Scott Pilgrim vs. the Meh
I saw Scott Pilgrim vs. the World this weekend. It was amusing, but ultimately disappointing. The use of special effects was original and fun. The problem was that the characters and story were barely there. Don't worry. There's nothing for me to spoil. Like a Super Mario level, you just move to the right until you get to the end.
It's an incredibly basic boy falls in love at first sight with some girl and tries to win her plot. There's some offhand mention of mystical stuff that sort of explains why Scott Pilgrim is dreaming of this woman and why encounters with the girl's evil exes turn into video game fights as he tries to woo her, but it never contributed anything to the story. It's not that I have to have everything explained to me, just that we're forced to accept it without context and the characters react as if nothing is out of the ordinary. The rest of the movie is on rails, with Scott fighting exes of increasing difficulty until the climactic boss battle.
The story could be overlooked if there were some interesting characters. I'll try to avoid complaining too much about Michael Cera and his overcasting in the role of awkward teens (and now twentysomethings), but really, an inanimate carbon rod would have had more personality. Let's blame the writers instead for creating a protagonist with no likable features or redeeming value. He's a mooch and a dick to most people around him that plays bass with questionable talent. And I guess he's supposed to be good at video games or something even though we only ever see him play a game once.
Then there's Ramona Flowers, the object of his lust. That sums up the entire character-- an object. Through the movie she is fought over and even changes owners once. There is no real personality at all. Some prop character mentions that she is an aloof American, but that doesn't excuse the writers from not giving Ramona any personality and hardly any will of her own. Only one fight in the movie has her attempt to fight off an ex herself, but it's ultimately just an excuse for girl on girl action.
The seven evil exes are stereotype villains that aren't worth discussing. Their personality is proportional to the amount of time they are allowed to be on screen before Scott Pilgrim kung-fus them into oblivion. The rest of the supporting cast are cardboard cutouts that set up the occasional gag or offer some vague exposition.
At least it has a happy ending. A piece of wood and an empty shell with nothing in common and no chemistry walk off somewhere together.
It's an incredibly basic boy falls in love at first sight with some girl and tries to win her plot. There's some offhand mention of mystical stuff that sort of explains why Scott Pilgrim is dreaming of this woman and why encounters with the girl's evil exes turn into video game fights as he tries to woo her, but it never contributed anything to the story. It's not that I have to have everything explained to me, just that we're forced to accept it without context and the characters react as if nothing is out of the ordinary. The rest of the movie is on rails, with Scott fighting exes of increasing difficulty until the climactic boss battle.
The story could be overlooked if there were some interesting characters. I'll try to avoid complaining too much about Michael Cera and his overcasting in the role of awkward teens (and now twentysomethings), but really, an inanimate carbon rod would have had more personality. Let's blame the writers instead for creating a protagonist with no likable features or redeeming value. He's a mooch and a dick to most people around him that plays bass with questionable talent. And I guess he's supposed to be good at video games or something even though we only ever see him play a game once.
Then there's Ramona Flowers, the object of his lust. That sums up the entire character-- an object. Through the movie she is fought over and even changes owners once. There is no real personality at all. Some prop character mentions that she is an aloof American, but that doesn't excuse the writers from not giving Ramona any personality and hardly any will of her own. Only one fight in the movie has her attempt to fight off an ex herself, but it's ultimately just an excuse for girl on girl action.
The seven evil exes are stereotype villains that aren't worth discussing. Their personality is proportional to the amount of time they are allowed to be on screen before Scott Pilgrim kung-fus them into oblivion. The rest of the supporting cast are cardboard cutouts that set up the occasional gag or offer some vague exposition.
At least it has a happy ending. A piece of wood and an empty shell with nothing in common and no chemistry walk off somewhere together.