A lot of filmmakers wear their influences on their sleeve, but perhaps they arent nearly as overt as Edgar Wright. The man was brought up on a bevy of different films, from horror to action and all in between, and references to everything and anything can be found in his films. After all, a man doesnt name his big debut (not counting a Fistful of Fingers) after one of
the definitive horror movies of all time without having some sort of knowledge of filmic history. But Wright often with his friend and co-writer Simon Pegg doesnt just know like you or I, his knowledge is encyclopaedic, and only matched by his ability to sneak this knowledge into his films. Theres a reason why filmmakers of a generation before chief among them
Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez are impressed with Wrights work. Much like those auteurs before him, Wright isn't afraid to profess his love for both the schlock and the classics, meaning you might find references to both Casablanca and Christopher Lee B-Movies under the same roof. Yet what marks him out, even among such exalted company, is his love of geekdom. Wright, Pegg and collaborator Nick Frost are all unashamed geeks, even in their early days of TV series such as Asylum and Spaced. Hollywood is full of great filmmakers, but only a handful would ever dare to crowbar Timesplitters 2 into their big break. The Blood and Ice Cream/Cornetto trilogy of which Wright is most famous for is full of these nods, yet its his work on Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World that this really comes to the fore. Like any good cinephile, his films are practically fit to burst with knowing winks and nods to all sorts of films, television shows and music. Some of them are pretty obvious and some of them are almost mind-bogglingly obscure, yet its always good fun to sit down and see how many you can get first time round. Its the equivalent of geek bingo, and youre never, ever going to get a Full House... So without further ado, welcome to our Definitive Guide to Homages, Influence and References In Edgar Wright Movies.