Review: Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
Posted August 12, 2010 4:16 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Unless you are a comic book or video game nerd, or a Toronto hipster, the overboard A.D.D.-style sound and visual effects of Scott Pilgrim vs. the World will make you wish there was a pause button in the theatre so you can catch your breath from time to time. If you do fall into one of those categories however, then Scott Pilgrim vs. the World is a pixel-perfect, exciting and fun ride that should please fans of the Bryan Lee O’Malley graphic novels it’s based on.
Set in Toronto (yes that’s right, Toronto, Canada), Scott Pilgrim (Michael Cera) is your typical twentysomething Torontonian. He frequents Second Cup coffee, eats at Pizza Pizza, reads Eye Weekly and NOW magazine, rides the TTC, and is in a struggling indie rock band. His life is turned upside down one night when he meets Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) and instantly falls in love with her. What Scott doesn’t know is that in order to be with Ramona he has to defeat a league of her seven evil exes (played by Satya Bhabha, Chris Evans, Brandon Routh, Keita Saitou and Shota Saito, Mae Whitman, and Jason Schwartzman). One by one they come for him, and in Street Fighter/Mortal Kombat-inspired fight scenes, Scott must battle them until they explode and turn into coins (the movie is very much like watching a friend play a video game without letting you have the controller).
Directed by Edgar Wright (Hot Fuzz, Shaun of the Dead), Scott Pilgrim vs. the World works best during the straight comedic scenes and gets quite boring during the repetitive battle sequences. Cera doesn’t stray far from the usual awkward loser character he has played in every movie he’s ever been in but the way he plays off of the other cast members is what helps the film succeed, especially scenes with Anna Kendrick as Scott’s sister Stacey, Kieran Culkin as his gay roommate Wallace, Alison Pill as the drummer in his band Kim, and Aubrey Plaza as Julie — a random girl who seems to be employed by every store in Toronto. There’s also a slew of “in” jokes that people outside of Toronto probably won’t get.
Speaking of Toronto, since it plays such a huge role in Scott Pilgrim vs. the World I find it very disappointing that Universal, the studio distributing it, didn’t put more effort into marketing it here. The world premiere was at Comic-Con in San Diego, and when the trailer for it played before the Robin Hood screening earlier this year I swear I could hear crickets chirping while people scratched their heads as to what it was they were seeing on the screen. Maybe Universal knew all along this was not a movie for everyone and no matter how hard they marketed it (here or elsewhere) it was not going to be a summer blockbuster. My guess is that it will be overshadowed by Eat Pray Love and The Expendables this weekend and be gone before it has time to catch on.
Bottom line is that Scott Pilgrim vs. the World is enjoyable if you’re prepared for it. However, while I liked it, I do find it hard to recommend to the masses.
*** out of 5 stars
Rated PG
Cast: Michael Cera, Jason Schwartzman, Anna Kendrick, Mary Elizabeth Winstead
Directed by: Edgar Wright
Official Site IMDb
brian.mckechnie@citynews.rogers.com
ALSO OPENING THIS WEEK: Eat Pray Love, The Expendables, Soul Kitchen, Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work
