Scott Pilgrim’s life is pretty standard for a twenty-something man child. When not rehearsing with his band, Sex Bob-omb, and aiming for that big break Scott is found down the arcade or dwelling on the pitfalls of his love life. And then Ramona Flowers enters the picture, and Scott is smitten. Unfortunately for Pilgrim the new love of his life comes with baggage; a league of seven evil exes organised by Ramona’s most recent ex-boyfriend Gideon and which stand between Scott and the girl of his dreams.
Arrested Development?
The underlying plot of Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is not the hook by which it hopes to draw you in. For Michael Cera, playing the part of an angst-ridden individual must be as second nature as clothing himself by this point. While last year’s Youth in Revolt permitted Cera to adopt a semblance of a new persona the majority of the film remained rooted in his trademark neuroses and Scott Pilgrim treads the same path.
The frantic action scenes show Cera entirely capable of being more than the wimpy downtrodden character he plays in all his films, and yet these moments of epilepsy-inducing frenzy are unfortunately bookended by pedestrian insights into Pilgrim’s tiresome life. Where the film hopes to diverge from such well-trodden themes is in terms of its presentation. The issue Scott Pilgrim faces is whether a flashy yet positively unique aesthetic is sufficient for this cinematic experience to be more than just a flash in the pan.
One step forward, two steps back.
Going above and beyond Bryan Lee O’Malley’s graphic novel adventures of the titular Scott Pilgrim, the cinematic adaptation steps out of the video game inspired trappings of the source material and comes to parody both the world of gaming and of the comic book. Adopting a similar style to that set down in Ang Lee’s Hulk in 2001, and which has unshakably come to epitomise the bottom line of comic book adaptations, the action on screen is sporadically split up as it would be on a page of comic book cells. Hand drawn segments reveal Ramona’s past so as to complete the cliché.
Coupled with the numerous video games references active on all levels of the production, ranging from the subtlety of the Legend of Zelda theme tune playing in the background through to the epic duels which form the backbone of the plot, it is often difficult to discern which genre Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is aping.
So much of the material is handled with a lack of subtlety, such as the much-advertised ‘pee-bar’ or the Vegan police, that by the midpoint of the film the mirror being held up against 21st century “cool” doesn’t feel clever but excessive and hollow; a dialogue on popular culture lacking sophistication and only a few notches higher than the techniques of Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer.
"Scott, if your life had a face I would punch it"
Conversely, it is this exact quality during the duels against Ramona Flowers’ (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) former loves that give the film its unique strength. The roaring call to “FIGHT!” united with the explosion of coins during fast-paced fighting is thoroughly enjoyable, changing sufficiently between each ‘boss fight’ to remain fresh throughout the course of the film. Then the fight ends and Scott Pilgrim, attired in woolly coat and fluffy hat pulled around his ear, and Ramona Flowers and her neon hair, wander out through the dark and snowy Toronto night and you are left clueless as to how the scene shifted so quickly from a crazed action-packed sequence to something more akin to the lost reels of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.
"K.O!"
Split down the middle to create an inconsistent art style and tiresome plot pacing, shifting rhythmically from the fluorescent and warm action sequences to the more understated filler moments which exist seemingly as an attempt to channel the black and white nature of the source material, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is a mix of the thoroughly enjoyable with the tediously underwhelming.
The story is often sidetracked by lesser plotlines such as the internal politics of the band and the relationship between Scott and his roommate, and simply feels like something one must tolerate until the curtain drops on the more monotone segments to allow the lightshow to commence once again. Given that a fighting video-game adaptation of the comic book series has been released to coincide with that of the film, more enjoyment may be had from sidelining the gaming references and the less exciting aspects of the plot and simply dive right in to the action for oneself.
Nevertheless, as we enter the barren autumnal months before the Christmas cinematic bonanza, Scott Pilgrim is not a poor way to end the summer. Michael Cera remains true to form while failing to push the envelope and the comic book/video game-inspired action sequences are thoroughly enjoyable for their originality. Now with any luck the industry can accept it has mastered the style needed for faithful transcribing of a comic book from paper to screen, and can stop.
3/5
Director: Edgar Wright
Starring: Michael Cera, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Chris Evans and Jason Schwartzman
David Burroughs - Having studied for a degree in History from the University of Warwick, I have given serious consideration to my future, and more ...
