Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is a film bursting with awesome. Somehow, director Edgar Wright has managed to craft a film so entertaining, so heartwarming, so fun, its a wonder this film doesn’t explode under the pressure of its own awesome.

Based on the comic-book by Bryan Lee O’Malley, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is an entertaining story of boy meets girl laden with comic-book and video-game references that will make many a geek squeal with delight, all while keeping a wonderful sense of humor. Scott Pilgrim (Michael Cera) is a 22-year-old slacker living in Toronto. His band, Sex Bomb-omb isn’t going anywhere and his gay roommate, Wallace (Kieran Culkin), is trying to evict him. Scott doesn’t seem to worry about anything until he lays eyes on Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) and falls for her instantly. The problem is that, in order to continue seeing her, Scott must defeat her seven evil exes.

This silly little plot device drives the story forward and provides the simple framework for the entire film. From the opening title sequence, through the seven (technically six) intense battles, and all the way up to the great finale, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is simply a blast. The movie is so much pure fun that I suggest you stop reading this and just go see it (and then come back to the site, please) Of course, as a critic, saying, “It’s awesome!” is not enough. What makes Scott Pilgrim vs. The World such a magnificent experience?

The comedy has a lot to do with the overall enjoyment of the film. Of all genres, great comedies can have the biggest effect on their audiences. There’s something about a good laugh that pleases the soul and Scott Pilgrim vs. The World fires on all cylinders when it comes to the laugh-making. Many films have great funny moments, but Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is consistently laugh-out-loud funny. Several characters stand out as especially funny (Kieran Culkin as Scott’s gay roommate Wallace, Anna Kendrick as Scott’s sister Stacey) but really each character is unique and genuinely funny. The seven evil exes also provide their own laughs as they are revealed. Apart from the general hilarity of the story and characters, the situations are only made funnier by the great visual gags that run through the film.

From a filmmaking perspective, these visuals are the the most innovative part of the film. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is a comic-book/video-game come to life. Never before have I see a film edited with such kinetic energy throughout. Words constantly litter the screen just like a comic panel; characters are introduced with little name badges; we see diagrams of Scott’s mind. These little things seem unneccessary, but they really give the movie its light-hearted, joyful spirit and they definitely aren’t gimmicks. These silly gags support the story by providing atmosphere as well as just being awesome and hilarious. The battles are also delicious eye-candy. Here is where we see the heavy influence classic video-games have on this film. Whenever an enemy is vanquished they burst into a thousand literal coins; Scott grabs new life out of thin air; power-ups manifest themselves in flaming swords. It’s all a huge nod to the video-games of yesteryear, and will entertain even those with no experience with any sort of video-game. But still, visuals alone cannot drive a film.

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is the story of one man – Scott Pilgrim. He is the only character in the film that really has any depth, and for good reason. The film is told from his point of view and from the first frame to the last we see the world as Scott himself sees it. In this way, the movie is very personal. We quickly grow to love Scott Pilgrim, faults and all. Even when he treats his girlfriend Knives like a complete jerk at the beginning of the film, we don’t care because we’re already irrevocably on his side. Scott’s quest to get Ramona is the main thrust of the film, but this story is not a true romance. Ramona is not a character in her own right, but a model of perfection and the object of Scott’s affection. She only exists to give our hero a reason to fight. Its easy to see the influence Clementine from Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind had on Ramona’s style but the complexity of that much more serious film is entirely missing here. Still, by the end of the movie, Scott has learned something about himself and the world around him and we not only experienced his journey with him – it was a blast, too.

Scott Pilgrim vs The World works on so many levels it defies categorization. It’s as hilarious as any great comedy. The action is as good as any Bourne film. The visuals are gorgeous. The writing is wonderfully witty. And at its core, it is a charming love story. All of these elements combine into one magnificent, wildly entertaining motion picture that is not to be missed.

Rating: ★★★★★ 

Although the show floor was opened up last night, the San Diego Comic-Con officially opened today. I wasn’t expecting this much on the first day, but that just goes to show you how new I am to the con. Here we go!

