comment #1

George Prager says ...

The movie is like surfing the internet for porn and not beating off.

comment #2

Rich S. says ...

I thought that Youth in Revolt was Cera's attempt at bad-ass cred.

Or this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thThYiyqPG0

comment #3

Josh Massey says ...

"I didn't want to kill myself while watching Scott Pilgrim vs The World."

Coming soon to a DVD box near you!

comment #4

Dan Revill says ...

Damning with faint praise?

comment #5

LexG says ...

With the RIDICULOUS wardrobe and gay emo hair everyone's sporting in this, it's gonna age about as well as House Party 2. Kinda like when I threw in Jungle Fever a year or two back, and everyone's dressed for a 3rd Bass concert with all the mooks looking like MC Serch and Wesley apparently having raided Arsenio's wardrobe.

This thing'll look about as timely as "Thank God it's Friday" in about three years.

comment #6

Helms Deep says ...

"I wanted to kill myself reading this review."

comment #7

crazynine says ...

No Josh, it's:

""I want... Scott Pilgrim vs The World."

comment #8

crazynine says ...

Lex, I'm disappointed-- no kind words for the fetching Miss Winstead?

LOVE the funky haired girls.

comment #9

Sean says ...

I know that if movies are in fact going to be moving more and more in the direction of Scott Pilgrim in the coming years -- video-game inspirations, glib dialogue, wimpy girlymen in lead roles, bullshit video-game fight scenes, laid-back gay guys engaged in threesomes in shitty basement apartments -- then I really would rather die.

SCOTT PILGRIM isn't the first anything. It's the next Edgar Wright. It's the next in the HIGH FIDELITY-(500) DAYS OF SUMMER chain (and, I'd wager, a comparable "waste of time"). It's the next non-superhero graphic novel that gets turned into a widely appreciated movie. But it's a harbinger of nothing.

Also, Michael Cera was still filming ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT when Wright started working on the movie.

comment #10

LexG says ...

Also, a THIRTY year old woman shouldn't have had 7 serious relationships, let alone Mary Elizabeth Winstead.

Run-for-the-hills, red-flag alert right there.

Ladies, NO GUY-- get that, NO GUY EVER-- wants to hear ANYTHING about any of your past relationships or sexual experiences. For me, the single funniest, most relatable moment of 2010 is in Greenberg when Greta Gerwig starts spinning that tale of how she and her friend were acting all flirty to toy with some guys, and Stiller flips the fuck out about how it's the stupidest story ever and no one wants to hear that shit. EXACTLY. That is life. Any chick who's ever even MENTIONED some other other dude, past or present, and I turn into Jake La Motta.

But of course a douche like Cera would just go along with it, whatever. TOTAL douche.

Also ROLLING at the last two paragraphs of this review, with all the various hilarious uses of "gay." Classic.

comment #11

Circumvrent says ...

Nice review.

comment #12

LexG says ...

"Lex, I'm disappointed-- no kind words for the fetching Miss Winstead?"

Eh, she's okay. Cute. Doesn't have that OMG LOOK AT HER scorching hotness that K-Stew or Dakota have.

comment #13

Glenn Kenny says ...

"It has wit and vigor and smart music, and it gradually makes you want to run outside and take an elevator to the top of a tall building and jump off."

I was gonna say, "only if you're old." But that's not fair. It's really "only if you're old and bitter about it." And that's not quite right either. That Neil Rosen guy on New York 1, I think he's a few years younger than me (Full discolsure: I just turned 51, and I look FANTASTIC), and he's even more get-off-my-lawn about this movie than Jeff is.

Thing is, it's supposed to look kinda out-of-date; these are, after all, TORONTO hipsters we're talking about. I myself had a great time. Enjoyed the stylization, the slacker wit (the first 20 minutes reminded me a lot of Wright's great roommate comedy "Spaced"), and particularly the girls. None of whom has a patch on My Lovely Wife, but you know, movies.

Really: nothing to kill yourself over. Unless you hate fun, and younger people.

comment #14

Rich S. says ...

Lex, maybe photo 3 will change your mind:

http://www.zimbio.com/Mary+Elizabeth+Winstead/articles/9/Mary+Elizabeth+Winstead+Flaunt+Magazine+Outtakes

comment #15

Mark says ...

I like the idea of having Cera pummel 7 dudes. And I love that one of these boys is the loquacious J. Schwartzman, to whom we'd all like to deliver a beating. But i get the feeling I won't be satisfied. It won't be embarrassing enough. It have would have to be such a train wreck of a throttling, one that would transfer over and negatively affect Schwartzman in real life, to get me to pay. You know, lIke what Lewis did to Dano with the mud. That gets me in the theater.

comment #16

Gordn27 says ...

"Damning with faint praise?"

