DAVE:
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is film-maker Edgar Wrights’ first foray into moviemaking within the American Studio system; after his excellent british films; Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz, as well as the brilliant, yet short lived television series Spaced.
Scott Pilgrim is based on the graphic novel series written and drawn by Bryan Lee O’ Malley, and it follows the story of a despondent mid-twenties slacker who falls in love with a mysterious girl named Ramona Flowers, but it is not a simple love story. You see: In order to win her heart Scott must defeat her 7 evil ex boyfriends.
What follows is a brilliant escapade into fantasy, it is video game and movie inspired and moves at such a lighting pace. It is inventive and fresh. The true hero of this film is Edgar Wright, and man can he make a movie!
GEOFF:
I 100% agree with Dave it really is one hell of a movie. It truly is a testament to Edgar Wrights’ film-making skills and screenwriting abilities. Like just attempting to direct and write what most people thought was an un-film-able comic book series and pull it off with flying colors I think puts Edgar Wright right up the top of his game.
MERWYN:
The great thing about this film is that there is something for everyone to enjoy. As Dave mentioned, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is an inspiring throwback to classic video games. But those who have not had the privilege to experience 80’s arcade games, there is still plenty for them to enjoy. Just from the visuals alone, it is clear that Edgar Wright set out to make a film that is not only faithful to the graphic novel but extends to treat the audience with a whole lot of fun, action and romance.
This is a film that should be memorable for its innovative filmmaking and commitment to captivate its audience.
DAVE:
The most interesting thing about the film for me; is that Wright is able to constantly jump between a multitude of genres and it never falters in tone or pace. It is the type of flick where people burst into coins when killed; and a character can receive an extra life…it can also be quite touching and poignant at times.
Wright can shoot action thats for sure, but there are some truly poetic visuals in the film, one involving a door during the final moments was just beautiful. Merwyn mentioned the visuals, and they are just astounding.
It is shot beautifully by Bill Pope (who shot the Matrix trilogy) and its edited in such a way that an Academy Award for editing isn’t out of the question. Wright applies these series of inventive transitions that just continue to get more clever as the film goes on.
It is infuriating how clever he is, he never ever does anything self-referential; and it never falls into self parody (which the comic book did quite often). I can look at the film and see how it was all technically accomplished, but I can’t get my head around how Wright arrived at these shot and editorial decisions. It’s just incredibly impressive film-making that’s for sure.
GEOFF:
Scott Pilgrim: the graphic novel was pretty good but it had some faults. Edgar Wright addressed these issues with the film; fixing pacing issues and also ideas in the comic that never worked. Not to mention like everyone else here, but yeah, the visuals are just spell binding.
Wright has shown that he can use motion graphics like no one else can. The use of transitions and crazy text flying around every 30 seconds in the movie is amazing. The most interesting thing is that it never gets old, he’s reinventing the visuals every minute or so and you never get bored, almost to point of it being relentless, but not daunting at all.
MERWYN:
From the moment we are greeted with the Universal logo, we are taking on this amazing thrill ride as we follow Scott Pilgrim’s quest to win the heart of Ramona Flowers. What I enjoyed thoroughly besides the visuals, is the performance that the actors gave. Michael Cera was excellent as the hero of our film: Scott Pilgrim. And for those who have doubted him in the past; they might be quite surprised to find that he pulls of the role perfectly.
Mary-Elizabeth Winstead as the spunky Ramona Flowers is a great delight and the chemistry between her and Cera is excellent. Jason Schwartzman as Gideon is a great thrill and those who know the graphic novel will be pleased to know that Schwartzman does the character justice.
As the film progresses, we learn more about each of the characters. From Stephen Stills, Kim Pine and Young Neil to Knives Chau, Envy Adams and Wallace Wells. Let’s face it, this is an Edgar Wright film and as we’ve seen from his many other successes, namely Hot Fuzz and Shaun of the Dead… he knows how to direct his actors.
When you take a great talent such as Wright and throw in a bunch of bright actors, what you end up with is an ensemble of great performances that delivers characters so rich and entertaining that you can’t help but just smile.
DAVE:
I loved the universal Logo gag at the beginning: It set up the tone of the film instantly. It’s pretty impressive how Wright is able to get the entire audience laughing from frame one – and he doesn’t really stop doing that. You laugh constantly, to the point where you miss jokes they fly so quickly.
Pilgrim is a film that rewards multiple viewings, I’ve seen the film twice, and there were so many things still to notice, from all the motion graphics on display: like the floating word captions and drawings and whatnot…little things in the background like posters and floating health bars etc. It’s such a detailed movie, and the effort that Wright put into it is pretty damn evident.