First up, we have some photo galleries from the show floor. Check these out to get a glimpse of the many awesome booths from every comic, movie, and TV show you can think of:

• Firstshowing’s Photo Gallery
• Cinematical’s Preview Night Gallery

Joss Whedon is officially directing The Avengers. Yes, you probably already knew this, but now it’s official. During EW’s Visionaries panel, Whedon stated the Marvel lacked the finances for an official press release so he had to announce it himself. I think Whedon writing is definitely a good idea, but I’m sure about his directing skills. Still, he obviously loves the characters and knows what a geek audience is expecting from the film, so hopefully Whedon will escalate The Avengers from a simple coming-together of heroes into the most epic superhero film ever put on film, but without sacrificing its heart. Good luck, Mr. Whedon. By the way, Marvel’s big presentation is on Saturday, so be ready for some big announcements.

During the same panel, J.J. Abrams talked a little bit about Super 8, but refused to give anything away. The only surprising news is that the film isn’t actually shot yet. This kind-of makes sense, but I assumed the movie was already completed. He’s aiming for a September start date so hopefully the wait won’t be too long before we see what should be a great collaboration between Steven Spielberg and Abrams.

Will Ferrell came to the Megamind panel completely dressed as his character from the animated film. Brad Pitt also made an appearance… in cardboard cutout form. See the picture from Alex Billington’s Twitter feed on the right. Oh yeah, Jonah Hill also declared himself the new Hulk for The Avengers. Wouldn’t it be great if this was legitimate and no one realized it?

Disney had their presentation for Tron Legacy today, with all of the main cast as well as the director in attendance. If you’re interested you should read Firstshowing’s detailed write-up of the event. Apparently the footage they screened was amazing, but those of us at home can check out this awesome second trailer for the film:

The first images from Zack Snyder’s Sucker Punch also debuted today. See them over at Film School Rejects.

During Disney’s presentation, a new adaptation of The Haunted Mansion was announced, with Guillermo Del Toro writing and producing. This came as a complete surprise, but makes sense given his recent departure from The Hobbit and his penchant for monster visuals. In an interview with THR, Del Toro talked about the mix between scares and family appeal, “It’s going to be a thrill ride for the whole family but it’s definitely going to be scary,” he said. “(Walt) Disney is one of the creators of some of the scariest images in my childhood. People forget that he not only made sweet images but also images of nightmare. We need to honor that side of the legacy.” This is defnitely what Disney is going for with this remake as Disney production head Sean Bailey echoed the same sentiments. The director is huge fan of the ride and I can’t wait to see what he comes up with for the Disney classic.

The big news kept coming as MTV Movies Blog got the scoop that Brad Pitt has signed on for the film adaptation of Max Brooks’ World War Z. The book is a series of interviews with various people who were impacted by the worldwide zombie infestation, and I am looking to read it soon. The author said, “I can’t believe how cool Paramount has been to me and these projects, and how cool Plan B has been.” I hope the film doesn’t lose the great storytelling technique that the book used by focusing solely on Pitt’s character.

The Sundance hit Buried, starring Ryan Reynolds by himself in a coffin, also got a theatrical trailer. I can’t wait to see this film. How can a movie set underground in an enclosed space have fresh visuals. I really want to see how Rodrigo Cortes pulled this one off. That being said, this trailer was pretty lackluster:

The teaser poster for Let Me In, Matt Reeves’ American remake of the Swedish vampire movie, hit the net today thanks to MTV Movies Blog and here it is:

Speaking of American remakes, David Fincher’s The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo is moving along. A release date of December 21st, 2011 was just set by Sony, and filming should begin in October. Still, none of the leads have been solidified yet. Daniel Craig, who has been rumored for the role of journalist Mikael Blomkvist, will likely not be able to join the cast due to conflicts with Bond 23 and Jon Favreau’s Cowboys vs. Aliens. The main female role, computer hacker Lisabeth Salander, is still up in the air.

The Expendables panel was pretty uneventful. I guess it was a “you had to be there” kind-of thing. The amazing action cast assembled, but no big news, which wasn’t a surprise.

Although I hadn’t heard too much about this film before, I’m really starting to get excited for RED. The film, which stands for Retired, Extremely Dangerous, stars Bruce Willis, Helen Mirren, John Malkovich, and Morgan Freeman as four ex-CIA special agents who become targets and must outwit their pursuers in a cross-country race to uncover the conspiracy at the CIA’s headquarters at Langley. This movie looks like a ton of fun with a great cast. Check out the new trailer:

After it was rumored yesterday that Karl Urban was going to be the new Judge Dredd, FSR’s Jack Giroux confirmed the rumor today. The actor stated that he is in talks and wants to play the character in the upcoming adaptation.

