Cool, funny, geeky, madcap, wacky comic book adaptation that gets it nearly all Wright.

Rating: 9/10 (18 January 2011)

While Kick-Ass was busy gobbling up the lion's share of the attention and Daily Mail outrage, there was another genre-bending alt-superhero comedy mash-up last summer that rather slid under the radar, which is a great shame as, while it may not be as in-your-face outrageous, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is a more engaging, funny and sprightly movie that mysteriously failed to storm the summer box office in the face of bigger, badder, swearier competition.
A geek's paradise, Scott Pilgrim is chock full of gamer references, 8- bit sound-bites, and teen-rocking wannabee heroics, however what makes it more than the sum if its slacker culture nods and winks is a genuine warmth and affection for its inhabitants and their world. Brit helmer Edgar Wright, who showed he knows a thing or two about game-obsessed overgrown boys in Sean Of The Dead, tackles his first transatlantic mega-budget project with a breezy lightness; blending together bitter- sweet moments of awkward teen romance, and heart embiggening scenes of rock & roll camaraderie along with the madcap fights, and surreal flights of fancy.
The young cast, headed by eternal dweeb plus ultra Michael Cera, are largely excellent, with quirky but likable supporting roles given the same care and attention as our eponymous hero. As a teen ensemble comedy it recalls the films of John Hughes, such is the ease with which it takes its outlandishly fantastical premise and grounds it with deft, easygoing character work.
On the minor negative side, the film is rather undisciplined, being about twenty minutes longer than needed, with an occasional repetitious tendency brought on by its own multi-life, game-level structure, and somewhat lacks a solid dramatic shape as a result. But with so many charming, engaging characters and a sharp, witty script overflowing with quotable banter and inventive non-sequitur moments, the movie carries its excess baggage with a light touch and a giddy energy that is hard to resist.