Nick is listing out the 15 mainstream movies that are most exciting for
2010, and he’s asked me to do a supplemental list for the smaller
movies that should be on your radar. The problem is that 15 is such a
small number! So I’ve decided to do 30, and to split it between 15
smaller and indie American films and 15 foreign films (and yes, I’m
including British movies as foreign).
The
hardest part of this kind of a list is that I have no idea what is
actually coming; the joy of smaller and indie films is that they often
surprise you – the best movie of 2010 might be something nobody has
heard of that will debut at Cannes or Toronto. With that
caveat, I’ve done a lot of research (some of which was greatly enabled
by Garth Franklin’s monstrous Notable Films of 2010) and I think this list will be filled with movies worth paying attention to in 2010.
DOMESTIC
Scott Pilgrim vs the World
Directed by Edgar Wright
Starring Michael Cera, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Chris Evans, Brandon Routh, Jason Lee
Written by Michael Bacall & Edgar Wright
Based on the comics by Bryan Lee O’Malley
The Gist
Canadian twentysomething slacker Scott Pilgrim is dating a high school girl. But then he meets Ramona Flowers, the girl of his dreams (literally: he first meets her in his dreams) and falls in love. There’s one major roadblock, though: Scott has to fight each of her seven evil exes in order to keep dating her. Hardcore kung fu, musical numbers and endless video game references follow.
Participants to Watch
Edgar Wright defied the sophomore slump with Hot Fuzz, but will he be able to keep up the streak with Scott Pilgrim? O’Malley’s comics are silly and sweet at once, and they’re packed full of geeky references and nods. On the surface the combination of director and material seems perfect.
Michael Cera has a lot to prove. After his explosion into stardom he’s experienced a major backlash, and his name hasn’t proven to be a box office draw just yet. On top of that many fans were put off by his casting – Scott in the comics couldn’t be more different from Cera’s usual comedic persona. I was barely able to talk to Cera while on the film’s Toronto set – he’s very press shy – but it seemed like he’s interested in pushing himself. Scott Pilgrim could be a new phase for him.
Mary Elizabeth Winstead is pretty, but how is she as an actor? She’s never had a role that’s given her a chance to strut her stuff, and if the movie goes anywhere near the comic, Ramona will give her plenty of room to show what she’s made of. Winstead looks amazing as Ramona, but will she be the perfect heartbreaker?
Michael Bacall and Edgar Wright’s script is going to be interesting because it was written while Bryan Lee O’Malley was working on the (still unfinished) comic series. From talking to Wright and O’Malley it seems that there’s a place where the movie and the comic diverge; it’ll be interesting to get a look at Scott Pilgrim from Earth 2.
The Buzz
Suddenly pretty good. There’s been very little seen so far, but a great first image and some strong fan reviews out of a Las Vegas test screening has made it seem like Wright has not done wrong (sorry). I suspect that Edgar Wright has nailed this one, but only time will tell. Also getting buzzed: strong performances from the actors playing Ramona Flowers’ seven evil exes, something that is crucial to making the film work as a whole.
Best Case
Guys love the video game references and the martial arts and their girlfriends love the romance and O’Malley’s group of strong female characters. It becomes a crossover hit in a way that Wright’s previous films never quite did.
Worst Case
Universal has a track record of making really good, interesting, brave films over the last few years. They don’t have quite the same record when it comes to opening them. The hardest part of making a movie that’s totally unlike anything else out there – convincing people to come see it. Even if Scott Pilgrim is great it’s possible that people won’t figure that out until it hits home video.
CHUD’s Prognosis
You gotta have faith. I’m not going to pretend that I don’t have a dog in this fight – not only do I know both Edgar Wright and Bryan Lee O’Malley, I’m also a slobbering fanboy for their work. But I suspect that if the initial hump of this movie – selling it – can be overcome, Scott Pilgrim vs The World could be not only a tidy hit but one of those movies that captures a moment in pop cultural history.
Useful Links
Buy the books from Amazon!
FOREIGN
Best Case
It’s a classic.
Worst Case
Your taste in film is suspect.
CHUD’s Prognosis
I don’t expect a big crossover on this one, but I think it should roll far enough that people outside of New York and LA will have a chance to see it. There will likely be a remake announced soon, if there isn’t already one I missed.
Useful Links
Watch the trailer
23 comments
The last name always comes first in Korea… which you preserved with the actors names but switched up with the director. That would be Bong Joon-ho.
How is a Universal Picture starring Michael Cera a non-mainstream film?
I think "non-mainstream" here roughly equates to "anything that wasn't already on Nick's list."
Does your mom know about Michael Cera movies? How many Michael Cera movies have been hits? Is SCOTT PILGRIM a well-known property? Is it a huge budget blockbuster? Just because you, a film nerd, are aware of it doesn't mean 90% of the population has a clue. It may end up being mainstream, but right now the fact that it ISN'T mainstream is the hurdle Universal marketing must overcome.
Because it's, like, based on a comic. And that's really rare and obscure these days.
