I've read part of Vol. 1 through various postings of page scans, and it's pretty fucking cool. I mean, I would die laughing if I was in someone's apartment and their drummer shouts out "WE ARE SEX BOB-OMB!!!" then starts playing epic rock.
Which is odd, since that was precisely the point that I actually closed the book and decided to not read any more of the series. I really wish I knew what irked me so badly about Scott Pilgrim - I actively disliked the central cast (but enjoy many other series with deliberately unlikeable protagonists), and I found it all a bit twee and forced-whimsy, but that still doesn't explain the gulf between my opinion and popular understanding. Normally if I dislike something I can at least see the attraction it might have for others, so I'd really be interested in seeing the appeal for other people.
It might be that you felt kind of aggressively pandered to? While I enjoyed the book, it was a constant see-saw between the charm and verve that the author brought to the characters versus the really wearisome, in-your-face name dropping as he constantly tried to convince you the reader how cool he was. I also find myself increasingly allergic to that whole breed of skinny-jeans and distressed-pop-culture-T-shirt hipster lifestyle.
I've read part of Vol. 1 through various postings of page scans, and it's pretty fucking cool. I mean, I would die laughing if I was in someone's apartment and their drummer shouts out "WE ARE SEX BOB-OMB!!!" then starts playing epic rock.
Which is odd, since that was precisely the point that I actually closed the book and decided to not read any more of the series. I really wish I knew what irked me so badly about Scott Pilgrim - I actively disliked the central cast (but enjoy many other series with deliberately unlikeable protagonists), and I found it all a bit twee and forced-whimsy, but that still doesn't explain the gulf between my opinion and popular understanding. Normally if I dislike something I can at least see the attraction it might have for others, so I'd really be interested in seeing the appeal for other people.
It might be that you felt kind of aggressively pandered to? While I enjoyed the book, it was a constant see-saw between the charm and verve that the author brought to the characters versus the really wearisome, in-your-face name dropping as he constantly tried to convince you the reader how cool he was. I also find myself increasingly allergic to that whole breed of skinny-jeans and distressed-pop-culture-T-shirt hipster lifestyle.
You thought Brian Lee O'Malley was trying to show you how cool he was?
Maybe I'm getting too old but I'm kind of over the whole "finding a doe-eyed hipster chick to solve all of my problems" thing. The visual style looks cool as all get out, though.
Also, Edgar Wright has not done a bad TV show/movie yet, so I'm down.
This movie looks aimed at the teenager crowd, which bothers me because I was pretty sure it was gonna unveil in the last book that Ramona was
A Prostitute.
DUN DUN DUUUUUUN!
I really, really hope not. That would be a cop-out and a metaphorical anti-climax. Gideon should be like every other ex-boyfriend in Scott Pilgrim -- a symbol for a type of baggage that comes with most adult relationships. If his shtick is "I gots blackmail on Ramona and that's my power over her" then that would suck.
Has anyone looked at the cover for Volume 6? All of Scott's ex-girlfriends are on it. I'll be interested to see how they play into the climax...
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JacobkoshGamble a stamp.I can show you how to be a real man!Moderatormod
You thought Brian Lee O'Malley was trying to show you how cool he was?
I think he was trying to show me how cool that whole milieu was. The whole thing felt immensely self-satisfied even as he made gestures towards trying to make these characters flawed or even (in Scott's case) possibly outright reprehensible people.
You thought Brian Lee O'Malley was trying to show you how cool he was?
I think he was trying to show me how cool that whole milieu was. The whole thing felt immensely self-satisfied even as he made gestures towards trying to make these characters flawed or even (in Scott's case) possibly outright reprehensible people.
I didn't get that when I read it...but I can understand how someone would get that feeling.
"omg look at me I played video games look at what I can reference!"
I don't think that's the correct read, but I understand how someone could read it that way.
Maybe I'm getting too old but I'm kind of over the whole "finding a doe-eyed hipster chick to solve all of my problems" thing.
It's a good thing they aren't about this then.
