“Scott Pilgrim vs. The World” balances frenetic action and comedy

If “Arrested Development” didn’t convince you of Michael Cera’s masterful quirky delivery, “Scott Pilgrim vs. The World” will.

“Scott Pilgrim vs. The World” (2010) is based on a comic book series of the same title, and its movie adaptation is so good that I watched it two times in a row.

It follows Scott Pilgrim (Michael Cera), a somewhat directionless 22-year-old whose main time commitment is playing bass for his rock band Sex Bomb-Omb. After he spots the mysterious Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), Scott embarks on a new quest: making the lady his. The only problem? His dream girl has a nasty lineup of seven ex-romances, all of which are hellbent on Scott’s destruction.

Under Sex Bomb-Omb’s greatest hits, “Garbage Truck” and “Threshold,” watch Scott as he attempts to defeat Ramona’s ex-lovers. In true comic book fashion, all his competitors have evil intrigue and enjoy highly stylized hand-to-hand combat. Many of them have great one-liners, and some of them are also better at music than Scott.

“Scott Pilgrim vs. The World” is unexpectedly hilarious, in part because of many of its outrageous details. For example, Ramona’s ex-boyfriend Todd is vegan and has thus been blessed with psychic superpowers. This is only explained by the line: “Being vegan just makes you better than other people.” When it comes down to their fight, Todd proves to overpower Scott in every aspect. The only way Scott can defeat his rival is by offering him coffee that secretly has half-and-half in it, resulting in the arrival of the Vegan Police and Todd’s loss of vegan superpowers. I mean—how much more ridiculous can you get?

Adding to its amusement is the extremely well-known and talented cast, including Kieran Culkin as Scott’s roommate Wallace Wells, Anna Kendrick as Scott’s sister Stacey and Aubrey Plaza as Julie Powers, the girl who works everywhere Scott goes. Even Chris Evans and Jason Schwartzman play two of Ramona’s exes.

All make for really enjoyable performances—and it seems like the actors are genuinely having fun with their roles. This could be partially attributed to director Edgar Wright, who is intent on a movie-making process that’s fun and silly for everyone involved. It’s not often that all cast members come back for a sequel, yet when the animated series titled “Scott Pilgrim Takes Off ” came out last year, the entire cast of “Scott Pilgrim vs. The World” reclaimed their roles as voice actors.

This movie is also very visually impressive. Borrowing from video games, manga and martial arts movies, “Scott Pilgrim” literally looks like a comic book, visualizing sound effects and speed lines onscreen. Adding to these stimulating effects is the way that “Scott Pilgrim” breaks cinematic conventions by manipulating time. There are many jump cuts and no filler scenes.

“Scott Pilgrim” does what it wants, when it wants; and everything that it wants is fun, energetic and instantly gratifying. Wright said in an interview that every single shot of “Scott Pilgrim” is different and interesting because comic book authors draw something different and interesting for every square.

The only downfall of “Scott Pilgrim vs. The World” is that, arguably, Scott himself isn’t a great person. He dates a high-schooler and briefly juggles two girls at once. A lot of commentary around “Scott Pilgrim vs. The World” debunks Scott as a hero and instead acknowledges him as a flawed protagonist in need of some character development.

However, I wasn’t interested in doing a deep dive into Scott’s psyche. The visual imagery moves too fast for that, and Wright’s movie is only a retelling of the book series by Bryan Lee O’Malley. Yes, he is an imperfect character. But to rescind the entire movie’s entertainment on that point alone would be such a waste, because it’s one of the most distinctive films I’ve watched in the last year.

“Scott Pilgrim” embraces unconventionality and quick humor. And watching it two times in a row was a wonderful way to spend a Thursday night.