Scott Pilgrim vs The World Review

Scott Pilgrim vs the World Review

At a time when we are bombarded with handheld camera moves and quick draw editing, few directors seem up to the challenge of taking hold of the camera to compose a shot or two. Near the top of that short list is British director Edgar Wright. Wright got his start in directing television, most notably the entire fourteen episode run of the BBC sitcom “Spaced”. Based on the loose premise of two people pretending to be a couple in order to rent a flat, the show was very stylized considering the relatively low budget.

The show was co-written by Simon Pegg and Jessica Stevenson who stared in the show as well, although Wright played a significant hand in the creation and writing process. The show was heavy with homages of films, television, and pop-culture. characters and story, which would become a hallmark of Wright’s style.

While working with Pegg on the show, they collaborated together on Wrights first feature film, Shaun of the Dead. The film was a buddy comedy sendup of zombie films. They collaborated yet again on Hot Fuzz, a tongue in cheek love-letter to buddy cop movies like Lethal Weapon and Bad Boys. Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World is Wright’s first outing without Pegg, which left many curious of his ability to sustain the energy and charm of his previous works without his right hand man. This would also be his first time adapting a someone else's work. The film is based on the six book volume series about the title character Scott Pilgrim.

Opening with an 8-bit style Universal Studios logo, the film makes it obvious that the world that the characters will inhabit is a hyperreal one. No time is wasted selling the style of the film to the audience, and for good reason. Running just under two hours, there are only a few real moments to rest as the film zooms through all six book story arc of Scott Pilgrim (Played by Michael Cera) and his journey to defeat the 7 evil exes of his new girlfriend Ramona Flowers (Played by Mary Elizabeth Winstead).

This is by far the best utilization of Michael Cera awkward disposition since Arrested Development. That’s not to say that this is just like every other role Cera has played. As a matter of fact, I think this is his most versatile role to date. Scott isn’t a terribly sympathetic character for the majority of this film. He’s self loathing, self centered, and fairly apathetic to anything outside of himself.

It’s that kind of quality in a protagonist that makes it more interesting than the standard rom-com variety that has clear and uninteresting external obstacles, but doesn’t have much emotionally at stake. As Scott fights each of the 7 evil exes, each fight has a very specific style and purpose in helping Scott learn more about himself and what he needs to succeed. Scott’s journey hits all the emotional beats of Say Anything and the action (and style) beats of Kill Bill.

There is so much going on in this film, that many have criticized it as suffering from ADD, but looking at the lush sets and the obvious attention to detail I’d say that Wright wanted the film to reflect the pace and style of the characters. They’re young, full of energy, and heavily tied to their pop-culture. The very style of the film is a character, complete with voice over (by Bill Hader).

The most important attribute that the film has is that the film is still grounded in a sincere way that is true and honest to the characters, and geographical setting of the film. These aren’t dreamy people living outside of their means in some big expensive apartment. These are strange looking twenty-somethings, struggling to get by, dealing with problems true to their age. And it is that which makes this film able to resonate with those who may not catch every little video game reference. Edgar Wright has proved that characters and story are still most important, even when given a lush budget.

David