So it's nothing like the trailer?
... I guess it's not like your interpretation, no?
That opening bit was a selection of moments designed to make you think it was standard indie romance, and then there's more fighting and dealing with baggage than there is quirky help from quirky girl.
You thought Brian Lee O'Malley was trying to show you how cool he was?
I think he was trying to show me how cool that whole milieu was. The whole thing felt immensely self-satisfied even as he made gestures towards trying to make these characters flawed or even (in Scott's case) possibly outright reprehensible people.
I didn't get that when I read it...but I can understand how someone would get that feeling.
"omg look at me I played video games look at what I can reference!"
I don't think that's the correct read, but I understand how someone could read it that way.
I guess the best term I can think of to describe it is lifestyle porn.
I think that as an author he realizes that characters should be multi-layered and they should confront both external problems and their own foibles. But this impulse is at odds with the way he's clearly enamored of the sort of life these people lead; the music, the clothes, et cetera.
It's like how Dallas was supposed to be a critique of ruthless, rich, power-crazy people but the audience watched it for the fancy cars and clothes.
You thought Brian Lee O'Malley was trying to show you how cool he was?
I think he was trying to show me how cool that whole milieu was. The whole thing felt immensely self-satisfied even as he made gestures towards trying to make these characters flawed or even (in Scott's case) possibly outright reprehensible people.
I didn't get that when I read it...but I can understand how someone would get that feeling.
"omg look at me I played video games look at what I can reference!"
I don't think that's the correct read, but I understand how someone could read it that way.
I guess the best term I can think of to describe it is lifestyle porn.
I think that as an author he realizes that characters should be multi-layered and they should confront both external problems and their own foibles. But this impulse is at odds with the way he's clearly enamored of the sort of life these people lead; the music, the clothes, et cetera.
It's like how Dallas was supposed to be a critique of ruthless, rich, power-crazy people but the audience watched it for the fancy cars and clothes.
I didn't think of it as so much a critique or endorsement of a lifestyle but rather a holistic articulation of a marketable premise for a series.
I think the world and the character accomodate, say, Scott defeating an ex, the ex exploding into coins, and then dropping an item.
So it's not O'Malley saying that this lifestyle is awesome, because the lifestyle is there to support the comic / game / anime aspects of the narrative. The music, clothes, et cetera support the wacky stuff which happens in the series.
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Johnny ChopsockyScootaloo! We have to cook!Grillin' HaysenburgersRegistered Userregular
edited March 2010
I watched this trailer yesterday. Dug it. Today, I get an email from Borders with a 40% off coupon. While looking through the Borders site, I see a bundle containing the first three volumes of Scott Pilgrim for $30.
I think the universe is trying to tell me something...
Anyways, the movie looks exactly like it should: awesome. Still unsure of Michael Cera, as it seems everyone else is, but considering the rest of the movie looks like it should, I'm not going to complain.
I watched this trailer yesterday. Dug it. Today, I get an email from Borders with a 40% off coupon. While looking through the Borders site, I see a bundle containing the first three volumes of Scott Pilgrim for $30.
I think the universe is trying to tell me something...
I Borders and their coupons. Back in January they would e-mail out a 30%/33% off coupon like every weekend, so I'd pick up one volume of Scott Pilgrim a week.
And they also had the fucking Mega Man art books. Score.
This movie looks aimed at the teenager crowd, which bothers me because I was pretty sure it was gonna unveil in the last book that Ramona was
A Prostitute.
DUN DUN DUUUUUUN!
To be fair I think they've already said the movie ending and book ending aren't necessarily going to be the same.
yea, this confuses me. I understand, not exactly the same, but I heard the movie contains nothing from the last book. Did o'malley just have no idea how the series would end? Did he just let edgar wright finish it?
The movie was being made as the last book was being written, so they'd have to rewrite the last part of the movie if they wanted it to be the same.
This movie looks aimed at the teenager crowd, which bothers me because I was pretty sure it was gonna unveil in the last book that Ramona was
A Prostitute.
