‘PITCH PERFECT’: HILARIOUS COMEDY ABOUT FRIENDSHIP CONNECTED BY MUSIC

by 

Until a friend made mention of seeing this flick, I never had much interest to rent this movie. It did sound like there’s potential to be cute, but more of the sort of comedic antics that comes at the cost of some awkward, unpleasant crude humor. My suspicions were right, and yet…

Pitch Perfect (2012) Film Review

Music is Beca’s life. Her college professor father is less-than-thrilled by his daughter’s passion given his strict rules about her attending college. In an attempt to strike a compromise, he asks Beca (Anna Kendrick) to join a club at the school, attend a semester and if by the end of the year, she’s still unhappy, he’ll pay for her to go to LA and pursue a career as a DJ. 

‘PITCH PERFECT’: HILARIOUS COMEDY ABOUT FRIENDSHIP CONNECTED BY MUSIC. A rebel joins a college a capella group. Review + content guide. Text © Rissi JC

Following an embarrassing showing at last year’s semi-final a capella competition, the Barden Bellas look to redeem themselves. With only two remaining members, the free-spirited Chloe (Brittany Snow) and the strict traditionalist, Aubrey (Anna Camp), the girls are try to recruit new vocalists. Only trouble is, second and third year students won’t join when Barden a capella group is consistently beat. Now with new recruits Beca and Fat Amy (Rebel Wilson), the girls are back in the game. But unless they up their performance level, they are again at risk of losing. This time, it’s more than just their self-respect. 

FILM REVIEW | ‘Pitch Perfect 3’ (2017): Barden Bellas Enlist For one Last Curtain Call
‘PITCH PERFECT’: HILARIOUS COMEDY ABOUT FRIENDSHIP CONNECTED BY MUSIC #FunnyMovies #Comedy #Moviearchives Click To Tweet

I think it’s fair to say that without Disney Channel’s smash hit, High School Musical, contemporary movies with a major in music may not be the fad they are today. Subsequently Fox produced a TV series that was all about music, helping to bring this genre into the 21st century. The staging here is nothing like a musical in the traditional sense (here there’s dialogue! Thank goodness for a script) and yet, there’s some fun, flashy musical “numbers” that weave in and out of elaborate song-and-dance sequences.

Anyone looking for depth in the characters won’t find it in Pitch Perfect. It drips with surface charm though isn’t the deepest character piece. Beca is a fun character caught between a dream and find what she’s missing; her relationships with the girls is endearing including some genuine moments. She manages to win each over during low and high points (and the relationship she has with the geeky Jesse is also a highlight; and who wouldn’t like their adorbs “movie scene”). Each of them does fulfill some stereotype in one form or another and yet, each character is likable.

Working through the film are some fun, recognizable tunes including the popular “Titanium,” and the more classical, romantic “Just the Way You Are” (a song that causes swoons every time). Admittedly, this is not the best movie on the shelves. It’s a feel-good kind of story that makes us giggle with glee. The ending isn’t as “wow” as we may expect but the finale is insanely fun. When this movie sparkles, it’s good. Unfortunately the implications in the dialogue make it hard to recommend unless you are able to edit it. To its credit, the script doesn’t follow the same cliché paths in everything it does. 

It shies away from some of the expectations I was waiting to happen and does put out a decent, sometimes flirty script that is infectious. In many ways, Pitch Perfect is a “perfect” girl-power flick – almost. Something about the characters belies the film’s faults.

CONTENT: There are countless crudities – mainly sexual escapades; there’s some sensual dancing and inappropriate dress. Aubrey demands none of the Bella’s sleep with their enemies [two women do]. Chloe confronts Becca in the showers [nothing inappropriate is caught on camera]; Beca’s obvious embarrassment leads Chloe to admit she’s comfortable in the nude and reveals she is in the shower with a man. There is a college party and drunkenness plus party-goers making out and one girl admits to being homosexual. Crude sexual gestures and “the finger” are employed as are some so lyrics with blunt or implied sexual activities sang. One girl vomits twice – once in an exaggerated gag meant to be “funny” [we see her from the back]. There is some profanity in the form of d*mn, a** and various other commonplace profanities. The film is PG13.

About Rissi JC

amateur graphic designer. confirmed bookaholic. bubbl’r enthusiast. critical thinker. miswesterner. social media coordinator. writer.

32 comments

  1. I love the music in this movie, but have agree with you about the crude humor and shallowness of the characters at points!
    Not one I'd recommend to everyone, but I will definitely watch it again!