Based on how vehemently against this movie and Michael Cera Jeff was prior to seeing it, I would said it's praising with faint damnation.

comment #17

Scott Mendelson says ...

SPOILERS -
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.
.
.
Lex, most of Romona's prior relationships are brief and not terribly involved, and a few of them are basically childhood romances. As for the movie, I didn't like it. I certainly appreciated and admired the technical aspects, as well as the quirky supporting characters, but Pilgrim himself was such a schmuck for 95% of the movie. Like the Twilight series, I liked the supporting characters and the locations and what not, I just don't like the three main players in the romantic triangle (and really, Scott, Romona, and Knives = Bella, Edward, and Jacob).

Furthermore, the film completely sells out at the very end. For most of the movie, the conceit is that 'Romona's evil exes represent emotional baggage that Scott needs to deal with, as well as see for himself that he was the kind of person that Romona considers an 'evil ex'. Fair enough, but then it turns out that the final ex just has a way of 'getting into her head'. You mean this ex has a metaphoric hold on Romona the way that some girls run back to the old boyfriend who treated her poorly? No, no... said ex LITERALLY has a microchip at the back of Romona's neck that basically controls her and makes her go back to him. Yep, at the end of the film, Romona is literally a hostage who must be rescued, complete with an ugly scene where the evil ex sits on his giant throne while Romona helplessly kneels by his side like a dog.

At that point, I couldn't even pretend that this was an interesting film with a severely unlikable main character, as it traded it all of its would-be nuance for nerd-pandering hero fantasy. It's a shame, as the film is visually dazzling and often quite clever, I just couldn't buy what it was selling.

For those who care - http://scottalanmendelson.blogspot.com/2010/08/review-scott-pilgrim-vs-world-2010.html

comment #18

citizenmilton says ...

Yeah.

For those who know Jeff's work, this:

"I didn't want to kill myself while watching Scott Pilgrim vs The World"

is practically put-it-on-the-poster praise of the highest order.

comment #19

LexG says ...

Is one of the seven ex-boyfriends actually a chick?

Why do they keep saying 7 Ex-Boyfriends, if it's 6 guys and one girl?

Should also add that when a chick tells me she "experimented" with a girl one time, I only find it hot for about ten, fifteen seconds, then it makes me aggressively angry and judgmental and moralistic.

Okay, maybe twenty seconds.

comment #20

ManhattanMadcap says ...

In discussing the marketing strategy behind "Eat Pray Love", The New York Times cites this and "The Expendables" as other examples of studios loading up on large casts with big-name stars to market wide releases. How exactly does this fit that bill? Michael Cera, Kieran Culkin, Jason Schwartzman, some girl...what are they talking about?

comment #21

MrTribeca says ...

Ah, this is "King Kong '05" territory. Goes something like this:

Jeff unaccountably dreads a particular upcoming movie.

Jeff counts down to the movie's arrival with posting after posting of fear & loathing.

Jeff sees movie. Hey! Movie not so bad!

Jeff writes semi-rave about movie.

Doubts start to creep in. Jeff decides a second viewing should erase all these emerging concerns.

Uh-oh. Second viewing of movie in fact reinforces and underlines initial fears. Previous goodwill is discarded and movie becomes flag-bearer of all that is evil in movies today.

My gut tells me Machete will go this route too...

comment #22

Jonathan Spuij says ...

I still don't want to see this movie. But I probably will.

comment #23

crazynine says ...

MrTribeca-- nah, Wells loved King Kong for a moment there.

He's been nothing but middling-to-damning on this one.

comment #24

Gordn27 says ...

"Why do they keep saying 7 Ex-Boyfriends"

I only keep hearing "Seven Evil Exes".

comment #25

crazynine says ...

I have to give Wells credit here, though-- at least he went and saw it.

Me, while I'm more in the wheelhouse for this one generationally-speaking, will be skipping it for the inevitable TBS viewing two years from now.

Oh, and Lex-- beauty is subjective, everyone has their tastes, blah, blah, but Winstead is > than Kristen "My Pouty Boy-Mouth Won't Upturn for Nothing, Not Even Bags of Burger King Tie-Inoney" Stewart and Dakota "She's Not Even Legal In Most States" Fanning.

comment #26

ZayTonday says ...

Yeah this kind of movie is tailor made for Wells to hate and curse at while harping about Eloi and popcorn and the like, so for it to overcome his predisposed and predetermined hate to get faint praise is quite the feat indeed. Even Armond White who hates geek chic style movies was head over heels for it.

comment #27

Absinth Quell Pro says ...

Ugh.

Scott Pilgrim vs. Me Being a Grown Adult

comment #28

LexG says ...

Crazynine, I said Winstead was cute. And I GREATLY enjoyed the toenail-painting pic (HOTTEST THING EVER) that Rich provided.

