Pitch Perfect

I just wrote an emotionally draining post and I am within a day or two of finishing my book, so it is time for just a fun movie review. I will admit that I originally saw the poster for this film and just thought- "There is no way that I will see that." I have now seen it twice, and hope to catch it once more in the theaters. What changed my mind between not wanting to see it and being extremely excited for it? I will admit- it was Anna Kendrick. The first time I noticed Anna Kendrick is when she more than held her own against George Clooney and Vera Farmiga and Jason bateman in 'Up in the Air'. She was nominated for an Oscar and I felt she should've won. She took a very boring type of role and infused it with energy, much in the same way that Michael J Fox turned Alex P Keaton into a loveable, obnoxious jerk (and that is meant as a compliment on both of their parts). Then, I noticed that Anna Kendrick played Bella Swann's best friend Jessica in the Twilight films. To this day, I feel that Anna and Billy Burke have been the 2 best things in those films. She has also had roles in Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World (I was sad that she wasn't in it more), the main reason that I saw 'What to Expect When You're Expecting' was for her, and she was the voice or Norman's sister in 'Paranorman'. Anna was also a large and important role in '50/50', a film which was my favorite film of 2011. Even though the subject matter hit very close to home and I was a sobbing fool in the theater for the last 15 minutes or so, her role as a therapist is one that I was able to watch from a different perspective (I am still seeing the therapist that I found when my dad died), and the entire film just really hit home for me. After watching 50/50, I wanted to know where she had come from and discovered that she actually was nominated for a Tony Award on Brooadway when she was 13. So, Anna sings as well (there is a certain level of amazement that goes into how talented some people are- Anna, Jack Black, Christopher Guest, harry Shaerrer- who are great actors on one hand and are amazingly musically talented as well). So, knowing that she had a singing background, now made me really want to see 'Pitch Perfect' to see that part of her talent. I also found out that the rest of the cast is just as incredible- Rebel Wilson who was also in Bridesmaids and What to Expect, Elizabeth banks, another great actress with a wide and varied resume from Seabiscuit to Zack & Miri to man on a Ledge and many more, along with several others really intrigued me. While I cannot say that 'Pitch Perfect is a totally original film or even, really a 'good' film (I doubt it will have any award nominations in a few months), I do think that it will be an audience favorite and will be remembered for a very long time. The basic storyline is like something out of 'Bring It On', only in the world of collegiate a ca pella groups- a female group has to recruit a motley assortment of members after an issue at the championships the previous year have made them the laughingstock of the groups. So, they recruit Fat Amy (Rebel Wilson, who has the most crack comic timing of the year) Stacie (the sexpot), Cynthia Rose (the tough black girl witha soulful voice), Lily(the girl with a soft voice who has many dark, hysterical secrets that she reveals throughout the film), and Beca (Anna Kendrick) the rebellious girl who is only joining so that her dad will help her move to LA for her DJing at the end of the year. The leaders of the group, Aubrey, a control freak, and Chloe (Brittany Snow)a co-leader who gets no say, try to get the group into performance ready shape. Personalities clash, and nothing new or surprising really happens with the group. However, the film plays things quite differently in several aspects. Beca's character has a reason for being so stand-off-ish, certain characters have little edges that are not quite the norm, and the boy from one of the other a ca pella groups on campus has an interesting effect on Beca. The plot, though, is not the reason to see this film. It comes down to the music, pure and simple. It starts with an a ca pella version of the Universal Pictures theme and continues through the finals with 2 fabulous mash-ups that I have not stopped singing since I left the theater. Anna Kendrick does have a strong voice and, in a very impressive display of coordination, even has a fabulous little song for her audition piece for the group. The Riff-Off scene is fabulous, the scene in the empty pool where the girls learn to be a team is great and toe-tapping. For all of the cliches this film has, it subverts them just enough (the old 'audition montage' which has almost been done to death is a show stopper for moments of both hilarity and singing talent, all done to Kelly Clarkson's 'Since U Been Gone) and has great singing and laughs that hit the wide range of humor along with just enough character development, that it surprised me. One caveat for those who can be sensitive to the MPAA ratings, while this does not cross any of the boundaries of PG-13, there are a few sexual jokes and innuendoes that do put it at a PG-13 level. One of my times seeing this was at a sneak preview and there was a family with 4 kids, all under 10 or 11, and the mom kept huffing and puffing wondering why a studio would release such a dirty film as a family movie. They didn't. It is PG-13 for a reason, but again, does not push any of those boundaries. While this is not necessarily at the top of Anna Kendrick's impressive resume, you can't fault her at all for going back to her singing roots and being at the center of such an entertaining ensemble piece. Film score- 5 Movie score- 8