Pitch Perfect

Starring: Anna Kendrick, Skylar Astin, Anna Camp, Rebel Wilson, Brittany Snow, Elizabeth Banks, Ben Platt, John Michael Higgins, Donald Faison, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Adam Devine
Directed by: Jason Moore
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Comedy, Music, Romance
2012

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A freshman girl (Anna Kendrick) reluctantly joins an all-female a cappella group and gets caught up in the competition with the school's all-male group.

Review:

Tim: Pitch Perfect is one of those movies that is just so enjoyable to watch. I've commented on this before- there are great movies that are great, but aren't much fun. This movie is incredibly fun to watch. Although it's far from great, the fun factor cannot be discounted here. This was simply an entertaining movie all around. I really had a great time watching it.

The script (and I imagine the book upon which it was based) is the major reason this movie works. It takes a concept like a capella groups (which are inherently humorous) and builds an interesting story around it. In some ways, this movie reminded me of Bring It On (in a positive manner). That movie made cheerleading a cool concept for movies, and this film feels like it's doing the same thing for a capella groups. It's making them cool. The film takes a fun, lighthearted approach to a capella singing, while at the same time making it very competitive and serious. It's this duality- fun and serious- that makes this an interesting movie.

The cast has its ups and downs. I really like Anna Kendrick, and I think she has a great deal of untapped potential. While she's given better performances before, she is still solid here. I will say that her character was a bit underdeveloped and occasionally annoying, but for the most part, she worked. I had never seen Skylar Astin before, but I was really impressed with him. He has a great deal of charisma and charm. I really expect to see a lot more of Astin in the future, and I expect big things from him.

The supporting cast is fine, but a bit underwhelming. I know Rebel Wilson is getting a lot of acclaim, but I can't say that she impresses me much. She had a few very strong moments, and her comedic timing is terrific. As an actress, though, she still needs to do a lot more to win me over. I have to say I was very underwhelmed by both Brittany Snow and Anna Camp. I don't know who they are, but neither looked like a real actress here. Their poor performances really hurt the film. If they were better, this movie would have been better. I did like seeing Elizabeth Banks here, and she was pretty funny in a small role.

This movie does take some suspension of disbelief. I'm not up on real-life a capella groups, but the whole thing seemed a little hard to believe. I get that there are national competitions, but do people get together and do underground sing offs? That part just seemed absurd, and I still don't get what the rules to that game were. The story is a bit redundant, and it felt a little too predictable. Those are bad things, but here's the catch- the movie is so fun and funny, that you really don't mind those things all that much. The characters are fun, and there are solid, humorous jokes and scenes throughout the film. This movie was just pleasurable to watch. I know that seems like I'm setting the bar low, but far too many movies completely miss in this regard- movies are supposed to be fun, entertaining, and pleasurable (for the most part). Pitch Perfect recognizes this, and delivers.

I would not say that this film is one of my favorites of the year- it's not a great film. However, it is a thoroughly enjoyable, solidly entertaining film. I had a great deal of fun watching this film, and I would absolutely watch it again. This film didn't convince me that we need a wave of a capella movies, but this one worked surprisingly well.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Bring It On, Up in the Air