Before watching the film I had reservations about Michael Cera; from the advertisements alone his performance seemed unsuited and I doubted the chemistry between him and Mary Elizabeth Winstead (as Ramona); but he won me over within two minutes – from the “Scott Pilgrim is dating a high-schooler!” scene…he is just a perfect Pilgrim. He doesn’t ape his own persona, or do another ‘George Michael Bluth’ performance. He actually does a character – a virtual Homer Simpson; an innocent, yet dumb, lovestruck person, motivated purely by Ramona.
As for her, I think she is the real star of the movie, Mary Elizabeth Winstead plays a character that is potentially one note and unlikable, but yet with her soulful performance and evocative eyes, she nails it – insanely beautiful, yet spontaneous and multi-layered. The way she brings across the backstory and pains of Ramona Flowers is wonderful – its star making. For a movie that could have been potentially misogynistic (based on Ramona as the prize), she imbibes her with such a human quality. It’s magic.
Everyone else was great, it’s a truly engaging cast. From the future Captain America (Chris Evans) and the past superman (Brandon Routh) – everyone is fantastic.
A lot of the cast has minimal screen-time, like those I mentioned as well as Jason Schwartzman and Envy adams, etc etc, but they all do so much with their screen time – I don’t know if this is testament to Edgar Wrights’ direction…or the talent of the cast, or both!….But needless to say, it’s just brilliant and engaging.
Everyone is having a lot of fun, and it really rubs off onto the audience. LOVED IT!
GEOFF:
The sound track was incredible…. Let me elaborate on that; Nigel Godrich did an amazing job on what could have been a very cheesy soundtrack. Nigel’s fusion of 8 bit chip tune sounds and, at times; a full orchestral track…It just really brings something new but also refreshing to the table.
There is a certain energy that enflames the scenes; when any of the music that accompanies the fight scenes. Not to mention the clever changes of the sound to things, like to the Universal logo that will make any film goers fancy set aflame. And as Dave said, it really right up front sets a tone for the film.
Not to mention the song choices are awesome. The song ‘Black Sheep’ in the film done by Metric is probably the height of song choices within the movie (in my opinion).
Visuals much like I said before are incredible cool. Though I would like to elaborate that they are incredibly inventive. Edgar Wright has clearly shown that he has a fetish for after effects and motion graphics in the film.
Edgar wright has done things with the visuals that have never been attempted before. I’m really tempted to say that this could be game changer in terms of visuals for comic adaptions, though I guess only time will tell if that will take affect.
Summed up it’s a real treat to look at.
MERWYN:
Stylistically, Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World is one of the most original and creative films that has been released over the past couple of years. It’s something that I think the industry has needed for a while.
Sadly, I do not really think that this film is a game changer, even in terms of comic book adaptations. While the colors and the look is very beautiful, I see this film as a refresher… but the impact that a film it will have might be very minimal. In a perfect world, I would love to see more of the whacked out visual elements and the numerous edits in other films. However, I fear that it this will not become a reality.
The age of great arcade gaming has come and gone and Scott Pilgrim really just serves as a reminder of those good times.
For me, this film is an instant classic. For others this film might be something that they will most likely just glimpse on the side of a bus and have no interest in watching.
To summarize it all, Edgar Wright is a genius that has beautifully adapted a great graphic novel. Scott Pilgrim vs the World is like a roller-coaster ride that one could walk into over and over again. It’s just a shame that the film might not get the audience it deserves due to their limited and opinionated views.
For those who have not seen it yet, I would definitely recommend to go watch it. I’ll leave it up to you to decide.
DAVE:
Scott Pilgrim for me, was an instant classic and I loved every minute of it, even if it makes money or not, it wont be a game changer. It’s not really a film that attempts to do that. It really is just an auteur throwing everything he has got at the screen – and presenting an undiluted vision. I love that the most about film in general: The ability it has for a film-maker to express themselves.
Scott Pilgrim is a great time, and a great movie. Edgar Wright now has a perfect 3 for 3 films (If you exclude his Student feature film), and I cannot wait for his next film. He really is the best out there at the moment, and you kind of owe yourself to check out his genius.
Scott Pilgrim might not be a game changer for some, but for me it kind of was.
10 out of 10.
GEOFF:
I really dug it. Another classic by Edgar Wright he sure knows how to create entertainment. Scott Pilgrim to me showed the culmination of Edgar Wrights career in the space of two hours.
Just to put it into another more blunt way: I blew my geek load so many times I swear that I couldn’t move for days or remove my-self from the seat. Yes it was that good!
10 sticky seats out of 10
MERWYN:
Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World was one hell of a ride and while I don’t think that the film will get enough recognition than it deserves, this is the only film that made me feel like a 10 year old all over again. Watching the film, I found myself back in the arcade, either racing through the streets on Daytona, or punching the socks out of people in Double Dragon or just shooting the sh*t in Virtual Cop.
Edgar Wright has delivered a masterpiece that is beyond the level of epic epicness.
An instant classic for me.
10/10
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