Rental Review - Pitch Perfect

Pitch Perfect (2012), PG-13, 112 minutes - My fiance loves a capella, so when she first saw the trailer for Pitch Perfect she made it known that it would be a movie that we'd see.  Unfortunately we missed it in theaters as it didn't stick around very long in our area.  Having just gotten the chance to watch it earlier in the week, I kind of wish that we had seen it on the big screen because it really is a lot of fun.

Pitch Perfect opens with the finals of a collegiate a capella competition between two groups from Barden University: The Barden Bellas (an all female pop and looks themed group) and The Treblemakers (an all male frat-like group with a winning pedigree).  The Bellas blow their performance in a disgustingly epic fashion and as a result find themselves struggling to bring in new recruits the following year.  Queue up the misfit group of new blood the Bellas end up with after Barden's a capella tryouts.  All of their new girls can sing, but they don't exactly fit the 'look' that the Bellas have been known for.  Key among the new members are Beca (Anna Kendrick), who does actually fit the 'look' but who claims she doesn't sing well and Fat Amy (Rebel Wilson) who calls herself fat 'so twig bitches don't do it behind my back'.  They bring a new attitude and new ideas to the group that aren't necessarily embraced by the incumbent team captain Aubrey (Anna Camp). Beca finds herself juggling a handful of issues like the Bellas reluctance to change and a member of the Treblemakers named Jesse (Skylar Astin).  He was the first person she saw on campus as he sang to her from a passing vehicle.  He also works with her at the school's radio station and quite obviously has a thing for her.  They begin to develop a relationship but Aubrey has one absolute rule: Bellas do not date Treblemakers.  We get to see a good deal of quirky social interactions and ridiculous competition moments as the story plays out.

Pitch Perfect is a comedy that both pokes fun at, and pays homage to the world of a capella.  The portrayal of the a capella groups as fraternities and sororities is hilarious.  The riff-off is probably the most fun scene in the film with members of each group jumping in, trying to one up each other after a particular category is chosen from a digital spinning wheel.  There's even a nice tip of the cap to classic films from the '70s and '80s as Jesse tries to find something to do with Beca besides being a capella adversaries and working at the radio station.

I can't claim to be near the a capella fan that my fiance is, but I do enjoy it.  And I really enjoyed Pitch Perfect.  It's a great combination of humor, drama, and good music.  Anna Kendrick and Rebel Wilson are very good in their roles as the main protagonist and primary source of comedic relief respectively.  It really is just a fun movie.  If you enjoy music and comedy on any level, especially a capella or the reverential humor provided by something like Shaun of the Dead or Hot Fuzz then you should give Pitch Perfect a look.