Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Scott Pilgrim vs The World - An Epic of Epic Epicness

Anyone who knows me well, knows that I can't stand Michael Cera. Period. There's something about this twitchy geek that makes me cringe. Blah. I can't stand the fool. So when I heard that Michael Cera was going to play Scott Pilgrim, I was very skeptical. I was so skeptical that I had given up almost all hope on a Scott Pilgrim film. The only thing that gave me hope for what I was sure would be a disaster in film history was the fact that the movie was being directed by one of my personal favorites, Edgar Wright. (Shaun of the Dead, Hotfuzz) So after watching Scott Pilgrim vs. the World the question rises: Does this comic book epic deserve to be called a film or does it belong in the pile of garbage films that have risen this year. (Prince of Persia anyone?)


About three or four days before Scott Pilgrim came out, I decided that I would give the film a chance, and I actually became excited to see it, despite my hate for Michael Cera. So, on Friday when the movie came out, my girlfriend and I saw The Other Guys... THEN on Saturday, my brothers, sisters, and some old neighbors and I all went and saw Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. I kid you not, the moment the movie started, it was already awesome. Excluding Inception and Toy Story 3, Scott Pilgrim is the coolest movie of the summer.


If you are unfamiliar with the story to this flick, (And you most likely are) then allow me to do my usual gig and tell you about the story. The story revolves around Scott Pilgrim, (Michael Cera) an early 20's lovestruck geek, who is dating a teenage girl. Scott is looking for true love, and quite frankly isn't satisfied with life and his current relationship. He feels that he won't be truly happy until he meets the one. Enter Ramona Flowers. (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) An attractive young girl whom Scott instantly falls in love with, and will do anything to get with. After finally getting Ramona to get in bed with him, the two finally start dating. To Scott's surprise, Ramona has a mysterious past full of... well, evil ex-boyfriends. Unfortunately, for Scott, all of these evil ex-boyfriends are after Scott's skin, because they too want to date Ramona. If Scott truly wants to go out with Ramona, he's going to have to fight and defeat all seven of Ramona's evil ex-boyfriends... sounds like a video game, huh?

Scott and Ramona

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World might be one of the most entertaining movies to be released in recent years, especially if you are a nerd like me. The entire movie is modeled to be like an old NES/SNES game. (Old Nintendo game) As I said earlier, I was very skeptical about this concept because quite frankly, the entire concept kind of sounds too good to be true. But surprisingly, it works incredibly well. Mostly thanks to spot on editing, and Edgar Wright's incredible directing, the film ensures gut-busting laughs from beginning to end. Of course, having a fore knowledge of some classic video games (The Legend of Zelda) helps with the humor. The movie feels mainly for the dweebs out there, such as myself. But that's not saying you have to be a nerd to enjoy the film.

Designed to look like a video game/comic book, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World is wildly entertaining.


When I think about the film, I find it hard to actually find a flaw. The only real problem I had with the film was some weird pacing throughout. At some parts the pace of the film significantly slowed down and I found myself checking my watch; but as the movie moves on you soon forget about the problem, this is expected to happen though, since the movie is two hours long. Other than those strange moments the film is solid and I can't think of one flaw. The acting is spot on, and I actually really liked Michael Cera. As much as I hate to admit it, I have to give him major credit. I can't think of any other actor out there that would have played Scott better. I might have to start giving him more chances from now on. I also have to give credit to Mary Elizabeth Winstead, not only was she incredibly atttractive, but she gave a performance that was on par with Michael Cera.


It really is such a pity that this film has been so overshadowed by the release of other films such as The Other Guys. If you are looking for an entertaining flick that is unlike any other film out there, then you're going to want to check out Scott Pilgrim. If it weren't for Toy Story 3 or Inception, this would easily be the best film of the summer.

In the end, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World might not be the best picture of the year, or even the best movie of the summer. But Man! Was it entertaining. I can guarantee you that this is a film that I am going to watch over and over again.

STORY: 9.5/10
DESIGN: 10/10
PRESENTATION: 9.9/10
CINEMATOGRAPHY: 9.9/10
MUSICAL SCORE: 10/10
REPLAY VALUE: 10/10

TOTAL SCORE: 9.9/10

2 comments:

  1. Glad to see you enjoyed it as well. I am a mega geek...so I LOVED it. haha
    Great review.

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  2. and I was very skeptical myself. I thought it was going to be terrible. But I went...and well I was shocked. I just like how it was tailor made for people like us. Nerds.
    My theater was full of geeks, so it was an amazingly fun time.

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