"Scott Pilgrim vs. the World"

"That was one of the strangest movie experiences I've ever had," was what Lynda said as the credits were rolling Saturday night and we finished watching Edgar Wright's new film Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.

And it wasn't really about the movie--though it was strange . . . fabulously, creatively strange.

No, the really odd things that were going on were in the theater itself, in front of the movie screen.

1. First, we were the only two in the theater (at least until the previews were just about to begin). And I was not entirely surprised that we walked into a vacant theater. After all, though "Pilgrim" has gotten generally strong critical reviews, the box office has been disappointing--at least on Summer standards. Plus, the movie has been out for about two months, so most people are done seeing it. But eventually more people did arrive, robbing Lynda and I of our date-night, movie-watching privacy.

2. The people who came in first were kind of loud, boisterous dudes. They sat behind us at the top of the theater's incline. And we feared they would disrupt the movie. Nothing of the kind, though. They were suitably quiet. Far quieter than . . .

3. The people down at the bottom of the theater's slope who brought their fussy baby (?!) with them. Or . . .

4. The other family that included two pre-K kids.  It was just odd.

5. And that doesn't even begin to explain the other two who were quiet . . . but just happened to be wearing head gear that seemed to have horns sticking out from the sides. (Was the Loyal Order of Water Buffaloes in town or something?)

But ANYWAY . . .

the movie was excellent. My 140 character review, I think summed up the movie's strongest visual & story components.

And though I am not a Michael Cera apologist, I liked his character quite a bit. Plus, as a fan of (Nickelodeon's) Avatar: The Last Airbender and Arrested Development, I enjoyed seeing Mae Whitman (voice of Katara & persona of Anne Veal). I also thought Brandon Routh's evil ex character was the funniest of them all. But perhaps that is because they played off of his Superman credentials?

I have not yet read the graphic novels, but I will get around to doing so as soon as I can.

Go see it and put some money toward good, creative, movie-making.