Scott Pilgrim vs. Kevin

I saw Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, which I had been meaning to see before it left the theatres. Tuesday is apparently matinee night, but I couldn't take advantage of the discount because the labels on the self-serve ticket machine were confusing. (Adult package, Kids package, Ticket only T...wha?)

Scott Pilgrim is based off of a graphic novel series. In it, Canadian slacker Scott Pilgrim must battle the 7 Evil Exes of his new girlfriend. The comic and the movie are both littered with geek/slacker references and visual gags straight out of a cartoon or video game. If you didn't recognize these references you may think this is some kind of light-hearted Salvador Dali film.

The movie wasn't as quite as funny as I'd expected it to be. (Or maybe I just don't remember it all too well) It wasn't really a straight up comedy, so much as it was more of a well rounded action/comedy/romance. The visuals and soundtrack were excellent and integrated as well. The movie also featured a distinctive style of slacker humor which is quotable though maybe not laugh out loud all the time. (Verbal and visual pratfalls in context certainly are though) This movie features wackiness and dry wit.

The actors are all fun and for the most part are playing up some major characteristic giving the whole movie a very cartoon-y feel, but in a very good way that most other movies don't achieve when their actors just try mugging for the camera hoping for a similar feel.

Cera, (The titular character) is probably not a draw for this movie because he's so known for these roles, but he certainly fits one vision of the Scott Pilgrim slacker to a tee. Also, I found that he and his romantic opposite Ramona/Mary Elizabeth Winstead had some chemistry or at least good dialogue. So while their romance was shallow, it worked for me as a realistic relationship. In fact, the growing maturity of the leads in this wacky slacker cartoon was paramount to the story. Scott's platonic rebound relationship with a girl five years his junior is a great example of who he is when he starts out in this story; he's doing it for appearances both to his friends and himself, but also because nothing will ever come of it. I'm not going to go on about all of it though. There's a lot of depth here that may not be obvious at first glance.

The editing was occasionally really clever and eclectic. The special effects were also awesome. The action was inventive and unlike other action movies; it wasn't quick cut to death. There's a bass off, video game fighting, and great garage band rock.

On the topic of battles and video games references in the music and visual effects... it did seem weird in a way. Pilgrim and his friends are in a band. He has had girlfriends. He doesn't seem to do anything nerdy and yet all these in jokes are for geek culture. (He plays Dance Dance Ninja Revolution with his girlfriend and plays a theme from Final Fantasy but...) One character mentions video games once. What I'm getting at is that there doesn't appear to be any connection between the character and a lot of the reference jokes. He's not really a gamer, nor do his friends appear to be.

Also, the fighting does seem incongruous with the rest of the story. After all, every other cartoon effect we see may just be subjective, but the fighting is not and there's little else that people interact with that's as nutty. (I'm also wondering why Ramona references battling when she talks about the old days with her exes... who was she and her beaus fighting?) I feel that something should have been done to integrate it better.

Though the movie can be a little too inexplicable, it's a great example of a different kind of movie and one that can be both easily digestible and intriguing; and this kind of wackiness is right up my alley anyway.

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World= slackers + coming of age romance story + live action cartoon + geek culture references + action + arcade feel = You win! Perfect!