This is not your average rom-com-game-referencing-fight movie. It is the story of twenty something Scott Pilgrim (Michael Cera) and the lengths he will go to for a girl named Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead).
Scott is a shy slacker with a nice girlfriend, a band called Sex Bob-omb and friends who love to party. Then he meets Ramona Flowers and things get complicated.
For them to have a future together he must not only get over his own past heartache but also Ramona’s - by battling her 7 evil exes. Simple, right? Well, no, if it was we wouldn’t have much to talk about.
The film is a half rom-com, half Manga/Old skool gaming geek fest, with emotional struggles substituted for physical ones.
Those of you who are familiar with Edgar Wright’s previous work (Spaced, Hot Fuzz, Shaun of the Dead) will know that although his kinetic visual style is what immediately makes him stand out, it is not the be-all and end-all of his work. His quick cuts and kung-fu pans have always been offset against some really likeable and original characters. And this is where the film’s main shortcoming lies; there are so many characters to get to know and only two hours and six fights to do it in.
Even the characters you do have the time to get to know are hardly the clean-cut archetypes which would help the story fizz as it so desperately wants to.
Our 'hero' Scott is going out with a high school girl to help get over his broken heart, and subsequently cheats on her with Ramona. Ramona herself admits she can be a bit of a bitch. Then there’s the League of Evil exes. Bad guys rolled in classic Megaman arcade style in order of ability and difficulty to beat. But there is very little explanation of how Ramona had crushed their hearts before Scott manages to defeat them, watching each explode gratifyingly into a shower of coins.
Cera plays for a very sympathetic Scott, as you would expect, but this is offset against his selfish indiscretion and meekness. And Mary.E.W's Ramona appears none too bothered about Scott’s plight, vanishing after each fight to the death.
Because of this, I found that by the end the film I didn't care about Scott and Ramona as much as who Scott became in the battle arena. In the real world Scott hides his hair and runs away from awkward situations. But when it comes to the breathtaking fights, this is where he and the film truly take flight.
The fight scenes are a feast for the eyes, from his first battle with Matthew Patel right through to the ultimate final struggle against Gideon (an on form Jason Schwartzman).
Each confrontation having its own character, with various different manga or game references thrown in. In Scott you have someone that doesn't need a montage, he is right there from the the off to punch boobs and take names, even though he really should read his emails.
In a nut shell, if you never owned or played a Sega Megadrive or SNES or arcade games or watched manga films growing up, chances are you’re not going to get as much from this film as someone who did. But there’s enough Indie Chic going on in the 'real world' sequences to keep anyone interested even if the visual references wash over them.
But ultimately, the nods to 80s gaming is where the movie is at its bold beat-em-up best so if you’re struggling to remember I’d advise you dig the Mega-Drive out of the attic and dust it off before going to the cinema. You might just enjoy it a little bit more.
8/10
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