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(M) ****
Director: Edgar Wright.
Cast: Michael Cera, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Ellen Wong, Kieran Culkin.
SHAMEFULLY ignored at the box office, this hyperactive and wildly inventive comic book adaptation is destined to become a defining film of Generation Y.
An almost overwhelming barrage of quirks, the adventures of Scott Pilgrim come at you at a million miles a minute but you won't mind because it's so damn entertaining.
Pilgrim (Cera) is a Canadian 20-something who plays bass in a punkish band Sex Bob-omb, has a 17-year-old girlfriend Knives (Wong) and his life is peachy.
That's until the colourfully coiffured Ramona Flowers (Winstead) skates into his dreams and then his life and Pilgrim falls head over heels.
The downside, apart from the fact he already has a girlfriend, is that to be Ramona's boyfriend he must defeat her seven evil ex-boyfriends, all of whom have magical powers.
SPVTW is packed full of pop culture references and swings from being a fight film, a rom-com, a sitcom (complete with Seinfeld theme and canned laughter) and a fantasy in a matter of frames. It's also overflowing with cinematic tricks including pop-up information, characters with blanked out swearing or who melt the snow when they pass, computer game moments, and strange voice-overs.
The overall effect is like that of a film made by someone with ADHD and this relentless method of "everything all the time" is the only downside of the movie, but it's worth enduring because the film is hilariously funny, perfectly paced and filled with great performances.
Cera has the downtrodden indie-kid underdog market well and truly cornered by now (see also Youth In Revolt, Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist, Superbad), but the real surprises are Culkin as his gay room-mate Wallace (who gets all the best lines), Winstead as the so-cool Ramona, Anna Kendrick's bit-part as Scott's sister and some of the exs, notably Chris Evans and Jason Schwartzman.
Deserving of repeat viewings, SPVTW not only gives Hot Fuzz and Shaun Of The Dead director Wright three from three but it will provide you with a large dose of frenetic fun.
