“My weekends are becoming all too predictable.
Pitch Perfect took some time to work its way up my priority list. The storyline just did not interest me, and as much as I love Anna Kendrick, that wasn’t enough. At first. Then I started hearing some of the songs. Little more interest. But what finally sold me was Rebel Wilson. She’s quickly becoming one of my favorite comediennes, and I just really had to see what she brought to this film. Once I was already sold, scanning the soundtrack told me that Skylar Astin was in this. My inner (okay not so inner) musical theatre geek rejoiced (he was in the original Spring Awakening cast) at the wonderful cake icing.
Yeah the plot itself, kinda plain. Struggling acapella group trying to win a major competition. It’s every Disney sports movie, but with singing. Or Glee. Add in a power struggle between the misunderstood newbie and the longtime leader of the group, and a are-they-ever-gonna-hook-up romance between said newbie and a member of the rival team. Nothing we haven’t seen before.
The fun came from the characters. Anna Kendrick was the previously mentioned misunderstood neophyte. But she was a tough chick with attitude, the kind I would actually wanna hang out with. Just when I think I have her pegged as an actress, she adds a new twist to each role. Seeing Brittany Snow in the cast list just made me assume she’d be playing the queen beeyatch, but I guess I’ve just seen Hairspray too many times. She may have still bit a little too sorrority girl for me, but I did like her as the good guy. After having seen him in a few kooky bit parts, I loved Skylar Astin as our leading man. The fact that his character was a fellow movie buff particularly obsessed with The Breakfast Club helped. But of course, Rebel Wilson was the brightest gem. Always delievering a line that broke tension or lightened the mood. This film would have been beyond boring without her.
As an aforementioned musical theatre geek, I am friends with a lot of musically inclined people. Several of whom have been in various acapella groups. I even saw a couple of ICCA competitions (friend was in a group that hosted the event). I’m a bit picky about the genre. Sometimes I think it’s awesome, sometimes I’m just flat out unimpressed. Basically the less it sounds like acapella, the better. I also really like creative mashups. Energy is also a must. Most of the songs (not counting the ones that were obviously not supposed to) nailed all three. The detail about Kendrick’s character wanting to be a music producer, and therefore having experience with arrangements was a nice touch. Added a little bit of weight and believability to the idea that the new little tough cookie freshman girl could transform the group.
Overall it was just a rocking good time. Isn’t that really what going to the movies is all about?
Pitch Perfect – \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/