Battle: Los Angeles is making a big splash at the convention this year. A viral site launched this morning that looks pretty interesting. The pitch is that Battle: LA is a more realistic telling of human military fighting off an alien invasion. Think Black Hawk Down meets Independence Day. I’m really intrigued as District 9 already showed a more thoughtful view of aliens, hopefully this film, lead by Aaron Eckhart can be an emotional war drama like Saving Private Ryan and also showcase some awesome alien destruction.

A new film called Skyline in the same vein is also being advertised around Comic-Con and no one had ever really heard of it before. All we know right now is what Drew at Hitfix could uncover: “Skyline is directed and produced by the Brothers Strause (Alien vs. Predator: Requiem), whose company Hydraulx has provided visual effects for Avatar, Iron Man 2, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and 300.” Sounds promising, and from what I’ve heard, the Strause brothers, who previously helmed AVP: Requiem, are true geeks and set out to make an awesome alien invasion film. We get our first real look at this tomorrow so stay tuned.

And the most frustrating news of the night is that Scott Pilgrim vs. The World premiered tonight in a special preview screening. I’m really mad I missed this, but, hey, I get to see it next Thursday. Reaction was very positive, with many tweets like this one from Erik Davis: “I just poured a bucket of awesome over my head and it was called Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.” Personally I can’t wait to see this movie. The over-the-top action and self-referencing humor look awesome. A few early reviews are up now including ones from Cole Abaius,  Todd Gilchrist, and Jordan Hoffman but I am going to hold off until I see it for myself.

So that was day one of Comic-Con 2010. Some nice surprises and several good new images and trailers. Be wary, though. Don’t let all the hype get to you. It’s good seeing all these promos for franchises you love, but always remember to enjoy the films as they are, without all the hoopla.

Finally, after several long months of production blogs and fan hype, the first official trailer for Scott Pilgrim vs. the World has premiered online.

The film, written and directed by Edgar Wright (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz) and based on the popular indie comic by Bryan Lee O’Malley, looks like it is staggeringly close to the source material, including gravity-defying action and even going so far as to include comic-book sound effects no the screen.

Fanboys rejoice! Check it out:

I’ve made no illusions about my love of these books or my own anticipation for this movie (it may even be my MOST anticipated of 2010) and this trailer only fuels that fire. The visual style and approach looks even more awesome than I had expected and the characters all seem perfectly cast.

However, there is the little problem of convincing people to see it. Sure, the cast is young and sexy, and they will most likely be packing theaters with teens and comic fans, but the plot is so off-the-wall that it may have trouble transferring over to a wider audience. I expect to see them start playing up other aspects of the story (romance, action, etc.) in TV spots as the release date gets closer to entice different demographics into the theater.

So how do all of you feel after this first trailer? Will you be there August 13th or are you going to avoid this one?

Comic book fans have been clamoring for a look at director Edgar Wright’s (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz) adaptation of the popular cult comic series Scott Pilgrim, and today they finally got to check out the first poster.

The film, based on the cult-hit comic by writer/artist Bryan Lee O’Malley, follows Scott Pilgrim (Michael Cera,) a 23 year-old jobless loser in Canada. He’s dating a high schooler, living off his gay roommate, and rocking the bass in his band Sex Bob-omb. All of that changes, though, when awesome, American delivery chick Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) rollerblades through his dreams and he falls in love, only to be confronted with the girl’s seven evil ex-boyfriends who he has to defeat in battle. Too bad they didn’t realize “Scott is the best fighter in the province!”

It’s an odd, offbeat story chock full of geeky references to music, videogames, and other comics, and it is looking like Wright hit the fanboy nail on the head with his adaptation. The set pictures look fantastically close to the comic’s art and early press viewings are garnering seriously rave reviews.

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World takes a subspace route into theaters August 13th.

Youth In Revolt, Miguel Arteta and Michael Cera’s adaptation of a novel that has permeated every Urban Outfitters store in existence, has had its release date pushed back by The Weinstein Company despite getting positive reviews at the Toronto International Film Festival.

Instead of being released at the end of next month, it will now be in theaters on January 15th of next year. Slashfilm speculates that this may be due to the company’s acquisition of possible Oscar-contender A Single Man, but is quite possibly just another foul-up like the botched release track of Fanboys.