DUN DUN DUUUUUUN!
To be fair I think they've already said the movie ending and book ending aren't necessarily going to be the same.
yea, this confuses me. I understand, not exactly the same, but I heard the movie contains nothing from the last book. Did o'malley just have no idea how the series would end? Did he just let edgar wright finish it?
The movie was being made as the last book was being written, so they'd have to rewrite the last part of the movie if they wanted it to be the same.
My point was that while he may not have written the exact dialouge, it would seem odd to not have already planned how your story was going to end when you're already 5/6 of the way through writing it.
So, while I'm normally against prejudging anything I can already tell Cera is going to lessen the experience for me. It's not just how he looks or his facial expressions, oh no it's his voice and intonation. Cera is composed of equal parts self-doubt and hesitation, both of which are almost unknown to Scott. Scott is more absentminded and self absorbed, but kind hearted.....sometimes you know.....Seriously come on Scott....COME ON!
More importantly I really hope the actress for Kim is awesome because you know. (Warning serious H-Scroll vs. Your Monitor)
Oh god I'm not the only person who can't stand Michael Cera. Trailer did look awesome.. except for Michael Cera.
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HenroidMexican kicked from Immigration ThreadCentrism is Racism :3Registered Userregular
edited March 2010
Michael Cera, to me, is type-cast.
Except for Scott Pilgrim. His casting for it is a little weird but I'll see what he can do with it. My only gripe so far is that I never imagined Scott having the sort of voice or speaking manner that Cera does.
I agree, but I'm merely judging by what I saw in the trailer and there his lack of confidence and awkwardness were writ large. I know we are getting him because the movie "needs" a recognizable name attached to it for success so says the studio. I just disagree.
So, while I'm normally against prejudging anything I can already tell Cera is going to lessen the experience for me. It's not just how he looks or his facial expressions, oh no it's his voice and intonation. Cera is composed of equal parts self-doubt and hesitation, both of which are almost unknown to Scott. Scott is more absentminded and self absorbed, but kind hearted.....sometimes you know.....Seriously come on Scott....COME ON!
I don't know where you're getting your interpretation of Scott, he is full of self-doubt and hesitation. IMO, all of his dreams betray inferiority and attachment issues, and he basically turns his life into a video game in order to get through it. FFS, he flips a shit and gets all self-conscious when Ramona jokingly tells him to get a hair-cut. The defining moment of Volume 4 is when he FINALLY gets his shit together, fully commits to his relationship, and begins to move his life forward from his post-Envy slump.
To me, Scott is a kind-hearted person who avoids confronting his problems and hides behind his own obliviousness and a facade of self-confidence. Yeah, he'll tell anyone who'll listen to him how awesome he is at video games and playing the bass and being a cool dude, and he'll leap head first into some situations (generally the ones he doesn't fully understand) but when it comes to the stuff that matters -- relationships, jobs, his future -- he's got crippling self-confidence issues.
I think Cera can pull off a character that puts on an air of brazen self-confidence in order to cover for his more deeply-rooted feelings of inferiority and powerlessness.
so wait, if I'm understanding right, there's only going to be the one Scott Pilgrim film? They're not doing it like a multi-part thing?
Yeah, just the one. They're cutting out some sub-plots, like Lisa and Knives's dad, in order to make the whole story fit. Apparently they also cut the Honest Ed's scene, which is a damn shame because it is one of my favorites in the whole series.
Think they're reworking a few elements here and there too. For example, Lucas Lee's fight is more fleshed out, the twins are now a J-Pop rock duo or something, and the finale will be totally different than what we will see in the comics.
I don't know where you're getting your interpretation of Scott, he is full of self-doubt and hesitation. IMO, all of his dreams betray inferiority and attachment issues, and he basically turns his life into a video game in order to get through it. FFS, he flips a shit and gets all self-conscious when Ramona jokingly tells him to get a hair-cut. The defining moment of Volume 4 is when he FINALLY gets his shit together, fully commits to his relationship, and begins to move his life forward from his post-Envy slump.
