That's just one of the better dead-pan lines in Edgar Wright's latest, which opened this past Friday. While it's not as strong as Wright's previous film (2007's Hot Fuzz), this is perhaps the best pseudo-parody of video games ever put on film. Even when it feels like a video game, it's not in a way that detracts. As usual, the edits are efficient and keep you on edge. The ensemble in particular are wonderful. Michael Cera is more or less playing the same role he plays everywhere else, only this time with a (smidge) more confidence. More fun are Kieran Culkin (as his gay room mate), Allison Pill (his former girl friend and current band mate), Aubrey Plaza (as foul mouthed Julie), and Anna Kendrick (as Scott's sister). But really, the star of the film is its screenplay and Wright and co.'s realization of it on screen. Dozens of tiny flourishes fuse the world of comic books, video games, and films together without so much as a bump in the road: sounds appear as words, music from The Legend of Zelda and Mario are used as musical cues, and people turn into coins when defeated. The only hindrance is perhaps the source material itself; if Wright had come up with this story and universe on his own, odds are it would have been even more dizzyingly satisfying.
Wright does a solid job of incorporating visual effects into action sequences (a big change for him), save for a literal battle of the bands that ends with a giant attacking a pair of dragons. All in all, it's a funny, engaging film with good work from its young, talented cast. It may lack the fuller sense of satisfaction of Wright's previous two efforts, but its still one of the few films to really stand out in an underwhelming summer. One running event in the film is Scott's participation in a video game, that asks after defeat: "Continue?" as numbers count down. Were Scott Pilgrim vs. the World actually a video a game, I would eagerly answer, "Yes."Grade: B
No comments:
Post a Comment