But we will agree to disagree. MEW is in NO WAY as sexy, beautiful, charming, charismatic, HOLY SHIT OH MY GOD *spellbinding* as Kristen Stewart. Not even close. And not that I want K-Stew contaminated by the pure douche by ever being in Michael Cera's presence (bad enough she's already had love scenes with Anton Yelchin), but if they had cast THE GODDESS in this, the plot would be more relatable to me, 'cause I can't see going through all these hoops for some purple-haired pixie who probably wears BOOTS in every scene so you can't even see her feet.

It is a NATIONALLY RECOGNIZED FACT that the two most beautiful actresses in the world are Kristen and Dakota. This is not negotiable.

comment #29

THE MovieBob says ...

@Mendelson,

FWIW, I took the "chip" thing as just the script lampshading the whole literal metaphor thing going on with all the Exes - i.e. "Oh, you mean like in a psychological way?" "No, like in a comic-book-trope-as-blunt-metaphor-way, like with the six people you've already fought." Gabriel is Scott with a bigger ego - the guy who "posesses" women to enrich himself.

Also, doesn't the film somewhat answer this particular criticism by...

MAJOR SPOILER
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
...Scott getting KILLED when he approaches the finale in white knight save the princess mode, forcing him to start over and do it for a more mature, self-aware reason?
.
.
..
.
.
.
.
.
END SPOILER

I think the problem a lot are having is that we're NOT supposed to "like" Scott through most of this - he's a whiny, selfish prick, he treats his friends and Knives especially horribly, etc. The evil exes battles aren't about him "winning" manhood, but BEATING manhood into him.

comment #30

charity titters says ...

I'd say that Wells is a sad, twisted, miserable excuse for a human being after reading this review, but I guess that's alreday been established through clinical trials. The fact that Scott Pilgrim a fun, exciting, thoroughly enjoyable piece of entertainment obvioulsy means nothing when you can casually and blithely score points by saying such pointless, useless things as "I didn't kill myself watching it" (like, NO ONE else has EVER mentioned killing themselves/not killing themselves as part of a review before - way to be original Jeff) and...for what purpose? To rag on Cera, yet again? It's really hard to see a purpose. For anyone else with an open mind the film is great and Kieran Culkin in particular is terrific. Don't let Well's self-loathing tell you otherwise.

comment #31

Heinz, the Baron Krauss von Espy says ...

As "a gay", I'd be really interested in what Jeff considers "the gay music my two sons seem to prefer these days." Please, Jeff, enlighten us.

comment #32

CitizenKanedForPostingThoughts says ...

"(Full discolsure: I just turned 51, and I look FANTASTIC)"

1) You really can't type a sentence like the above on the internet and not come off as either lame, smug, or both. Even if it's true...

2) ...which it really isn't. Unlike the vast majority of the population, HE has Soderbergh fans. We've seen The Girlfriend Experience (I'll readily concede that any guy starring opposite Sasha Grey is going to be at a severe handicap when it comes to looking good, but "fantastic?" Puh-lease.").

3) *disclosure

4) I'm in a shitty mood. So I apologize for all of the above in advance. Even though I don't, you know, retract any of it.

comment #33

DeeZee says ...

Lex: Winstead was pretty hot in Die Hard IV, if I recall.

comment #34

Glenn Kenny says ...

@ Citizen Kaned : "Girlfriend Experience" was shot two years ago as of October. A lot has "gone down" since then. I've shed close to 100 pounds.

But seriously? The parenthetical was largely meant as a joke. An obnoxious joke, yes. But a joke. Also seriously? You can eat my ass.

I'm in a great mood, and will continue to be.

comment #35

phantasmata says ...

"It throbs and churns with a wowser bass line -- not at all like the gay music my two sons seem to prefer these days."

the lack of irony in this sentence pummels me with teh lulz. how can one describe a bass line as being "wowser" and then go on to chide one's offspring for listening to "gay music"? wowser? WTF? yeah, bro, because that's what all the metalheads used to call cliff burton's bass lines back in the day--"that bass line in 'orion' is totally fucking wowser, dude! btw, i'm so NOT gay!"

and i too would like to know what gay fag music your sons listen to, wells.

speaking of big gay music, i went to the gaga show at the staples center last night. it was epic. hands down, best show i've ever been to (which is saying a lot). goddamn, her ass looks incredible on the big screen. it's my mission in life to play guitar for her. she's a metalhead at heart and we would start a side project full of epic shredding and operatic vocals that'd put bruce dickinson to shame.

comment #36

Glenn Kenny says ...