To me, Scott is a kind-hearted person who avoids confronting his problems and hides behind his own obliviousness and a facade of self-confidence. Yeah, he'll tell anyone who'll listen to him how awesome he is at video games and playing the bass and being a cool dude, and he'll leap head first into some situations (generally the ones he doesn't fully understand) but when it comes to the stuff that matters -- relationships, jobs, his future -- he's got crippling self-confidence issues.
I think Cera can pull off a character that puts on an air of brazen self-confidence in order to cover for his more deeply-rooted feelings of inferiority and powerlessness.
I partly agree with your analysis. First of all it seems pretty clear that Scott doesn't imagine he is playing a game at all. His world just works that way, which can be deduced from all the other characters explicitly mentioning the mechanics as if they are normal.
As for Scott's internal character I agree that he has been handed a life altering defeat and even years later is reeling from it, but the flashbacks to college seem to indicate that he is not defined by self-questioning. Further his characterization is filled with such pluck and joi de vivre that it seems to read his self-doubt takes the kind of nuance only those closest to him would have. In short he has some soft spots that betray his confidence, but otherwise is good at covering his apprehension about his life. Not Walt from Breaking Bad good mind you but work ably competent. I think the two pages where Kim helps him get a job at the restaurant where Steven works in volume four is very good summation of how his doubt projects itself which is not to say constantly.
Now go watch the trailer in each moment in which we observe Cera speak, save for his in battle quotes, he projects an overwhelming sense of self-doubt. All of it from the simple Hi to correcting his sisters estimation of Romona's Evil Exe's numbers.
So yes Scott is in a state of doubt based transition, but he mostly hides it from even himself behind a veneer of AWESOME and Cera in the short bit that we have to judge doesn't. Which to be honest isn't even vaguely fair, but its the best I can do till the movie is out to judge in its entirety.
Oh man. Why don't I own that Kim Pine comic? Where can I get it?
It exists merely as a point of whimsy on the inter-webz and I believe the Scott Pilgrim comic site has it in the extras. As for print sadly believe that it was never published.
Now go watch the trailer in each moment in which we observe Cera speak, save for his in battle quotes, he projects an overwhelming sense of self-doubt. All of it from the simple Hi to correcting his sisters estimation of Romona's Evil Exe's numbers.
So yes Scott is in a state of doubt based transition, but he mostly hides it from even himself behind a veneer of AWESOME and Cera in the short bit that we have to judge doesn't. Which to be honest isn't even vaguely fair, but its the best I can do till the movie is out to judge in its entirety.
Eh, I'm no fan of Cera's but I think this is being unfair.
The moment he first speaks to Ramona isn't full of self-doubt; it's just awkward. Which is pretty true to the series, because Scott is totally awkward around girls, in an endearing way -- Ramona calls attention to that pretty frequently. He stalks her for like an hour before even talking to her, remember? (The only time he's NOT completely awkward is in the flashback with Kim, and that's pretty dubious as far as narrative reliability goes.)
On the bus he seems less self-doubting and more confused. Which is fine, I think... confusion is pretty appropriate to that scene. (It occurs right after the surprise appearance and fight with Patel, IIRC.) I'll agree that the scene with Stacey Pilgrim makes him look pretty uncertain, but that's allowed -- especially for the expediency of the quick one-liner that these trailers require.
Honestly, the dramatic spin and "I will take them apart" line is enough to convince me that Cera (and Wright) is at least semi-capable of getting across the confidence of the character. Until I see more than a half dozen spoken lines, I'm willing to remain cautiously optimistic about the actors.
edit: I mean seriously, try to remember that this is a trailer tailored for general audiences. They cherry-picked scenes and quotes to convey ROMANCE > SURPRISE ACTION TWIST > CONFUSION > MORE ACTION > WTF DID I GET MYSELF INTO? Pretty standard formula. It's not really a good idea to try to make serious character readings into an action-highlight trailer with lots of scenes taken out of context.
Eh, I'm no fan of Cera's but I think this is being unfair.
