![I am not a movie reviewer, nor am I a critic. I am critical, though, and this is my blog so I’ll go ahead and critique here when the mood strikes.
I’m currently reading Persepolis, in which the main character (can you call her a character if it is based on her real life?)’s father states, more or less: “My natural optimism results in my extreme skepticism.” It is difficult to truly expect the best after you’ve been consistently hit in the nose with disappointment. But having no choice how you feel, the only way to protect oneself is to be cautious and question everything.
So I expected no gratification from Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. And yet, knowing I would be seeing it last night, I looked forward to it for the 3 days prior. It was a great feeling! I hardly ever get excited for movie releases. The last few movies I’ve seen in theaters were the following:
Birdemic: Shock and Terror - I’d already seen this. So I was into it, but I wouldn’t say excited.
Inception: Too overhyped for me to get that excited. I can’t help it, I may always have a rebellious teenager inside me. Consequently, this is why I like the Scott Pilgrim series!
Trash Humpers: I apparently “didn’t get” this movie. Although I am pretty sure I “did.” Anyway, I wasn’t all that excited for it either, more curious.
I suggest stopping here if you a) haven’t read the series or b) don’t want my opinion.
So Scott Pilgrim. Was fantastic. Like I predicted, a lot of the characters didn’t adequately translate. They did not develop Kim, one of my favorite characters, hardly at all, and this Ramona was barely likable—she came off as selfish as opposed to smart and self-protective due to negative experiences. Her and Scott’s relationship was superficial, and did not warrant his strife in battling the League of Evil Exes in this version… which caused the whole movie to feel a bit irrelevant. I think a little more explaining about Ramona’s past would have really helped people who haven’t read the series to want to root for these kids to make it.
But all those points were because the screenwriters were scrunching six books into two hours. As far as the characters themselves translating into live action, I thought they was spot on. I laughed throughout the entire movie.
But, I loved Michael Cera as Scott. I can’t believe I just wrote that. Even if he wasn’t exactly how I imagined Scott, I immediately bought it. I read a review suggesting Kieren Culkin (who plays Wallace Wells) for the role… I think that would have worked, but I flat out don’t have a complaint against Mi.Cer. I love me some Culkins as a rule, though.
What made the movie fantastic was something that I can’t really put into words here. Brian Lee O’Malley’s vision was immaculately, accurately portrayed in every single scene. I would estimate that 60% or more of the dialogue was taken directly from the pages of the novels, and seeing specific graphics and typography launched into motion filled my stomach with butterflies. I am curious to see how Edgar Wright’s fans receive this movie; it was very teen-oriented, with maybe a little bit too much going on with too many characters and not enough reason to care. But he has done something novel here with the split screens, smooth drool-worthy transitions and jokes created from “sleight of hand editing.” The parts that didn’t work were forgettably fleeting because of the film’s style. And Bill Hader’s voiceovers? Perfection.
Kevin told me that apparently O’Malley wanted Times New Viking, a Columbus band, for the music of Sex Bob-omb, but “They’re mastered too loud,” the director [Wright] said. “They’re designed to screw up a playlist,” so they ended up with Beck, imitating Times New Viking but with catchier hooks. I have to say that this is the biggest disappointment of the whole movie for me.
But two more reasons why you should see this movie: The guy across the aisle from me incredulously exclaimed, “WHAT?!” every 10 minutes. And the casting of Mark Webber as Stephen Stills is possibly the most accurate of any cartoon adaptation I’ve ever seen.](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_l6qmomKVDy1qa0fjdo1_500.jpg)
I am not a movie reviewer, nor am I a critic. I am critical, though, and this is my blog so I’ll go ahead and critique here when the mood strikes.
I’m currently reading Persepolis, in which the main character (can you call her a character if it is based on her real life?)’s father states, more or less: “My natural optimism results in my extreme skepticism.” It is difficult to truly expect the best after you’ve been consistently hit in the nose with disappointment. But having no choice how you feel, the only way to protect oneself is to be cautious and question everything.
So I expected no gratification from Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. And yet, knowing I would be seeing it last night, I looked forward to it for the 3 days prior. It was a great feeling! I hardly ever get excited for movie releases. The last few movies I’ve seen in theaters were the following:
Birdemic: Shock and Terror - I’d already seen this. So I was into it, but I wouldn’t say excited.
Inception: Too overhyped for me to get that excited. I can’t help it, I may always have a rebellious teenager inside me. Consequently, this is why I like the Scott Pilgrim series!
Trash Humpers: I apparently “didn’t get” this movie. Although I am pretty sure I “did.” Anyway, I wasn’t all that excited for it either, more curious.
I suggest stopping here if you a) haven’t read the series or b) don’t want my opinion.
So Scott Pilgrim. Was fantastic. Like I predicted, a lot of the characters didn’t adequately translate. They did not develop Kim, one of my favorite characters, hardly at all, and this Ramona was barely likable—she came off as selfish as opposed to smart and self-protective due to negative experiences. Her and Scott’s relationship was superficial, and did not warrant his strife in battling the League of Evil Exes in this version… which caused the whole movie to feel a bit irrelevant. I think a little more explaining about Ramona’s past would have really helped people who haven’t read the series to want to root for these kids to make it.
But all those points were because the screenwriters were scrunching six books into two hours. As far as the characters themselves translating into live action, I thought they was spot on. I laughed throughout the entire movie.
But, I loved Michael Cera as Scott. I can’t believe I just wrote that. Even if he wasn’t exactly how I imagined Scott, I immediately bought it. I read a review suggesting Kieren Culkin (who plays Wallace Wells) for the role… I think that would have worked, but I flat out don’t have a complaint against Mi.Cer. I love me some Culkins as a rule, though.
What made the movie fantastic was something that I can’t really put into words here. Brian Lee O’Malley’s vision was immaculately, accurately portrayed in every single scene. I would estimate that 60% or more of the dialogue was taken directly from the pages of the novels, and seeing specific graphics and typography launched into motion filled my stomach with butterflies. I am curious to see how Edgar Wright’s fans receive this movie; it was very teen-oriented, with maybe a little bit too much going on with too many characters and not enough reason to care. But he has done something novel here with the split screens, smooth drool-worthy transitions and jokes created from “sleight of hand editing.” The parts that didn’t work were forgettably fleeting because of the film’s style. And Bill Hader’s voiceovers? Perfection.
Kevin told me that apparently O’Malley wanted Times New Viking, a Columbus band, for the music of Sex Bob-omb, but “They’re mastered too loud,” the director [Wright] said. “They’re designed to screw up a playlist,” so they ended up with Beck, imitating Times New Viking but with catchier hooks. I have to say that this is the biggest disappointment of the whole movie for me.
But two more reasons why you should see this movie: The guy across the aisle from me incredulously exclaimed, “WHAT?!” every 10 minutes. And the casting of Mark Webber as Stephen Stills is possibly the most accurate of any cartoon adaptation I’ve ever seen.
1 year ago