Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is a 2010 visually dynamic, action-comedy film based on Bryan Lee O’Malley’s graphic novel series. The film, directed by Edgar Wright, fuses video game aesthetics, comic book influences, and rapid-fire humor into a hyper-stylized love story filled with over-the-top action sequences. The film follows Scott Pilgrim, a 22-year-old bassist, as he battles the seven evil exes of his new crush, Ramona Flowers, in a series of increasingly absurd and spectacular fights.
Scott Pilgrim (Michael Cera) is an awkward, aimless 22-year-old bassist in a Toronto-based garage band, Sex Bob-Omb. He’s dating a 17-year-old high school girl, Knives Chau (Ellen Wong), much to the disapproval of his sister, Stacey (Anna Kendrick), and his sassy, sharp-witted roommate, Wallace Wells (Kieran Culkin). Scott’s life is mundane, filled with band practice, video games, and dodging responsibility.
However, everything changes when he dreams about a mysterious girl—Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead). The next day, he sees her in real life, learning that she is a recent arrival from New York who now works as a delivery girl for Amazon. Instantly infatuated, Scott awkwardly pursues her, breaking up with Knives in the process.
After some initial hesitation, Ramona agrees to date Scott. However, he soon receives a cryptic email warning him about an impending battle. Confused, he disregards it—only to be ambushed at a battle of the bands by Matthew Patel (Satya Bhabha), Ramona’s first evil ex. Matthew possesses mystical Bollywood-inspired fire powers, forcing Scott into a surreal, video-game-style fight. With a mix of dumb luck and skill, Scott defeats Matthew, earning a shower of coins and moving on to his relationship’s next level—er, phase—.
Scott quickly learns that to date Ramona, he must defeat her seven evil exes, each with bizarre abilities and over-the-top personalities. These include Lucas Lee (Chris Evans) – A cocky, super-famous action movie star with skateboard skills. Scott tricks him into performing a dangerous skateboard stunt, causing him to wipe out.
Todd Ingram (Brandon Routh) – A bass-playing, telekinetic vegan with superpowers fueled by his strict diet. Scott exploits a loophole in Todd’s vegan status, tricking him into drinking half-and-half, which results in the “Vegan Police” stripping him of his powers. Roxie Richter (Mae Whitman) – Ramona’s only female ex, a skilled ninja fighter. Since Scott is reluctant to hit a girl, Ramona briefly takes over the fight, but Scott ultimately defeats Roxie by hitting her weak spot. Kyle & Ken Katayanagi (Shota & Keita Saito) – Twin DJs who battle Scott’s band using massive sound-based energy attacks. Scott counters by rocking out harder, causing their speaker monsters to explode.
Meanwhile, Knives, heartbroken from being dumped, undergoes her transformation—dyeing part of her hair and attempting to fight Ramona for Scott’s affection. However, she soon realizes the battle isn’t between Scott and himself. Scott finally faces Ramona’s final ex, Gideon Graves (Jason Schwartzman), a smug, manipulative record producer who has mind-control over Ramona using a microchip implanted in the back of her head. Gideon offers Sex Bob-Omb a record deal, but Scott refuses and challenges him to a fight, declaring that he is battling for love. However, Gideon easily defeats him, and Scott is seemingly killed.
Scott is revived when he uses a 1-Up (a literal extra life from a video game) and reenters the fight, battling not for love but self-respect. Armed with this realization, Scott is stronger and more confident. With help from Knives, he defeats Gideon. Ramona is freed from Gideon’s control, but before things can be resolved, Scott faces one final battle—against Nega-Scott, a dark reflection of himself.
Rather than fight, Scott befriends Nega-Scott, revealing that he’s not a bad guy, just a misunderstood version of himself.
With Gideon gone and Nega-Scott neutralized, Scott finally makes peace with himself. In the final moments, Scott and Ramona acknowledge their complicated relationship but decide to try again, walking into the unknown together.
The film is notable for Edgar Wright’s use of combining visual reality with video game logic. For example, Characters explode into coins upon defeat, health bars and combo meters appear, and Scott earns “power-ups.”
There is also a strong use of comic book references and structure, such as split-screen panels and stylized transitions, so it aesthetically feels like a live-action graphic novel.
While wrapped in humor and action, the film explores Scott’s journey toward self-acceptance and emotional maturity. At the start, Scott is selfish and avoidant, stringing Knives along while chasing Ramona. By the end, he acknowledges his mistakes and chooses to take responsibility for his life.
The Other Cinema 