    1. Same here, KatySue. I liked it and will probably watch it again however cannot easily recommend it. It's unfortunate since there is a lot to like about it but… one cannot argue the facts. :)

      Glad you liked it also – there were lots of fun songs!

  2. Sounds fun, but not extremely interesting. Thanks for the review though, I had wondered what the movie was about. HSM has kinda started a one after the other music themed stereotyped shows, much like Twilight has led a drove of vampire novels. :/ Kinda sad how "boring" we are sometimes. I think it's rather funny though, I have that exact shirt (or it looks exactly like it) that the girl is wearing in the above picture :P It kinda freaky…

    1. This one is fun, Sierra. The music is peppy (though not always appropriate) and the characters endearing however the crude humor is a turn-off. Or it is for conservative viewers.

      As juvenile as the plots are, I actually LOVE HSM. They are charming somehow. Not a fan of vampires though.

      LOL! That is ironic. Guess you and "Becca" have the same fashion tastes. ;)

  3. I confess to loving many a modern musical that's come out…but I think I'll be passing on this one. I'm glad you posted this review, Rissi! I've heard SO MUCH about it that I was wondering a lot about it! :)

    1. So was I, Kellie. This was one of those movies I saw constantly on the new release wall, thought about renting and passed it over. In future, I'm going to try running it through ClearPlay to see how it "cleans up." Edited it will be way more enjoyable.

      Thanks for reading, Kellie. :)

  4. Notice I didn't review it….I did love the movie….but yes, there are some major crudities in it =( So I think I'm keeping the enjoyment to myself <3

    1. Aw, I was looking for that review, Ella. :) Know exactly what you mean though – I've debated over reviewing some films also. Sadly, this one I cannot recommend but it was fun.

      Glad you stopped in, my friend. <3

  5. I absolutely loved this movie! Some gross moments, yes…but I love a cheesy uplifting movie sometimes. Very entertaining and my husband liked it too which we both did not expect.

    1. Hey, Angela – so glad you liked it! In a "cheesy" sort of way, yes this was a "good" film. It had its moments and yet had a bit too much crude humor to make it easily recommended.

      Thanks – as always, for stopping by! :)

  6. Nice review! (As always :) You pretty well touched on exactly what I figured would be disappointing about this movie. These kind are so hard to decide on, because I know they'll have the crude humor and other scenes that I won't like. Yet the cute factor is still there and is still a lot of fun! I'm thus undecided whether I'll ever see it or not. Perhaps I'll wait for someone else to bring it over and say "we gotta watch this!". ;P

    1. Hey, there, Kara! So enjoy your comments. :)

      If there hadn't been so much crude humor, this would have been really cute! I liked it for its girl-power idea because that is what makes it such a fun chick flick. However, the crudities makes this one hard to recommend. Mom and I will probably rent it again and try it on ClearPlay. That will likely clean it up quite a bit.

      Hope you like if you see it!

      Aw, thanks! I get to a point where I cannot take the same layout any longer. And I am WAY past that now. While I've changed the header plenty, I've used the same template since I began blogging. My only "fear" of changing templates is that in some browsers, it doesn't "code" right. I use IE, so that's all I know. Did look at this in Firefox and it looked fine… so *fingers crossed*

  7. I watched this movie for the music, totally. Loved the music! But I thought the storyline was ridiculous and yeah, there were definitely some cruddy moments. Great for a one-time watch with friends while giggling…and for the soundtrack. :)

    1. Hey, Melissa! The music is great. Liked 'Titanium,' 'Party in the USA' and 'Just the Way You Are.' And, surprisingly (forgot to address this!), the actors had decent vocals. That is always a nice thing when the actor is convincing in a role with musicality.

      You put it best: this one is a fun chick flick for a night of giggling and snappy music. :)

    1. That ending was actually really clever, Birdienl. Kuddos to the writer's for putting it all together – and Anna Kendrick for making Becca a character the audience could believe would put that together! :)

  8. Thanks for the review, Rissi! I'll probably pass on this one. I love musicals, but after watching Les Miserables… I just can't give any other musical a chance. At least not for a long time. :-)

    1. Hey, Gwendolyn. :)

      This is nothing like Les Mis. Where that was "classy," Pitch Perfect is a comedy with attitude. For musicals, I LOVE the classics and also enjoyed the HSM flicks way back when. Oooh, and Mamma Mia!. ;)

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

(Enter your URL then click here to include a link to one of your blog posts.)

Optimized by Optimole