I know it's a flaw, but I form unwavering opinions on entertainment even if I end up never seeing them. Whether it be a movie preview, television commercial, or even just an overheard synopsis, I know what I like and will go to great lengths not to see things that don't sound promising. "Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World" started off as one of those movies. When it was released in 2010 I put it on my mind's "Do Not Want" list for many reasons, some of which were;
A) It stars Michael Cera who is great on "Arrested Development", but meh in everything else.
B) It's based on a graphic novel series that is not about superheroes (Why even have pictures?)
C) It looked like a 21st century video gamer's wet dream.
Now despite taking unnecessary glee from the dismal business "Scott Pilgrim" did at the box office, I've only heard good things about it over the past two years. The director, Edgar Wright was already responsible for some of my favorite things ("Spaced", "Shaun Of The Dead", "Hot Fuzz", the upcoming "World's End") and most of the twenty-something cast has gone on to become standouts in this current generation of up and comers (Cera, Anna Kendrick, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Alison Pill, "Captain America" Chris Evans). So I knew it was only a matter of time before I bit the bullet and checked it out.
Consensus - It's good.
Set in Toronto, Scott Pilgrim is a 23-year old bass player for the unknown band "Sex Bob-omb" (a play on the name of a Super Mario villain) who shares a bed with his gay, deadpan roommate, Wallace and is dating Knives Chou, a 17-year old high school student. He runs into newly arrived American, Ramona Flowers at a party and falls head over heels in lust with her setting into motion the plot of Scott facing off with Ramona's Seven Evil Exes, a league of her ex-boyfriends (and girlfriend). This is a world much like our own, just more influenced by comic books and video games, so we get visual flourishes like sound effects that are written out on screen when we hear their noise as well as fights that end with the loser turning into a bunch of Canadian coins (the number of which depends on the difficulty of the fight). Once we accept that these things happen (and the characters don't comment on them at all), it's easy to just go along for the ride and enjoy everything Edgar Wright brings to the overall experience.
Right from the opening shot of the Universal Studios logo remade as a
video game start screen, this is a film that is full of flash and style. It's the definition of a 21st century film with a ton of postmodern references. I'd consider it first a romantic comedy, but it's also full of super intense action sequences with knowing nods to classic video games as Scott battles the seven exes. The pace is extremely quick (ADD-like) which gets exhausting by the time Scott faces the final boss, but it was still fun to see what type of things Wright would throw in (like a pee bar icon that appears in the upper right hand corner of the screen when Scott enters a restroom; it empties as he does his business). And while the story does revolve around Scott encountering the seven exes, it's also full of quiet downplayed scenes dealing with the lives of young people in the today's day and age. In a way, "Scott Pilgrim" is almost like opening presents on your birthday or Christmas morning; there's a ton of mystery gifts waiting for you and while you may be able to guess one or two, there's definitely going to be a few things that throw you for a loop.
Because the world of the film is video game based, there is a problem with stakes and making us care about the plot. Most of the characters other than Scott have no real arc, including Ramona who is just as fleshed out as Super Mario's Princess Peach (which is to say not very much). The video game influence extends to Scott dying during the last battle which is treated like a "Game Over", after which we find that he's able to pull a "Groundhog Day" and get as many restarts as he'd like, as long he picks "Continue". There's no real danger or suspense of whether Scott will come out victorious, but at the same time I didn't find the conflict super important to being with. The battles are fun enough, but start to get repetitive by the end. But again, it's not the plot, but all the side garnishes which make this film fun to watch.
I've never seen a film that brings to mind the experience of reading a comic or playing a video game more. This is how a lot of people wish life was and it's certainly amusing to experience it for a couple of hours. Edgar Wright is the real star of the show here; he always does a wonderful job with attention to detail and the big picture here is astounding. "Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World" is a new type of picture and while I in no way want to see every movie become something like this, it does its job well. It's super quirky and full of tons of characters I didn't get around to mentioning and even you don't know video games at all and much of this doesn't make a lick of sense to you, trust me that it's worth seeing and will explain itself by the five minute mark.
Rating - 4.25 out of 5 stars
Random Thoughts -
"Scott Pilgrim Vs The World" is a great example of 21st century detachment and need for immediate gratification, but I think it's also trying to comment on the absurdity of those concepts as well. Everything moves very fast and the characters spend more time commenting on the situations rather than interacting. Every group scene has side characters apathetically commenting on music or some other pop culture example and the seventh ex, Gideon Graves complains about how he spent so much time (two whole hours!) tracking down the other exes to send them against Scott.
Michael Cera is actually really good in this which surprised me since he's known for doing the same quiet, nervous guy in every film. His Scott seems more in control of the situation than any previous role I've seen and that in turn made him more endearing. He's also not a totally good guy at times, but Cera actually displays a likable quality that kept me on his side. After the catastrophe that was "Juno" (don't get me started) I had sworn off anything that seemed overly quirky, but Cera is actually just one of a ton of well done performances here, including Kieran Culkin as Wallace and Allison Pill as Scott's drummer, Kim. "Juno" tried to have the same detachment and hip dialogue while telling a semi-serious story with real consequences which didn't work at all for me, but "Scott Pilgrim" is the perfect vehicle for that sort of thing.
The randomness of this film includes a scene where Scott comes home to his apartment after a date with Ramona and tells Wallace about what happened while the "Seinfeld" incidental music plays along with a laugh track punctuating some pretty cheesy jokes. I love stuff like this and it reminded me of senior year of college, where I had to direct a short student written play. I chose one that had some horribly corny jokes (not on purpose I later found out) and decided to portray it as a lousy 80's sitcom, complete with the "Perfect Strangers" music introducing the scene and having another student sit in the audience and laugh loudly at every joke. When my teacher asked how I came to the idea of directing it that way, I had to BS my way through some explanation about the repetitiveness of modern culture or something. But yeah, I love things like that.
Ramona's seven exes is a fun concept and each of them are entertaining in different ways. They're treated like bosses of a video game and are as follows:
1) Matthew Patel, who dated Ramona for 1.5 weeks in the 7th grade. He's Indian which means he has mystical powers and breaks into a Bollywood-inspired song and dance routine after attacking Scott during a Sex Bob-omb gig at a battle of the bands.
2) Lucus Lee (Chris Evans), a skateboard pro turned douche bag action star (reportedly based on the author's experiences with Jason Lee). He uses his stunt doubles to fight Scott for him before crashing and burning while trying a dangerous 'board trick.
3) Todd Ingram (Brandon Routh), a rival bassist who is dating Scott's ex-girlfriend. He's vegan which means he has super telekinetic powers, until Scott tricks him into drinking coffee flavored with half-and-half.
4) "Roxy" Richter, a remnant from Ramona's brief lesbian phase who is defeated when Ramona tips off Scott to touch the back of Roxy's kneecap, causing her to collapse in a fit of orgasmic ecstasy.
5 and 6) The Katayanagi Twins who face off against Sex Bob-omb in the semi-finals of the battle of the bands, using their Japanese techno music as a weapon.
7) Gideon Graves (Jason Schwartzman), the founder of the League of Ramona's Evil Exes and owner of a major music club.
There's also a final bonus boss, Mega Scott, who is presumably a super evil version of Scott himself, but turns out to be exactly like him and they spend their time chilling instead of fighting.
Next - "Skyfall", the morning of Tuesday, the 13th.
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