AN EPIC OF EPIC EPICNESS...

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World directed by Edgar Wright

Michael Cera attends the LA premiere at Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood on July 27, 2010.

I saw this movie on August 12th, the day it came out. So you can naturally assume that I was excited to see it, and with good reason. One of my favourite things to do (however lame this may seem to whomever may read this), is browse IMDb and check out what upcoming projects some of my favourite actors are involved in. Sometimes even actors I don't like. Pretty much anyone. For some strange reason, I find it interesting, and I'll often waste a considerable amount of time clicking link after link until I can't remember why I went on there in the first place. I even have the app on my iPhone, and to say it's almost as frequently used as Facebook would be an accurate statement. About a year ago, during one of my routine extensive searches, I came across Michael Cera's page. I see a link to a project called 'Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World' that says pre-production. I follow it and approximately 30 seconds later, I'm dying to see it. 

(From left) Jason Schwartzman, Michael Cera, Edgar Wright and Mary Elizabeth Winstead attend the European premiere at the Empire Leicester Square, London on August 18, 2010.

Fast forward 12 odd months and I'm sitting in a small cinema and this trailer starts up. And it's bright and loud and makes me do one of those stupid involuntary grins which you're always glad people can't see because it's so dark in there, and you know you look like a weirdo. Next thing, LCD Soundsystem's "Big Ideas" fills the theatre and Michael Cera's face pops up and I do one of the top five most annoying things anyone can do in a movie: I turn in my seat to face my friend and exclaim "OMG IT'S SCOTT PILGRIM VS. THE WORLD, I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS MOVIE FOR AGES!" Honestly, in that moment I felt like I was having an out-of-body experience, floating on the ceiling watching myself, shaking my head and thinking "what a moron." As far as trailers go, this one really got a reaction from me. It was like a hit-and-run on repeat. I was practically bouncing on my seat and then something happened. It got even better. The first song fades out, and in it's place starts The Prodigy's "Invaders Must Die." I wanted to see this movie for so many other reasons...one of which being that Edgar Wright is a brilliant director (think Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz), but when it comes down to it, when pondering whether to spend the money on seeing a movie, for me it all depends hugely on the trailer so obviously, I was sold. 

Actress Mary Elizabeth Winstead at the LA premiere on July 27, 2010.

The first thing you need to know about Scott Pilgrim is that it's based on a series of 6 graphic novels of the same name. Straight away, you should know if you're interested in seeing it or not. Then, you take that assumption and throw it out the window. Because the fact is, this particular comic isn't your standard super-hero narrative. Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life is the first volume by Canadian cartoonist Bryan Lee O'Malley, published in August 2004. It's unlike any comic you've ever seen. Scott's no Spider-Man. He's just a regular 23-year-old guy with self-esteem issues. Except that they're not the issues you're thinking of. Scott's the bassist in a band called Sex Bob-omb with his two best mates Stephen and Kim, and to quote Kim in the film, "Scott, if you're life had a face, I'd slap it." The thing with Scott is, his opinion of himself is rather high, and, considering he's just a part time musician in Toronto and lives in a shoebox apartment with his gay roommate Wallace, it's clear why Kim finds this tiresome. It's soon established that Scott doesn't exactly have a hard time finding a girl, and his latest conquest is 17-year-old Knives Chau, the schoolgirl who is so pathetically infatuated with him, it's cringe-worthy. Still, Scott attempts to push through the constant ridicule from his friends to continue seeing Knives. That is until he has a haunting dream about a complete stranger, and his "precious little life" is turned upside down. He dreams of a rollerblading mystery girl with hot pink hair he's never seen before, but is soon obsessing over her after running into the real-life version at the library. Soon enough Scott plucks up the courage to talk to Rollerblade Girl (aka Ramona V. Flowers, according to the token dude-who-knows-everyone) and things seem to be going smoothly for suave Scott. Unfortunately, Scott's fantasy is interrupted by the sudden appearance of one of Ramona's ex's, who informs Scott that they will be fighting to the death for this girl. As if that weren't bad enough, Ramona soon after gives Scott the real 411: she has 6 more evil ex-boyfriends waiting in the wings, and that if he intends to date her, he must defeat all of them. From here on in it's a fast-paced series of battles for poor Scott, who's determined to succeed and win the heart of the girl of his dreams, literally. But it's no picnic, and there are plenty of surprises in store to keep Scott on his toes. All in all, it's a heartwarming tale of an ordinary, if slightly egotistical guy who'll stop at nothing to get the girl, and ultimately, some respect.

