Scott Pilgrim

If anyone falls within the target demographic for Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World, it is me. As a mid-20s male who grew up playing video games and reading comic books (and who has read the first Scott Pilgram graphic novel), my hopes were expectedly high.

There is a lot to love about Scott Pilgrim, but it all descends from the one thing that the movie has in spades—style. The semi-satirical hipster overtones, the over-the-top visual and sound effects, and the wonderful video game graphical elements are all children of Pilgrim’s unique style. Each one is executed without feeling cheesy, which is a feat considering the level of nonsense that occurs.

But style without substance leaves viewers ultimately unsatisfied, which is precisely the feeling I had about Scott Pilgrm as I exited the theater. As cool as the visuals were, and as fantastic as the humor was, there was something missing. The film tries to cover how shallow its story and characters are with its presentation, but it isn’t enough. Every non-action scene is boring, though the occasional well-timed joke did help pass the time.

The characters are well-designed, but lack any depth. That would be acceptable for the villains, but when titular character Scott Pilgrim and the object of his affection Ramona Flowers are both devoid of any human elements, it is a problem. Neither develops in the movie, and no discernible plot other than what is presented in the original Super Mario Bros.—beat this level, move on to the next.

The music, both the soundtrack and the performances by Scott’s band, Sex Bob-omb, is spectacular. The gaming references and sound effects are a lot of fun as well. But while the mindless story may have worked for a video game, I expect more from a film. Scott Pilgrim gets placed on top of the growing stack of movies with loads of potential that simply couldn’t deliver.

5/10