Yeah, I'd like some names, myself. I asked a while back, when Jeff brought up the "gay music" thing, that he drop some names, a) out of base curiosity and b) to give a clearer picture of the music he defines as "gay." I vaguely recall him mentioning keyboards and dance rhythms (or, as he put it, "disco") so I was thinking maybe his kids were into Hot Chip, maybe. Which doesn't constitute "gay" music. But yeah, I'm DYING of curiosity about the fierce avant-garde-ness, or whatever the hell it is.

comment #37

Jeffrey Wells says ...

I've written the two boys about this. I said to them, "Please tell me your nominees for the gayest bands out there. You know what I mean...the un-rockiest, least Lou Reed-ish, girliest gayest bands alive...bands that are dead set against making any kind of rockin' sound...who make ethereal bullshit music that exists to counteract and nullify the spirit of rock 'n' roll music. You know which ones I mean."

Rest assured, a list is being prepared. Coming soon on HE: The GAYEST BANDS of 2010!

comment #38

Eloi Wrath says ...

Why is Lou Reed always held up as the polar opposite of gay?

comment #39

Absinth Quell Pro says ...

Lou Reed was given electroshock treatment because his parents thought he was gay.

Really, since when is he the hetero-barometer?

comment #40

Absinth Quell Pro says ...

Also, when was the last time Lou Reed recording anything that rocked? Thirty years ago? You think that song he wrote about egg creams kicks ass?

comment #41

BurmaShave says ...

Winstead doesn't have the same face she did 3 years ago in Grindhouse and Die Hard. Why isn't anyone mentioning this?

comment #42

SelfParody says ...

Lou Reed, if history has anything to be authoritative about, is not the opposite of gay.
And, while this site IS just commentary, of course, it's not a good thing to review a movie for not being what you want it to be. If you're disappointed, the review isn't about the movie, but about your expectations. A fine subject that is, but an unfair review.

comment #43

nightheat says ...

Another comic book movie? I don't see how anyone takes this crap seriously... entertaining, sure. art? no fucking way. Edgar Wright will make stupid movies his entire life, I don't see how he has cred with film critics when he devotes his life work to trivial pieces like Scott Pilgrim vs The World. Boring. Will probably watch and will probably enjoy, but will forget 10 mins after its done and never watch again..

comment #44

DeeZee says ...

Burma: It's hard to tell with that dye job.

comment #45

DiscoNap says ...

Not gay at all:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tPHbbvQEA1E

comment #46

Glenn Kenny says ...

Not to speak for Wells, but I believe when Lou Reed is invoked, it's most likely "Rock and Roll Animal," in which Velvet Underground classics are, erm, reinterpreted by a very manly band of session men, that represents the bar of not-gayness to which his sons' current enthusiasms cannot rise. Just an educated guess. Anyway, can't wait for the post.

comment #47

Noah Cross says ...

I wonder if I could make it through "Eat. Love, Pray" with out contemplating roof jumping. Maybe HE could include a suicide index with films. (Would "M*A*S*H" with its theme song rate a perfect 10?)

comment #48

reno rambler says ...

Here's a quote about SP from the target demographic, one of my former students, male, 19 yo.

"Not going to lie, a tad disappointed by "Scott Pilgrim vs. The World". In short: I felt the visuals, though impressive, took too much focus away from the actual story and characters."

comment #49

DavidF says ...

I didn't see anyone mention it - and I won't comment on how "gay" it is - but a guy named Beck did the music for Scott's band.

comment #50

George Prager says ...

Gay isn't gay. Gay is.

I think I can put together that list for Wells.

Dirty Projectors
Grizzly Bear
Panda Bear
Animal Collective
Beach House
The Shins
Girls
Phoenix
Arcade Fire
Fleet Foxes

And these guys:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKJiVPt-KRQ

comment #51

Gabriel says ...

Where the hell did my comment from last night go? Maybe Wells took exception with me pointing out plenty of thwacka-thwacka, whomp-bomp rock bands that have gay members.

Prager, if that's the list, I will be hugely disappointed. I'm hoping Jett and Dylan are into shit like Empire of the Sun and Antony and the Johnsons.

comment #52

Glenn Kenny says ...

I think you're BOTH wrong. Wells said "keyboard-based," not a lotta guitar. None of those bands are exactly Sabbath, but they mostly sound like "Holland"-era Beach Boys crossed with very early Genesis. Which is KIND of gay, but I think Wells was meaning REALLY gay, like Robyn or Rykskopp or what the fuck ever. Antony and the Johnsons are, like, LITERALLY gay, but they're too much like, you know, classical music, and I don't think Jett and Dylan are quite that refined. Anyway, I'm hoping we see sooner than later, I'm sick of sitting by the computer waiting.

comment #53

George Prager says ...

i don't think Wells means literally gay, since that doesn't make music gay.

None of those bands are exactly Sabbath, but they mostly sound like "Holland"-era Beach Boys crossed with very early Genesis.

More like Gentle Giant crossed with Seals and Crofts.

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