(From left) Actors Kieran Culkin and Jason Schwartzman at the LA premiere, July 27, 2010.

If you like comic books, video games, cartoons, special effects and Manga-style art, then you'll find yourself in cinematic-heaven within 5 minutes. I know I did. This movie is all about the visual, and from start to finish it's a candy-coated adrenalised thrill ride, complete with sound effects that make you feel like you should be holding an Xbox 360 controller. At times it may seem unrealistic bordering on ridiculous, but that's kind of the point. It's totally surreal, and even though it's set in a real city you can't help but feel as if you've been transported to a different world. The fight scenes portray Scott in such a way that depends on your ability to suspend your disbelief. True, Scott is supposedly a normal guy who's way out of his league against Ramona's evil ex's, but if normal guys really know how to throw down like him, then self-defence lessons are no longer necessary. He weaves his way through each fight with definite skill whilst still managing to look like he has no idea what he's doing.

Academy Award Nominated (Up In The Air) actress Anna Kendrick attends the LA premiere, July 27, 2010.

Which brings us to the actors. Michael Cera is pure genius as Scott Pilgrim. He embodies everything about his character with ease, and whilst Scott isn't that far a cry from Cera's previous work as far as awkwardness and sarcasm go, being a bit of a jerk and a self-proclaimed rock star are. Whilst Scott's annoying qualities are most certainly there, Cera succeeds in redeeming him every time. He's full of himself, but it's endearing, which is harder than it looks to pull off. Mary Elizabeth Winstead plays Ramona, and gives the hair-colour-chameleon a real edge. All of Scott's efforts could easily appear unnecassary if it weren't for the fact that Ramona really is worth it. Winstead offers much more than just a pretty face and an ice-cool exterior...she gives Ramona wit and a straightforwardness that no boy could resist. Anna Kendrick is an undeniable classic as Scott's disapproving sister Stacey. Cue one of the funniest scenes where Scott calls Stacey at work from a pay phone:
"It's Scott."
"Yeah? What's he done this time?"
"No, I mean...it's me, Scott."
Then there's the comic relief which comes in the form of Kieran Culkin who nails his performance as Scott's gay roommate. Every line that comes from this character's mouth is loaded with hilarity. Alison Pill, Mark Webber and Johnny Simmons are flawless as Scott's best buddies, and Ellen Wong is hysterically good as clingy Knives. Not to mention the ex's...the standouts include Superman Returns star Brandon Routh, Fantastic Four's Chris Evans and of course, the biggest and baddest of them all, Jason Schwartzman as the impertinent Gideon Graves.

Actors Alison Pill and Johnny Simmons pose for a photo at the after party for the LA premiere at Hollywood and Highland, July 27, 2010.

This is a seriously fun film, dripping with quotable lines and eye-popping visuals that appear glossily on the screen just like the pages of O'Malley's original work. Universal's vice president Bill Kispert said "We were hooked on Scott Pilgrim from our first read of the comic and the script...the storyline mirrors the escalating structure of a video game, and it is filled with clever homage to video-game culture." It's been described as encompassing action, romance, irreverant pop-culture references and rock-n-roll. The clearest way I can describe it, though, is to repeat the words of Eddie Argos, who writes a bi-weekly column about comic books for a website called Playback: Scott Pilgrim is "funny, clever, sad, stupid, fantastic, heartbreaking, surreal, confusing and brilliant, just like real life."

Michael Cera had to pulled by his backpack by a security guard at Radio 1 in London, UK where he was promoting the film. The actor attempted to sign autographs despite being engulfed by the massive crowd.

NOW HEAR THIS: The music in the flick is seriously great, with rock legend Beck lending a hand with writing some fictitious Sex Bob-omb songs. Download "Garbage Truck," "Threshold," and "We Are Sex Bob-omb." Then check out "It's Getting Boring By The Sea," by Blood Red Shoes and "Black Sheep," by Metric.

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