Scott Pilgrim vs. The World Blu-Ray Review

It would be hard for Scott Pilgrim vs. The World to turn out dull. With Edgar Wright behind the camera, the man who brought us Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz, expectations were certainly high for the film.

Based on the graphic novel of the same name (which many claimed was unfilmable source material), the film stars current Hollywood obsession, Michael Cera (Superbad, Juno) as well as some other up and coming actors and actresses like Chris Evans, Anna Kendrick, Jason Schwartzman and Kieran Culkin.

The hype leading up to the film’s release has been abundant. Everyone seems to be talking about it, including people in the industry. Famed director Kevin Smith was quoted as saying:

“It’s spellbinding and nobody is going to understand what the fuck just hit them. I would be hard pressed to say, ‘he’s bringing a comic book to life!’ but he is bringing a comic book to life.”

There has been buzz surrounding the film for a while now and Edgar Wright certainly has some big expectations to live up to. Being one of the last blockbusters of the summer, there is a lot riding on Scott Pilgrim vs. The World.

Now that we’ve seen it, we’re here to tell you if it deserves all the hype it’s receiving. Is Scott Pilgrim vs. The World really the be all and end all or is it just another Snakes on a Plane? (a film once heavily surrounded with hype but ultimately a film that was soon forgotten after its release).

Read the rest of the theatrical review here.

This is a film that needs high quality video and audio. Both the visual and audio effects really play a big part in the film and without them, the film would surely have turned out differently. Luckily, Universal realized this and they put together quite a nice Blu-Ray for the film.

There are a ton of sound effects here and they bounce around your speaker system to create an aurally immersive environment. The music is handled tremendously well and brings with it a great clarity. The sound editing that was so impressive in theatres shines through here equally as well. The flawless sound design is very impressive and this is a movie that really benefits from being played on a nice surround sound system.

While there are a whole slew of audio effects here, there are just as many visual effects. CGI, split screens, quick edits, sounds that come complete with their own illustrative words, text effects and more than enough flashy lights all help to stimulate your eyes. Luckily, it all looks good on the Blu-Ray.

Contrast is great and the vibrant color palette looks superb. The film uses color very deliberately in some scenes and it really shows. Detail is also well done, especially in facial expressions. This is a film that looks absolutely flawless in terms of video.

The Blu-Ray keeps on giving when it comes to special features. Here’s what you get:

• Four Commentaries are included: 1)Wright, co-writer Michael Bacall and original graphic novel author Bryan Lee O’Malley; 2) Technical Commentary with Wright and DP Bill Pope; 3) Cast commentary with Cera, Schwartzman, Winstead, Wong and Routh; 4) Cast commentary with Kendrick, Plaza, Culkin and Webber.
• 21 Deleted Scenes (HD; 27:12), several of which are actually alternate/extended scenes, all with optional Wright commentary. <.li>Scott Pilgrim vs. the Bloopers (SD; 9:42) a pretty funny collection of screwups and gags.
• Documentaries, including: The Making of ‘Scott Pilgrim vs. the World’ (HD; 49:33), Music Featurette (SD; 16:27), and You Too Can Be a Sex Bob-omb (SD; 2:42).
• Alternate Footage
• Pre-Production (SD; 1:27:32 a collection of short featurettes)
• Music Promos
• Visual Effects includes Visual Effects Before and After (SD; 14:37), Roxy Fight Ribbon Version (SD: 1:11); and Phantom Montage Hi-Speed Footage(SD; 3:47).
• Soundworks Collection: Sound for Film Profile (SD; 5:43)
• Adult Swim: Scott Pilgrim vs. The Animation (SD; 3:48)
• Scott Pilgrim vs. the Censors (SD; 4:11)
• Blogs (SD; 45:46)
• Galleries
• Trivia Track
• U Control

It’s an exhaustive list but it does offer a lot of interesting features. Of course you have your usual throwaway features, but most the stuff it isn’t bad. The making of documentary is fairly standard and nothing above average but still worth a look. Out of the four commentaries, the cast ones were the most enjoyable but serious fans of the film may want to give all 4 a spin.

The pre-production featurettes include a couple interesting behind the scenes look and the Soundworks feature is a nice, yet brief look at the sound editing. We do get a lot and while it’s all pretty decent, nothing is really stand out. Nevertheless, there is a hefty amount of bonus features and it should be enough to keep fans of the film happy.

Overall, Universal has put together a nice package here for Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. It’s a great film and it looks superb on Blu-Ray. It’s a film that is certainly good for more than one viewing and the special features will take up a good chunk of your time. Go out and pick up this disc, it’s one purchase you won’t regret.