With a poster that proclaims that the movie is “an epic of epic epicness,” Scott Pilgrim vs. The World made a bold claim. Could it live up to it?
The simple answer is yes.
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World has great effects, mixing the real world with elements of comic books and video games. Sound effects are written on screen, but it never feels all that cheesy. When Scott gets into a fight a “vs” appears on the screen between him and whomever he is fighting, and when someone is defeated they burst into coins. When Ramona reminisces over one of her evil exes, it shows up on the screen as comic book pages. The movie also has a great soundtrack, which features the theme from Legend of Zelda and the theme from Seinfeld. Despite the fantastical insanity of it all, the characters do actually learn and grow.
The movie has a wonderful cast. Michael Cera doesn’t really stretch that far from his usual shy, quirky, bumbling nerd character, but Scott Pilgrim is a bit of a change for him. Scott Pilgrim has to fight for love while at the same time being afraid of it, and Cera pulled this off well. His gay roommate Wallace in the movie is portrayed by Kieran Culkin, who just gave a perfect delivery. There was not a moment when Kieran was on screen that I was not laughing. Mary Elizabeth Winstead did a wonderful job of playing Ramona Flowers, who was just as conflicted as Scott, but cooler about it. Ellen Wong as Knives Chau stole the show. Her character went through the most change and growth, and Wong portrayed all the emotions required of Knives effortlessly, often changing emotions mid-scene.
At times, the telling of the story can be confusing. There are moments where I don’t know if Scott is dreaming or if what he’s doing is actually going on in the movie. However, these occurrences are limited, and most of the story is pretty straightforward.
Overall, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is a great geek movie. I would agree that it is “an epic of epic epicness.” Non-geeks might not be so into it, but it is practically required viewing for the geeks of the world. The movie is always fun and keeps you on your toes while you wonder when and where the next evil ex will attack.
