MOVIE OF THE WEEK #1: SCOTT PILGRIM VS. THE WORLD
KEY CAST MEMBERS: Michael Cera, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Kieran Culkin, Chris Evans, Anna Kendrick, Alison Pill, Brandon Routh, Jason Schwartzman
WRITER: Michael Bacall and Edgar Wright
DIRECTOR: Edgar Wright
WEB SITE: www.scottpilgrimthemovie.com
THE PLOT: Based on the popular book series - one of which serves as the film's name - Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World stars Michael Cera in the title role as a bass guitarist living in his native Canada. A generally unassuming fellow, Scott's simple little world consists of playing with his Sex Bob-omb bandmates drummer (and one-time girlfriend) Kim Pine (Alison Pill), lead singer Stephen Stills (Mark Webber), alternate-in-training Young Neil (Johnny Simmons) and Scott's would-be current source of affection, high school student Knives Chau (Ellen Wong).
And then Scott sees the Amazon.Ca (Canada doesn't have the dot-com, people!) delivery girl of his dreams, Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead). Instantly taken by the constantly changing the color of her hair muse, Scott falls head-over-guitar for Ramona only to discover there's one little problem with dating her ...
Did I say one little problem? Make that seven in the form of the League of Evil Exes - Matthew Patel (Satya Bhabha), action movie star Lucas Lee (Chris Evans), vegan rival rock star Todd Ingram (Brandon Routh), femme fatale Roxy Richter (Mae Whitman), Ken and Kyle Katayanagi (Shoita Saito and Keita Saito) and head honcho Gideon Graves (Jason Schwartzman). For if Scott is to be with Ramona, he is going to have to defeat them all or possibly die trying.
But when it comes to Ramona, in Scott's eyes, the world is worth fighting for in a fashion that will make anyone who grew up playing games like Super Mario Bros., Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat proud.
THE TAKE: There are movies out there that make people say "I get it" or "I don't get it" with little room in between ... In the case of one young Scott Pilgrim, if you get it, you're in for a comedic smackdown on the level of the first time you played the Sega Genesis or original PlayStation for the first time. (And if didn't get that references, chances are good you will have the same experience watching Scott Pilgrim.)
When it comes to Michael Cera (or if you've been reading this blog for a while), you know exactly what you're going to get when it comes to his work: A teenager of varying shyness/awkwardness who makes quips while hanging out with people cooler than him before eventually getting the girl. What makes Scott Pilgrim his best work since Superbad, however, is the quality of the acting by the cast as a whole (Chris Evans steals the screen in his role), the quality of the script and engaging visuals by director Edgar Wright of Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz fame.
Wright has crafted a piece of film that is original in its presentation without being gimmicky, smart without being too snarky or 'OMG-LOL'-generation-ish for its own good and funny with characters that are engaging, well-developed and multi-layered. In short, the film is something a lot of this summer's over-hyped entries haven't been: Fun. Have you had fun at a lot of movies this year? Scott Pilgrim is one that will leave you saying "yes" for certain.*
As anyone who knows me (or, once again, regularly reads this blog) knows, Cera is essentially a one-trick pony who tweaks that trick slightly depending on the character. Scott Pilgrim finds him playing well to his strengths well. The supporting cast, however, is what really makes the film by adding depth to Scott's experience and life, Kieran Culkin doing a particularly nice job as Scott's gay playboy roommate and Winstead as the femme fatale with Juno-like qualities.
* Why the asterisk? Is someone in the film on performing-enhancing drugs? Well, I have no idea (Chris Evans and Brandon Routh always stay in shape, so who knows!). The asterisk is in place for while no matter how good any film may or may not be, you can't guarantee it's for everyone. Thus, if you are not a video game fan, some of the film's fight sequences might seem too silly for you to enjoy or simply not make sense to you. Likewise, if you have a hard time relating to young people in general, this film will likely only leave you scratching your head one too many times. (I say this after watching a guy watching the film during the advanced screening I went to sit through the film with a persistently puzzled look on his face. In other words, if you ain't hip, this might not be your trip!)
PARTING SHOT: While it remains to be seen just how much of the world he can conquer, Scott Pilgrim has enough style and substance to keep potential players from hitting the reset button for years to come.
RATING (OUT OF FOUR POSSIBLE BUCKETS OF POPCORN):
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