The People vs. Michael Cera

Rating: 7/10 (19 September 2010)

During the period of time between the release of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, I called the former the best film adapted from a video game. I will stand by that claim. But now, it's ironic to think that the current best video game film isn't an adaptation of any individual one. Scott Pilgrim is actually a comic book movie with numerous stylistic references to video games.
The movie works because the comic is also heavily influenced by game culture, and this was invaluable in helping bridge the severe medium gap between game and film. Despite their shared visual aesthetic, games have more in common with novels than films. Think, for a moment, about the fantasy films you enjoy. Excluding some animated productions, live-action films are set within the laws of physics and follow established cinematic storytelling methods. Characters simply do not appear out of thin air and they usually do not have another chance to experience a plot point again. Games have the option of being liberated of such burdensome reality. Both of these happen within this film, and I would probably not have enjoyed it (at all) had it not been an experiment in creating a proper video game setup within a feature film.
The title character (played perfectly by Michael Cera) is an early 20's something self-proclaimed loser living in Toronto with his comic-relief hypersexual gay best friend. Scott doesn't have his luck and has resorted to dating a high school student. Their "dates" mostly involve her coming over and watching him practice with his garage band, Sex Bob-omb.
Scott soon meets the girl of his dreams (literally). At a party he sees her and sets up a date. The girl is named Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) and was using his dreams as a shortcut to get from place to place. They go back to her house and don't have sex, much to Scott's disappointment. The next day he asks her if they are dating, and she agrees that they are. Scott receives an email from somebody saying that he will soon show up to "challenge" him. At a band concert, Scott is interrupted by the man in the email, Matthew Patel, whom he beats up.
Ramona reveals that her prospective boyfriends or girlfriends will have to defeat the league of Seven Evil Exs of which Patel is a member. As long as Scott wants to date her, he will have to defeat each of them in combat. He does just that throughout the course of the film, taking care of each in a unique way. These battles are highly stylized, like what you would see in a Stephen Chow film. The film pits Scott against a diverse group of antagonists that are afflicted by strange vulnerabilities. One of them is a vegan who is undone by a helping of milk.
The movie runs out of gas by the ending, even for those open-minded enough to enjoy it. It's another example of the hipster dialog exhaustion problem; first pioneered by Cera's other great film Juno. Even I was tired by the final boss. Yet, I'm happy to say this is the first time I've seen a video game movie that was created by people who really understand the way people enjoy experiencing games.
Recommended 39th of 2010