Empty

Rating: 3/10 (22 July 2015)

I don't know the comic books, so I'm writing only about the film. In most cases, titles such as this should be viewed with more understanding of the source material in order to not only to assess the story as it is, but also take into consideration the transition from one medium to the other. But when you are not aware of the source material, the only thing you are left with is film, its story, its characters, etc. And these, should at least provide you with some kind of entertainment.
So I came unprepared, anticipating a light-hearted high-school comedy about relationships but instead got an emotionally empty story about adolescent heartbreak, but without a heart of its own. I'm sorry to admit this but I didn't find one likable character in this movie.
The protagonist is a funny guy that plays bass in a band and doesn't give a damn about other people's feelings. He finds himself a younger girlfriend just to fill the void that his previous partner left behind her, but dumps her at the first sight of someone more interesting than her. Said girlfriend – Knives – is a walking Chinese stereotype that constantly delivers cringeworthy lines and in the end – (spoilers!) – agrees to let Scott go so that he can follow his dream girlfriend. How generous! How believable! The aforementioned femme fatale is a cold and empty plot device, emotionally undeveloped, and because of being so transparent, completely out of place as the protagonist's love interest. The band is non-existent.
And there come the exes. Don't get me wrong, I totally buy the crazy video game fighting, but these scenes could be so much better if they were at least imaginative. If we take away the life bars and coins popping out of defeated enemies we are left with uninspired fight sequences – the ones you have already seen a thousand times.
But the unlikeable cardboard characters and their improbable emotional behavior isn't the biggest sin of "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World". For me the only thing that, despite its numerous flaws, could put the film back on track, but ultimately puts it to the very bottom of my deepest "Never Watch That Again" drawer is the humor, or lack thereof. There are many films that are lifted from the ashes by merely a couple of hilarious lines or an energetic acting of just one of the characters. Just like with books, a good writing can carry a weak plot, never the other way around. This movie falls flat not because it depicts emotions in an unbelievable way, but because it fails to evoke any emotions. Maybe in the beginning you will hear some lines that sound fresh and maybe you will find the numerous references to popular culture enjoyable, but as soon as you get used to the film's peculiar editing, it will instantly lose momentum.
In conclusion: if you are already past your adolescence and have a basic understanding of how human emotions work, do yourself a favor and skip it. Or play a video game and then watch Juno/500 Days of Summer/Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind instead.