Every once in a while, a movie comes along that surprises you. This will be one of them.

Michael Cera plays Scott Pilgrim in the new movie “Scott Pilgrim VS. The World” based on the eponymous graphic novel of the same name.

At first, I was discouraged to see this film.  I knew nothing of Scott Pilgrim. I only played the game which came out the Tuesday prior to the movie release. All my nerd friends kept talking about it, but nobody I trust would say much about the movie itself. After watching it, I can understand why. A franchise such as this merits a loss for words.

I’ll admit, I’m hot and cold when it comes to Michael Cera. I don’t have a blind hatred for him like I with the Johnny Depp and Tim Burton duo of evil, but I usually wait until his movies are available to rent. This one was different, there was much peer pressure.

My main problem with Michael Cera is that he can’t act, at least not in many diverse roles. He seems to have typecasted himself. Of late, his films have been getting better. “Youth in Revolt” being an example of him branching out into different styles of acting.

This isn’t about Michael Cera. This is about Scott Pilgrim, which was the most enjoyable movie I’ve seen all summer.

At first, I was afraid it would be one of those too serious indie-hipster sorts of films. This film maintains a healthy dose of video game and TV references to keep people happy, but it also has a great deal of substance and style. It’s a happy movie about somewhat serious things.

The plot is relatively simple. Scott Pilgrim meets a girl named Ramona Flowers and starts to date her. As the movie progresses, it turns out that she has a league of evil ex-suitors that have an express desire to end Scott’s life. In the midst of all this is a nice blend of action, romantic comedy, genuine comedy, video game references, exotic hair colors, and larger than life  fight scenes. All this comes together to form a very enjoyable movie.

The most brilliant aspect of this movie is its scope. Even the premise is relatively simple, this movie goes all over the place. It reminds me of the Metal ethos. To be the biggest, baddest, and most brutal out of the whole gang. This movie is exactly like that.

Except it’s not metal, and it’s not angry. Scott Pilgrim is a happy movie, but it’s brutally epic in all sorts of ways.

Scott Pilgrim VS The World struck a nerve into the backbone of modern geek culture. It’s finally a movie about geeks that doesn’t use the tired out plot device of struggling in the face of adversity due to being a geek. It’s a movie that can hit home for a lot of people, but doesn’t necessarily need to be seen by a geek to be enjoyed.

This movie isn’t some sort of boring nerd fest. No, it’s something that nerds can appreciate. There’s much more to it that just references. If you’ve never played a video game in your life, this movie will still get your attention with the awesome music segments, and the awesome fight scenes. Sure, you might not get the Dance Dance Revolution jokes, the coins, the leveling up, or the 1-ups, but even without all that the movie stands on its feet.