Edgar Wright: Genius. Now that we have the title for his inevitable biography out of the way, lets get down to it. Edgar broke through in a big way when he was asked by Simon Pegg and Jessica Stevenson to direct their television project they had created called, Spaced. He lent an offbeat sensibility to the weird and wonderful show with his unusual visual take, humour and camera styles. The show equally became his creation over the course of two seasons and introduced the world to the comedy duo of Simon Pegg and Nick Frost (they will be featured heavily in this piece). Spaced was also, arguably, the inspiration for his first two feature films. So, what certifies a genius? Its sharing visions that nobody else thought were possible. Its taking your medium to new heights and being unsatisfied with the plateau you reach and so you reach higher. Well discuss ten moments that prove Edgars utter genius and believe me, theres more than ten but well try to cover as much of his career as possible. The funny thing is, his career is only getting started. His time on the main stage isnt even halfway through his second decade yet. Hes a baby and already has the world on notice. This summer is bringing The Worlds End, and with it, the end to The Three Flavours Cornetto Trilogy (Blood and Ice Cream). So lets stop procrastinating and get to the celebrating...
10. Spaced 1.3 Art
Horror. It can be a feeling, something that caught your eye, even something you've read. Edgar Wright loves horror and part of the charm of Spaced was him infusing seemingly normal situations with a flair for the horrific. This was never more prevalent than in the third episode of the show, Art. After spending a night playing Resident Evil 2 while high on cheap speed, Tim begins hallucinating that he's actually battling zombies. He wakes to find Daisy embroiled in the horrors of job hunting. Have you guys ever had to actively hunt for a job? Sitting through job interviews can be some of the scariest business you'll ever have to deal with and Wright captures these moments as if he's shooting a horror flick. Filming scenes like they're in a horror film lend more to the proceedings than maybe any other episode the series produced. Meanwhile, Brian is dealing with the horror of having to see his ex and how successful she/he has become while dealing with his own feelings of inadequacy. The scene at Vulva's show was shot with a surreal vibe, eschewing Dario Argento. And just when we thought we were coming down from our shared speed high with Tim, we find out he's also now drunk on cheap wine. What ensues is hilarious as he again hallucinates of battling zombies, punches Vulva in the face and then passes out. The brilliance of this episode ended up inspiring Wright's first feature film, Shaun Of The Dead.