The moment he first speaks to Ramona isn't full of self-doubt; it's just awkward. Which is pretty true to the series, because Scott is totally awkward around girls, in an endearing way -- Ramona calls attention to that pretty frequently. He stalks her for like an hour before even talking to her, remember? (The only time he's NOT completely awkward is in the flashback with Kim, and that's pretty dubious as far as narrative reliability goes.)
On the bus he seems less self-doubting and more confused. Which is fine, I think... confusion is pretty appropriate to that scene. (It occurs right after the surprise appearance and fight with Patel, IIRC.) I'll agree that the scene with Stacey Pilgrim makes him look pretty uncertain, but that's allowed -- especially for the expediency of the quick one-liner that these trailers require.
Honestly, the dramatic spin and "I will take them apart" line is enough to convince me that Cera (and Wright) is at least semi-capable of getting across the confidence of the character. Until I see more than a half dozen spoken lines, I'm willing to remain cautiously optimistic about the actors.
edit: I mean seriously, try to remember that this is a trailer tailored for general audiences. They cherry-picked scenes and quotes to convey ROMANCE > SURPRISE ACTION TWIST > CONFUSION > MORE ACTION > WTF DID I GET MYSELF INTO? Pretty standard formula. It's not really a good idea to try to make serious character readings into an action-highlight trailer with lots of scenes taken out of context.
I agree I am happy to give Wright all the rope he needs to do things his way. Cera not so much, which I already mentioned was unfair.
That said Scott didn't stalk Romona at all. First he saw her in his dream, then at the library, and then when he was at a party that Steven dragged him to he asked the real star of the series Comeau if Romona was there went right up to her and introduced himself. His posture screamed confidence Romona made it awkward by trying to blow him off and Scott not budging.
Scott in general isn't awkward around girls save Romona partly because she engineers it to protect herself and partly because he is just that into her. I mean look how he is around Lisa and college Envy.
As for never trust the trailer bit, I totally am in agreement. That said I doubt a non trailer experience are going to change Cera's body language, intonation, and tonality.
Dude, the book literally says "AND THEN HE STALKED HER UNTIL SHE LEFT THE PARTY." I mixed up my timeline... he did that after talking to her, but he still stalks her. He also orders stuff from amazon.ca just so that he might run into her, which is awkward and weird in an endearing sort of way.
And WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT Scott is so incredibly awkward around girls. See: every scene with Knives ever (especially the dump), every scene with Lisa ever (especially the crashing at her place), confessing his love to Envy in college and talking to her on the phone, many scenes with Ramona
so wait, if I'm understanding right, there's only going to be the one Scott Pilgrim film? They're not doing it like a multi-part thing?
Yeah, just the one. They're cutting out some sub-plots, like Lisa and Knives's dad, in order to make the whole story fit. Apparently they also cut the Honest Ed's scene, which is a damn shame because it is one of my favorites in the whole series.
Think they're reworking a few elements here and there too. For example, Lucas Lee's fight is more fleshed out, the twins are now a J-Pop rock duo or something, and the finale will be totally different than what we will see in the comics.
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Kevin Smith's Review has been added to the OP.
It might be that you felt kind of aggressively pandered to? While I enjoyed the book, it was a constant see-saw between the charm and verve that the author brought to the characters versus the really wearisome, in-your-face name dropping as he constantly tried to convince you the reader how cool he was. I also find myself increasingly allergic to that whole breed of skinny-jeans and distressed-pop-culture-T-shirt hipster lifestyle.
You thought Brian Lee O'Malley was trying to show you how cool he was?
Also, Edgar Wright has not done a bad TV show/movie yet, so I'm down.
I really, really hope not. That would be a cop-out and a metaphorical anti-climax. Gideon should be like every other ex-boyfriend in Scott Pilgrim -- a symbol for a type of baggage that comes with most adult relationships. If his shtick is "I gots blackmail on Ramona and that's my power over her" then that would suck.
