Nerds unite...Scott Pilgrim is one of the most fun movies of the year, barring you're a 16-26 year old male who likes video games and Asian Catholic school girls.

Rating: 7/10 (29 November 2010)

Scott Pilgrim is one of the most fun movies I've seen all year. Sure, it's marketed towards nerds, gamers, and comic book geeks, but that doesn't mean it's not accessible to the average movie goer, or at least the average male movie goer ages 16-26. It's cute, energizing, and entertaining with good music, hot chicks, and some hardcore, sword fighting, skateboard slinging, karate chop chopping battle scenes that look like they were ripped out a Street Fighter vs. Speed Racer online battle. Enough with the nerd lingo though, let's get to the plot.
Scott Pilgrim got his heart broken. His rebound is a 17 year old Asian Catholic high school girl. It doesn't get anymore cliché than that. She's cute, but annoying, and when he meets the new girl, with enough pink hair and indie outerwear to make an emo boy drool, he undoubtedly falls in love. The problem? For some reason, the new girl has seven evil exes, all bound to make an appearance on the battle field when Scott least expects it. What follows is hot, hilarious, and, at times, outrageous with scenes that give any recent action flick a run for it's money when it comes to entertainment.
Regardless of the high energy adrenaline that runs through Scott Pilgrim, you've got to wonder, is it funny? I can say wholeheartedly that I laughed, at times, out loud. It's little nuances that Michael Cera has down to a T, that truly make the movie. I can't necessarily say why he's so funny in this film (and I didn't particularly like him in Juno), but he is. Rather than model the character after the comic book, it seems like the character was almost carved out of Cera himself. What results is very frequently funny.
So what are the negatives? For one, the film is a little bit long. Not only are there seven battle scenes, but some of them are drawn out way too long (especially the final scene). There is such a thing as too much of a good thing, and in Scott Pilgrim, we see it. Also, there isn't always enough differentiation between battles. By the end of the movie, things feel a bit stale and fall a bit flat as opposed to the opening scenes that set the stage. Lastly, as much as I praise Cera for his spot on performance in the film, I also have to give him a slightly negative critique when looking at his character because he is such a loser, yet he manages to score some really sexy chicks. I know it's a movie and anything is possible, but seriously, Scott Pilgrim wouldn't be in the running for any of these girls regardless of what band he's in.
All in all, Scott Pilgrim offers some good, fun, mindless entertainment. It's smart, funny, cute, and cuddly, and I'd especially recommend it for teenagers and males ages 16-26. Would I recommend it to my parents? No. The indie guy down the hall that watches foreign films? No. The film student who prefers documentaries? No. Anyone looking for a fun tribute to video games, heartache, and progressive rock music? Spot onspot on.
Michael Buffa Editor, Popcorn Jury http://www.popcornjury.com