Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (Universal Pictures)
The Best Michael Cera Movie To Date
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World is Michael Ceras best move yet. Now dont get overly excited because in some peoples minds the bar set by his previous films was pretty low. Still this new comedy feature finds Cera showing a broader range of acting talent and even something of a forceful personality as the put upon Pilgrim.
Scott Pilgrim (Cera) is a twenty two year old who plays in a band. He is dating a seventeen year old high school student named Knives Chau (Ellen Wong) and generally just treading water in his life. Then he meets the unique Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) and his life changes drastically.
If he wants to pursue Ramona as a love interest then he will have to fight her seven ex-loves. He not only has to fight them, he has to obliterate them. Meanwhile he is still playing in the band which has now entered a battle of the bands contest.
Watching the film you are never quite sure as to what is real and what is not. Some of the events and scenes seem to play out in Scotts mind. When he does battle with the seven exes the confrontations are more like a video game than reality. This adds an other worldly effect to the storyline and makes the movie more enjoyable in the process.
Cera is also backed up with an array of youthful talent. Winstead and Wong are both perfectly cast as the two women who love him. Both are a little exotic in their looks and their actions. Anna Kendrick has a small but pivotal role as Scotts sister Stacey. Jason Schwartzman is maniacally entertaining as Gideon, one of the exes. And Kieran Culkin comes close to stealing the film as Scotts acerbic roommate Wallace Wells.
The movie is rated PG-13 for profanity and violence. That is a pretty loose rating for this film since it is chock of full four letter words and video type violence.
The visuals and the acting are the two main reasons to go see Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. The story itself is fairly bland. Cera takes the character of Pilgrim and makes him an everyman. You cant help but root for him to vanquish the seven exes and walk into the sunset with the strange girl he loves, or as he says it lesbians.
If you are not a Cera fan dont dismiss Scott Pilgrim vs. the World out of hand. Take a chance on it and you may find you like it. It is a new type of role for him to some extent and one you might embrace.
This is a film definitely aimed at twenty five year olds and younger but those who are above that cut off point will still be able to squeak some fun out of it.
I scored Scott Pilgrim vs. the World a battling 6 out of 10.