Regardless, I look forward to seeing what director Miguel Arteta has in store for us. I’m unfamiliar with C.D. Payne’s book, but it’s been around since 1993 – more than enough time for a good script to be formed.

Hope my film does well

Paper Heart is the quirky indie film most of its ilk want to be. The flick delivers enough quirkiness only to reel itself back in when it feels overloaded, while maintaining its message. It’s aware when enough is enough, and hopes we accept the gimmick it presents. Even with its gimmick, the filmmakers know they have a voice; keep it in check and don’t necessarily spell the whole thing out for the viewer by the end. Rather, let the interviewees be a piece of the pie. At the same time, the film is a ticking time bomb waiting for Sergeant James to defuse. One false step and all the good will the film has built is destroyed in an instant. While it flirts with disaster, Paper Heart remains a cute, endearing, and at times depressing look into what love is.

The aforementioned gimmick refers to using paper puppets to tell the stories as the interviewees narrate their tale of love. For instance, the most heart-breaking entails a man who had a near-death experience whose heart kept beating because he saw a lost love’s face. Told through puppetry, we’re shown this guy’s journey from its start to where he falls into a river, meets some very over-exaggerated fish and ultimately makes his way back to shore. The creative lengths the filmmakers went to to make these sequences work might not have cost much, but in the end they compliment some truly great stories of love. That’s really where the heart (no pun intended) of the film lies. None of the stories are the same and that helps keep the puppetry from becoming repetitive. The filmmakers also wisely choose to tell us the most heartbreaking of the tales first, to get us on their side. They’re also smart enough to introduce us to the people and environments before laying their love stories on us. Suffice it to say, it works.

Ironically, the only story that rocks the boat too much is Charlene Yi’s faux-documentary interaction with Superbad star and real-life boyfriend Michael Cera. That’s not a slam on either, although Cera continues to prove the actor and the person are one in the same. Some of the moments these two share together are cute, one “date” could even be considered clever, but most of the scenes feel too forced. It’s only partially clear that they want us in on the joke as we see the reactions of the filmmakers after some scenes. The structure of it all is what ultimately lets some water into the perfectly fine ship Paper Heart is. The picture dives into standard romcom fare straight out of any “boy meets girl” adventure. The ship won’t sink, and that’s because Yi and Cera turn in some solid work. Sure, they won’t plug up every hole – some reactions feel unnatural and there’s never real tension between them – but like any strong captain(s), they’re determined to keep it afloat.

That leads us to the message of the film, which proclaims love has no definition. Yi sets out to define this enigma, only to realize by the end of it love takes on too many forms and can’t be defined by one, two, or even ten relationships. Yi admits in the beginning she doesn’t believe in it, and wants to find what it is. Does love need to be defined? Can love really be the “perfect” emotion Hallmark cards claim it is? Yi, and the film, realize together what love is by the end of it, and they seem happy with the answer. It makes one wonder, though, is this why some people have a tough time with the concept of love, because it’s not defined by one particular thing?

One’s enjoyment of Paper Heart might boil down to how one feels about Charlene Yi. She’s an awkward yet cute girl who, to this viewer, operates in her own world. We come to know Charlene and even meet her family. Those who find her endearing will accept Paper Heart for what it is: a sweet, cute, and innocent look into the concept of love and what defines it. For what it’s worth, the film ended up being much better than expected and will hopefully find an audience that embraces it as much as the folks involved embraced this idea.

Rating: ★★★★☆ 

Scott Pilgrim, sounds familiar right? Most likely not? Yeah, I thought so. Recently I was introduced to Scott Pilgrim by a friend of mine, Blanca, who had a majority of the comics. She was ranting and raving at me about how much she liked the comics, which are really funny and good, and how disappointed she was in the casting selection for the title character in the upcoming feature adaptation from Universal Pictures, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.

The overall story centers on our obvious hero Scott Pilgrim (Michael Cera) who tries to completely win over the affections of new girlfriend Ramona (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) by defeating each one of her 7 ex boyfriends in combat. With obstacles along the way not only including the exes but others who are going for Ramona and Pilgrim, the out there and ambitious guy has got his work chocked up for him. Those who are fans of the heavily video game influenced comic book are right in saying that Michael Cera could possibly be a bad casting decision for the extroverted lead. His ‘timid nerd’ stature in practically every movie he’s starred in has thrown him into one of the biggest typecasts, but then again how will we know until the movie comes out?