Has anyone looked at the cover for Volume 6? All of Scott's ex-girlfriends are on it. I'll be interested to see how they play into the climax...
I think he was trying to show me how cool that whole milieu was. The whole thing felt immensely self-satisfied even as he made gestures towards trying to make these characters flawed or even (in Scott's case) possibly outright reprehensible people.
It's a good thing they aren't about this then.
I didn't get that when I read it...but I can understand how someone would get that feeling.
"omg look at me I played video games look at what I can reference!"
I don't think that's the correct read, but I understand how someone could read it that way.
So it's nothing like the trailer?
despite it being michael cera, his character doesn't have a problem getting girls. He gets plenty of girls.
... I guess it's not like your interpretation, no?
That opening bit was a selection of moments designed to make you think it was standard indie romance, and then there's more fighting and dealing with baggage than there is quirky help from quirky girl.
Wasn't he dating a high school girl?
I guess the best term I can think of to describe it is lifestyle porn.
I think that as an author he realizes that characters should be multi-layered and they should confront both external problems and their own foibles. But this impulse is at odds with the way he's clearly enamored of the sort of life these people lead; the music, the clothes, et cetera.
It's like how Dallas was supposed to be a critique of ruthless, rich, power-crazy people but the audience watched it for the fancy cars and clothes.
he also
I didn't think of it as so much a critique or endorsement of a lifestyle but rather a holistic articulation of a marketable premise for a series.
I think the world and the character accomodate, say, Scott defeating an ex, the ex exploding into coins, and then dropping an item.
So it's not O'Malley saying that this lifestyle is awesome, because the lifestyle is there to support the comic / game / anime aspects of the narrative. The music, clothes, et cetera support the wacky stuff which happens in the series.
I think the universe is trying to tell me something...
Steam ID XBL: JohnnyChopsocky PSN:Stud_Beefpile WiiU:JohnnyChopsocky
Not until Volume 5!
Anyways, the movie looks exactly like it should: awesome. Still unsure of Michael Cera, as it seems everyone else is, but considering the rest of the movie looks like it should, I'm not going to complain.
I
And they also had the fucking Mega Man art books. Score.
Switch: 6200-8149-0919 / Wii U: maximumzero / 3DS: 0860-3352-3335 / eBay Shop
The movie was being made as the last book was being written, so they'd have to rewrite the last part of the movie if they wanted it to be the same.
My point was that while he may not have written the exact dialouge, it would seem odd to not have already planned how your story was going to end when you're already 5/6 of the way through writing it.
More importantly I really hope the actress for Kim is awesome because you know. (Warning serious H-Scroll vs. Your Monitor)
Except for Scott Pilgrim. His casting for it is a little weird but I'll see what he can do with it. My only gripe so far is that I never imagined Scott having the sort of voice or speaking manner that Cera does.
Maybe this will be the movie that redeems Cera in our eyes?
I don't know where you're getting your interpretation of Scott, he is full of self-doubt and hesitation. IMO, all of his dreams betray inferiority and attachment issues, and he basically turns his life into a video game in order to get through it. FFS, he flips a shit and gets all self-conscious when Ramona jokingly tells him to get a hair-cut. The defining moment of Volume 4 is when he FINALLY gets his shit together, fully commits to his relationship, and begins to move his life forward from his post-Envy slump.
To me, Scott is a kind-hearted person who avoids confronting his problems and hides behind his own obliviousness and a facade of self-confidence. Yeah, he'll tell anyone who'll listen to him how awesome he is at video games and playing the bass and being a cool dude, and he'll leap head first into some situations (generally the ones he doesn't fully understand) but when it comes to the stuff that matters -- relationships, jobs, his future -- he's got crippling self-confidence issues.
I think Cera can pull off a character that puts on an air of brazen self-confidence in order to cover for his more deeply-rooted feelings of inferiority and powerlessness.
Yeah, just the one. They're cutting out some sub-plots, like Lisa and Knives's dad, in order to make the whole story fit. Apparently they also cut the Honest Ed's scene, which is a damn shame because it is one of my favorites in the whole series.
