This movie is like someone took some episodes of Speed Racer, some old NES games and a handful of comic books, put them into a blender and hit the awesome button. It's an amazing mish-mash of color and pop.
Scott Pilgrim (played by Michael Cera from Arrested Development)) plays bass in a band called the Sex Bob-ombs (NERDGASM) and non-creepily dates a high school girl named Knives (Ellen Wong), and things are fine until he meets the girl of his dreams, literally. Thing is, the girl, Ramona Flowers (played by Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Death Proof, Live Free Or Die Hard) has some emotional baggage in the form of 7 evil ex-lovers that have vowed to obliterate anyone who makes the moves on Ramona. Scott has got to dig deep, figure himself out and kick some ass if he wants to be with her.
Where to start? The source materiel is great, the script is like a breathing comic book, the directing is stellar, and the acting is spot-the-fuck-on.
Edgar Wright, the same mad Brit who brought us Hot Fuzz and Shaun of The Dead, brings his bountiful nerd talent to both the script (with the help of Michael Bacall, who played one of the Nazi-killing jews in Inglourious Basterds) and the direction. His unique way of blending the branches of pop culture lends itself perfectly to the subject matter.
Michael Cera does what he does best, which is being amusingly awkward, but the bevy of fight scenes allows him to finally start inching away from his ultra-shy style comfort zone. Although he may look like he has never, ever raised a fist in anger in his entire life, Cera sells the fight scenes like a fucking snake oil salesman.
I have to say, I must, that Winestead is insanely beautiful and somehow, doing things like pulling giant sledge hammers from her pursue and wearing goggles just makes her all the more beautiful. In SP VS TW she is tight lipped, intelligent, a li'l bitchy and creative -- in other words, she is perfect.
The unexpected brilliance comes from Kieran Culkin (Igby Goes Down, but probably better known as Macaulay Culkin's little brother) as Wallace Wells, Scott's gay roommate. He plays his character with hilarity and sort of self-absorbed thoughtfulness. It is really a crying shame that the Culkin clan doesn't do more work.
I really could just keep gushing about the entire cast; there isn't a weak link amongst them, not even Chris Evans.
Out of 5 stars, I give Scott Pilgrim 7, one for each ex.
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