Well for now we can fix up your appetite with a ton of video blogs. Directed by Edgar Wright (Hot Fuzz), you can follow him and the rest of the cast and crew right here on the Scott Pilgrim video blogs. The movie has a TBA release date for sometime in 2010, and when that is updated we will let you know along with some more Scott Pilgrim video game/comic goodness.

Year One wants it’s audience to believe it’s Agent Sands at the end of Once Upon A Time In Mexico. The film blindly fires it’s comedy at us, hoping things will hit us and evoke mountains of laughter. Why shouldn’t it? It’s directed by Harold “Egon” Ramis who’s done some decent comedy directing and is responsible for Ghostbusters and Caddyshack. The movie’s headlined by timid nerd Michael Cera, whom everyone adores, and Jack Black, who can be great when he wants to be. The talent is certainly there to make a fun, if useless, summer comedy. Yet like the aforementioned Sands, Year One misses just about every shot of comedy it unleashes.

Year One is terribly constructed together to the point where Ramis should feel ashamed he took part in it. Scenes start, climax, and then cut to the next scene without finishing the previous joke or giving us a clue as to what occurred. Picture sleeping with the chubby and ugly cheerleader and she leaves right before you both finish. Other, better films are guilty of this as well but they at least have the decency to mention what happened the next scene later. It leads into a point about the editing in this film, which is absolutely atrocious. Pieces are just slopped together, often times without any consistency. For instance, why does Jack Black’s hair change from black to blonde over the course of a scene? Editors Craig Herring and Steve Welch should do community service for what a sloppy job they do on this picture.

Nice, but mine are bigger.

Sloppy though, seems to be the keyword for this picture. The script by Ramis, Gene Stupnitsky, and Lee Eisenberg is full of half-assed ideas that come from a History of the World Part I/Life of Brian double feature. Unlike those films, theirs lacks the consistency both comedy and filmmaking wise to be anything remotely decent. Perhaps they chose to set the film in a prehistoric age because that’s how all of their jokes feel. All of the “laughs” rely on dick and fart jokes which is going to appeal to anyone ten and under. Certainly the film gave me this vibe it was trying to appeal to a young audience but even then, the jokes are almost twenty years too late. Ramis’ direction, unfortunately, doesn’t do anything to elevate the material either. Presumably, he shot what was on page and did simple pointing and shooting. To paraphrase, the man did a lazy job with a sloppy script.

Jack Black and Michael Cera do make for a solid team though and play off of the other well. Likely it’s due to the fact both men are essentially playing themselves in caveman’s clothing. The flick does absolutely nothing to make you accept these two are playing different people other than dress them differently. Black though, seems to be doing a parody of his Po from Kung Fu Panda as he proclaims “I’m the chosen one!” His typical shtick is at play here though, so those turned off by him will find nothing to accept here. Cera tries with his timid nerd act that does work in spots. Seemingly, he’s the only one doing something in favor of the film rather than taking a meh attitude toward it. His low-key take is refreshing when you consider what everyone else in the film is doing.

The biggest of these offenders is not Hank Azaria but Oliver Platt as the High Priest. Normally Platt is enjoyable but here he’s repulsive, and not because his character calls for it. Platt’s character is implied to be gay, since apparently all priests in comedies have to be. Trouble is, it’s annoying, unfunny, and should make said homosexual priests feel ashamed. Azaria’s a different matter, as he interpreted his role of Abraham as Cap’n Abraham of the S.S. Choppin’ Skin. Every line is muttered like a drunken pirate leading one to think Azaria was a Captain Sparrow reject. Unlike his other recent history adventure, Azaria doesn’t bring the film down and does have the best line in the whole film. Christopher Mintz-Plasse is his son Isaac and while it’s impossibly hard to hate the kid, he’s essentially McLovin in different clothes. Vinnie Jones is Vinnie Jones, and Olivia Wilde makes for some really nice eye candy. David Cross portrays Cain and seems to pop in and out when the script needs him, while Paul Rudd feels all but wasted as Abel.

Year One is lazy, unprofessional filmmaking. Ramis is better than this, Apatow is better than this, even Jack Black is better than this. I keep reassuring myself the only reason Ramis did this was so we could get Ghostbusters 3. At the same time, he shouldn’t have succumbed to such a stupid, idiotic and retarded monstrosity of film. Much like it’s premise, Year One should be buried, ancient history when it’s all said and done.

Rating: ★☆☆☆☆