Think they're reworking a few elements here and there too. For example, Lucas Lee's fight is more fleshed out, the twins are now a J-Pop rock duo or something, and the finale will be totally different than what we will see in the comics.
This makes me sad. Lisa is the best.
As for Scott's internal character I agree that he has been handed a life altering defeat and even years later is reeling from it, but the flashbacks to college seem to indicate that he is not defined by self-questioning. Further his characterization is filled with such pluck and joi de vivre that it seems to read his self-doubt takes the kind of nuance only those closest to him would have. In short he has some soft spots that betray his confidence, but otherwise is good at covering his apprehension about his life. Not Walt from Breaking Bad good mind you but work ably competent. I think the two pages where Kim helps him get a job at the restaurant where Steven works in volume four is very good summation of how his doubt projects itself which is not to say constantly.
Now go watch the trailer in each moment in which we observe Cera speak, save for his in battle quotes, he projects an overwhelming sense of self-doubt. All of it from the simple Hi to correcting his sisters estimation of Romona's Evil Exe's numbers.
So yes Scott is in a state of doubt based transition, but he mostly hides it from even himself behind a veneer of AWESOME and Cera in the short bit that we have to judge doesn't. Which to be honest isn't even vaguely fair, but its the best I can do till the movie is out to judge in its entirety.
Eh, I'm no fan of Cera's but I think this is being unfair.
The moment he first speaks to Ramona isn't full of self-doubt; it's just awkward. Which is pretty true to the series, because Scott is totally awkward around girls, in an endearing way -- Ramona calls attention to that pretty frequently. He stalks her for like an hour before even talking to her, remember? (The only time he's NOT completely awkward is in the flashback with Kim, and that's pretty dubious as far as narrative reliability goes.)
On the bus he seems less self-doubting and more confused. Which is fine, I think... confusion is pretty appropriate to that scene. (It occurs right after the surprise appearance and fight with Patel, IIRC.) I'll agree that the scene with Stacey Pilgrim makes him look pretty uncertain, but that's allowed -- especially for the expediency of the quick one-liner that these trailers require.
Honestly, the dramatic spin and "I will take them apart" line is enough to convince me that Cera (and Wright) is at least semi-capable of getting across the confidence of the character. Until I see more than a half dozen spoken lines, I'm willing to remain cautiously optimistic about the actors.
edit: I mean seriously, try to remember that this is a trailer tailored for general audiences. They cherry-picked scenes and quotes to convey ROMANCE > SURPRISE ACTION TWIST > CONFUSION > MORE ACTION > WTF DID I GET MYSELF INTO? Pretty standard formula. It's not really a good idea to try to make serious character readings into an action-highlight trailer with lots of scenes taken out of context.
I agree I am happy to give Wright all the rope he needs to do things his way. Cera not so much, which I already mentioned was unfair.
That said Scott didn't stalk Romona at all. First he saw her in his dream, then at the library, and then when he was at a party that Steven dragged him to he asked the real star of the series Comeau if Romona was there went right up to her and introduced himself. His posture screamed confidence Romona made it awkward by trying to blow him off and Scott not budging.
Scott in general isn't awkward around girls save Romona partly because she engineers it to protect herself and partly because he is just that into her. I mean look how he is around Lisa and college Envy.
As for never trust the trailer bit, I totally am in agreement. That said I doubt a non trailer experience are going to change Cera's body language, intonation, and tonality.
Dude, the book literally says "AND THEN HE STALKED HER UNTIL SHE LEFT THE PARTY." I mixed up my timeline... he did that after talking to her, but he still stalks her. He also orders stuff from amazon.ca just so that he might run into her, which is awkward and weird in an endearing sort of way.
And WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT Scott is so incredibly awkward around girls. See: every scene with Knives ever (especially the dump), every scene with Lisa ever (especially the crashing at her place), confessing his love to Envy in college and talking to her on the phone, many scenes with Ramona
I thought they were doing two movies.
Apparently my source on that was incorrect.