Director Edgar Wright has said that this movie is "like a musical except that instead of breaking out into songs, characters break out into fights".
I would say Scott Pilgrim's fights are similar to a musical, they’re meticulously choreographed, edited, and have a unique rhythm all their own. It’s like a dance, except the dance ends with one person being shattered into coins. Wright ultimately makes Attention Deficit Disorder into a thing of beauty in Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. It is the best feel-good movie about getting dumped. The acting here is truly an ensemble achievement. Michael Cera suffers slightly from his own type-casting, but he’s ultimately the perfect embodiment of the lovable, air-headed slacker. Mary Elizabeth Winstead is the next entry into the Manic Pixie Dream Girl Hall of Fame. However, it’s the rest of the cast that elevates the entire flick. Kieran Culkin steals scenes. Ellen Wong steals scenes. Anna Kendrick & Brandon Routh steals scenes. The list goes on right down the line because the talent assembled here is ideal – each actor fitting perfectly into the character they create. Pilgrim may be a dork/goof/slacker/quasi-jerk but he’s the hero of his own life and willing to fight for the girl of his dreams as he traverses a world made of videogames, indie rock, kung-fu, romance, comedy, and Canada. Its a mash up of pop culture from the past 40 years that’s wound up in a tight package and set to detonate. It’s structured like any video game in the classic hero’s journey model of fighting mini-bosses before the ultimate baddie. Break-ups leave scars. They leave us wallowing in self-doubt and in a pile of confused, highly-combustible emotions. Ramona has seven exes who are so hurt and so angry at her that they refuse to let her be the master of her own love-life. And Scott has his own ex-problems as he’s still recovering from getting dumped over a year ago. We all have to deal with our baggage and the baggage of the person we love, otherwise, “You’re just another evil-ex waiting to happen.” It’s heavy stuff like this that most movies don’t want to deal with. Most movie romances take place as if neither person had ever dated anyone before. If there is an ex in the picture, it’s so one person can feel insecure about losing the other. With Scott Pilgrim, it’s not about Scott being scared of losing Ramona to an evil-ex. It’s about fighting to stay with her. While I wanted some lighter moments between Scott and Ramona, I respect that the movie makes no bones about love being something you continually have to fight for when you want to be with someone and when you’re finally with them. But the film doesn’t need to get all sappy and sentimental because the fight for love are literal fights with punching, reversals, hit combos, bass battles, whip swords, and more. It’s the kind of immature fighting that’s perfectly at Scott’s speed, but Wright and co-writer Michael Bacall know that it’s the battles you’re not prepared for that are the ones most worth fighting. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is a triumph of storytelling and filmmaking. It has fight scenes that will go down as some of cinema’s all-time best. It has so many great one-liners that you’ll be quoting it long after you leave the theater. It has tiny moments that will have you howling with laughter, brimming with excitement, and slack-jawed with amazement. But most importantly, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World has a heart and is possibly the film of the year.
