Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: A 10-Year Retrospective
On August 10, 2010, a film adaptation unlike any other released in theaters across the United States. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, a film directed by Edgar Wright, based on the graphic novel series by Bryan Lee O’Malley, was initially a box office bomb but later gained a massive following of fans (particularly, millennials) for its unique yet, relatable cast of characters, video game references, and fun atmosphere. It has been more than ten years since Scott Pilgrim vs. The World was released and whether you have seen the movie or not, you cannot deny that it has become a staple in 21st century American culture.
Many of the actors in Scott Pilgrim vs. The World had their debuts, or their early recognition started, in this film. From Chris Evans to Anna Kendrick, many actors that you may have heard of from blockbuster films had roles in the movie. From a SPOILER-based perspective, I will be providing a retrospective of this film, what I enjoyed about it, and what I did not like about it.
The story
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World centers on the 23 year-old protagonist, Scott Pilgrim (Michael Cera) as he tries to win the heart of a girl that he falls in love with, Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead). The problem is, Scott Pilgrim must take down the League of Evil Exes — emphasis on exes — to be with Ramona. For each of the seven exes, Scott engages in an anime-style battle not unlike Dragon Ball Z-style fights to defeat them. I love that each ex is unique and how each one requires a different strategy to be taken down. My favorites are Todd Ingram (Brandon Routh) who uses his psychic “vegan” powers to battle Scott, and the ninja Roxy Richter (Mae Whitman) who uses her metal whip to fight against Ramona. I can appreciate the fact that Wright improved the battle scene with Lucas Lee (Chris Evans) by having Scott fight against his many stunt doubles (fun fact: those are Chris Evans’ actual stunt doubles). In the graphic novels, Scott only has a “talk” with Lucas before challenging Lucas to grind down a flight of stairs, leading to his death.
However, because the film wanted to condense all six volumes of the graphic novels into a singular runtime, many important characters and battles had to be cut. For example, the Katayanagi Twins (played by Keita Saito and Shota Saito) only had a short concert battle, and other story content such as Scott’s relationship with Kim Pine (Alison Pill) had to be cut.
I think that costume designer Laura Jean Shannon did an amazing job in making each outfit stand out and providing each character with their own flare. The Clash at Demonhead’s Todd Ingram and Envy Adams (Brie Larson) are among my favorites as, during the band’s performance, Todd can be seen sporting a Marvel’s Punisher shirt while Envy Adams’ design is based on Misa from Death Note. Gideon Graves’ (Jason Schwartzman) outfit clearly defines the final boss look that is typically seen in gangster movies.
If it isn’t already obvious, I should note how much I love the film’s obvious nods to video game and pop culture references. From Scott’s band being named “Sex Bob-omb” to the “K.O” jingle from Street Fighter, the movie has a lot of references sprinkled around that it makes it worth re-watching I also enjoyed the film’s score and many of the songs that were utilized in the film. From Matthew Patel’s (Satya Bhabha) Slick song to Envy covering Black Sheep by Metric, there were a lot of catchy songs in the film and ones that I feel make the film’s soundtrack worth purchasing.
The nega-movie
However, aside from the fact that a lot of story details from the graphic novels were dropped due to the film’s run-time, I did have some issues with the film, although these are points that were specifically taken from the graphic novels. First, while their relationship was cute, it is hard for me to get behind the fact that Scott was dating Knives Chau (Ellen Wong), a 17-year-old girl before getting with Ramona. I get that the film wanted to portray toxic relationships, but this was a concept I could not get behind. At the end of the film, Scott gets with Ramona but in the graphic novels, Scott gets with Knives. I believe that love is love, but I do not think it is okay to rationalize pedophilia. I also think that if Scott Pilgrim vs. The World was released in theaters in 2021, many people might not be comfortable with how the LBGTQ+ characters were portrayed. Scott’s roommate, Wallace Wells (Kieran Culkin) is portrayed as the stereotypical gay roommate and while he gets some funny moments in the film, I feel that a lot of his character and jokes are centered around the fact that he is gay. I also think that while Roxy, the only female (and only lesbian) character of the League of Evil Exes had a fun fight scene, she was defeated by Scott giving her an orgasm. As the only female “villain,” it makes me question how Scott would have taken down the other evil exes.
Complaints aside, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is a movie worth watching whether it is for the first-time or the hundredth time. During an ongoing pandemic, it might be a good time to throw on a cozy blanket, grab this popcorn, and watch the movie, which is available on Netflix.
