be right all the time, or you may be wrong.  It does not matter as long as you are willing to reform yourself to be what others expect you to be...a slave to the system. If you are not willing to do that, then you had better be ready to fight for what you believe in. Just make sure you make up your mind before you get to The World’s End.

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