Everyone's mother knows about Michael Cera movies. Youth in Revolt and Year One both had the hell marketed out of them during prime time television, both cable and broadcast. If a film's primary release schedule is wide release, it shouldn't be on this list.
Wait, so $100 million dollar comic book adaptations aren't mainstream?
Three Oranges, by your definition (except for the release pattern) CRAZY HEART is a mainstream film. It has Jeff Bridges and Colin Farrel, and it comes from a branch of Fox. The fact that they opted to release it platform is the only thing, according to you, that separates it from A-TEAM or TRANSFORMERS.
Nit picking over what should be on the list aside… The source material for this is reallllly over hyped. I like Edgar Wright a lot but I don't get the love for the comics. They don't speak to me on any sort of emotional level about love or heartbreak. Then it has that retarded manga/anime-esque random crap. You got my cash Bryan Lee O'Malley but those books are turds.
You would change the wording of "The Gist" for "Mother" slightly had you seen it. I can't get any more specific than that without spoilers!
The argument that Scott Pilgrim is not mainstream is interesting, but I think this movie is gonna make money hand over fist. Iron Man wasn't a household name, but a great trailer goes a long way. They just need to sell the action, sell the comedy, and sell the romance. . . kinda seems like it has something for everyone.
Devin: So, they're the same except for the thing that makes them different? The only place I ever saw Crazy Heart advertised before its success was at my local theater, until it crossed over into the mainstream. But no studio is going to release something wide if they do not imagine it to be mainstream … and if a soulless exec imagines it to be mainstream, it is.
Scott Pilgrim will play as a teen/college age kid's movie. I highly doubt a dude having to fight the evil ex-boyfriends of his girlfriend will attract much of a crowd outside of that demographic. It'll be a hit if that age group sees it multiple times. Mother is already on the remake train, so a cinema release is just for the purists, of which there are few these days.
"the idea that there's a new Bong should be exciting enough."
—–HA!
Jeebus I don't know how some Devin and Nick stomach some of you idiots.
#2 – Wow, just because it's universal and Cera, who by no means is a household name doesn't mean its not obscure.
#5 – I've asked the twenty two people I work with and NONE of them had heard of the comic and 17 of them had never heard of Cera. And guess what #6? 15 of them were mothers. You must sit around all day in your mom's basement trolling sites to nitpick on whatever you can. Morons.
#7 –
Avatar had an unknown lead and it wasn't based on a well-known or pre-existing property. But that sure as hell was mainstream. Also, you know Universal will saturate the airwaves with commercials for this trying to seize on that late summer Pineapple Express/Superbad slot. Any movie with a major studio's marketing muscle behind it is mainstream. Shit, even Paranormal Activity is a mainstream movie. And as for all those folks who haven't heard of Michael Cera? I'm sure if you said "the skinny kid from Superbad, not the one with the glasses" or "that skinny kid with Jack Black in that stupid caveman movie," people would know who you're talking about.
First of all, Paranormal Activity became a mainstream movie…. 6 months out no one would have said that.
In response to your Avatar comparison, "From the director of Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz" doesn't have quite the same ring as "From the director of Terminator, Aliens, Terminator II, and Titanic".
I just watched Mother last week. It's a quirky little film that's beautifully shot and has some fucken solid performances.
I'm super excited for Scott Pilgrim. Edgar Wright has been doing amazing work since Spaced both behind the camera and in post production. The layers upon layers of detail, sounds, and things you catch the second, third, fourth time through make his work really valuable. And he has an amazing sense of timing and finding the right way to frame a sequence both visually and emotionally to make it really work. Although it will be interesting to see how he does without Mr. Pegg and Mr. Frost. It will also be interesting to see how wide they go with this. Hot Fuzz only released on about 1300 screens. Lets hope it goes nuts and everybody sees it, everybody desperately searches for Hot Fuzz and Shaun and Spaced DVDs. And then they really go nuts and watch Green Wing and realize how good the Brits are at making sitcoms (if the office didn't already do that).
I don't see the appeal of the Pilgrim movie, the comics must be amazing. Because a slacker loser battling 7 (?) superhero ex-boyfriends seems so incredibly insipid and pointless. This film is going to need a great trailer to generate interest from anyone who doesn't stay home on Friday's nights to watch a TV show written by Josh Whedon.
God Dammit.
Hahaha. I love that the worst case scenario is that not a lot of people will see how great it is. How about the worst case scenario is that it's a shitty movie?
Scott Pilgrim: Best Case scenario is it’s awesome. Worst case is it’s awesome, but nobody sees it. The objective flow of news continues. But fuck it, Wright’s last two efforts were solid, so I’ll give this a shot. And Drkarns, next time you decide to quiz all of your co-workers on Scott Pilgrim and Michael Cera, could you not do it during lunch hour? One of your co-workers burnt my fries, another gave me Diet Coke when I asked for Sprite. Mainly because you were distracting them with pointless questions. You also forgot the toy for my son’s happy meal, and he cried all the way home causing me to almost crash my car. Prick.
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