Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010)

Director: Edgar Wright

Cast: Michael Cera, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Kieran Culkin, Chris Evans

Have I Seen it Before: Oh, sure.

Did I Like It: There are two forces at work here in the film. The first is the creative force of Edgar Wright at the height of his cinematic inventiveness, amidst a Hollywood system that would still allow him to let loose those talents. He comes here as close as anyone will to translating any kind of non-superhero comic directly to the screen. The influences seep in through every moment of the film, from the 8-bit tweak to the Universal logo, to the floating tiles, all the way to using the coins that appear after defeating an enemy for the bus. One would have been forgiven for assuming a property like Scott Pilgrim was never going to be adapted with any kind of faithfulness, but we were all* pleasantly surprises.

What’s more, I wondered if Wright’s magic could be implemented outside of his collaboration with Simon Pegg, but I was pleasantly surprised, just as I continue to be.

Then there’s the matter of the material itself. Enjoyable, yes. But how much can we root for a hero like Scott Pilgrim? He’s insensitive to the point of psychopathy. He’s just barely on the right side of some statutory stuff for most of the film. His grand catharsis doesn’t really make him much of a better person, it just makes him slightly less of an asshole, no matter how many special swords he might get for his efforts.

It’s almost as if the film is more about the characters surrounding Scott than Scott himself. Some might complain that makes the story about a callow jerk, and refuse to engage with it.

I’m not bothered by those problems.

*At least, those of us who knew what we were doing and watched it during its theatrical run.

The Phoenician Scheme (2025)

Director: Wes Anderson

Cast: Benicio del Toro, Mia Therapleton, Michael Cera, Riz Ahmed

Have I Seen It Before: Nope. Brand new.

Did I Like It: At it’s basic level, each new Wes Anderson film—at least after he conclusively proved his mettle with The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)—feels like it could be something new. Animation? Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009). An alien invasion story? Asteroid City (2023). A breezy journey through a highbrow magazine? The French Dispatch (2021). So, too, the thought of Anderson bringing his meticulous and distinctive visual style to an espionage story? It suddenly becomes appointment viewing for me.

And unfortunately, I may be of the mind that Anderson is stuck in particular themes and stories, no matter what genre with which a new film might have a tenuous relationship. The style is largely still there, although a few shots towards the end of the film embrace movement that isn’t a tracking shot. Every item—and especially every book—looks to be at least sixty years old (it helps here that the film is meant to take place in 1950). Right angles, quirky line readings, and plaid abound.

I’m not expecting Anderson to abandon everything he holds dear in favor of a new genre, but the themes are the same. A general storybook quality? Check. Awkward love story? Check. Some sort of redemption arc for a distant, larger than life father? Also, check.

I’m not necessarily mad or even disappointed that Anderson gave me exactly what I expected from the film. To the twee, indie film set, he’s as reliable as Michael Bay or McDonalds*. Can we not want more from a filmmaker who made his name initially making surprising choices? Does he not want more from the films he has yet to make?

*Yeah, I get it. That sounds like I’m mad and/or disappointed.

The LEGO Batman Movie (2017)

Director: Chris McKay

Cast: Will Arnett, Zach Galifianakis, Rosario Dawson, Michael Cera

Have I Seen it Before: There was very little chance that a film like this was going to fly under my radar, right?

Did I Like It: The version of me that is five-years old—that same version of myself which steadfastly refuses to see any flaws in Batman (1989)—would probably label this movie asa my favorite movie of all time.

The version of me that had been refreshing LEGO.com every fifteen minutes over the past few days to make sure my order of the LEGO 1989 Batmobile has shipped* can also find plenty about the film to enjoy, too. It is steeped heavily in the lore (perplexing and sort of stupid though it sometimes is) of The Dark Knight. References abound, and as Warner Bros./DC keeps doing grave disservice to Barbara Gordon, Rosario Dawson’s portrayal of the character may just be the best for which we can hope for a little while. Will Arnett—extending his work from the superlative The LEGO Movie (2014)—perfectly captures every bad thing about the character I’ve spent the vast majority of my life** apologizing for. The rest of the characters get their due, which is hard to do when there are dozens of them, and double hard when more than a few live-action Batman films have fallen apart when they try to service half a dozen main characters***.

And still, there is some part of me that is unsatisfied. The LEGO Movie was such a perfect exercise in anarchy, that I can’t help but wish there was something a little more subversive at the core of this one, too. “You’re my best friend, and friends are family” is… nice, I guess? I want something darker and more serious. Kind of like Batman.

That may say more about me than it does the film.

*Update: It has.

**Side note: I don’t at all remember the first time I had heard of Batman. The summer of 1989 happened, and it was like I had always been aware of him? I even added a scene in Orson Welles of Mars where several characters realize that it is next to impossible to explain the character without a common frame of reference, aside from calling him “The Shadow, but minus guns and add pointy ears.”

***You may be thinking that I’m talking about Batman & Robin (1997), and well… I am. But I’m also throwing in any live-action bat-production since The Dark Knight (2008).