Pitch Perfect 2 failed to fine tune it's performance as an encore from the acclaimed first film.
Was I dis-aca-pointed? Yes
Did I popped along in my seat anyway? Yes
Pitch Perfect 2 opens with Rebel Wilson’s Fat Amy having an on-stage incident, in front of President Obama, that embarrasses the Barden Bellas and gets them kicked off the championship tour. Expelled, and replaced by the German team, Das Sound Machine (DSM), the Bellas take on the World Championships to regain their championship status. DSM have a very different, showier style to the Bellas, which of course intimidates them and pushes the Bellas to greater things.
The cast is fantastic. But Rebel Wilson‘s Fat Amy is a star. The use of Fat Amy has been great for cinema, to actually have a character that looks like they weren’t cast from a catwalk. Fat Amy’s arc is well-rounded (boom tish) and right up until their last scene which unfortunately concludes in parody, Fat Amy and Bumper have a lovely romance. Rebel Wilson is one to watch out for.
Anna Kendrick drove some excellent publicity for this film when she refused to pose ‘sexily’ for the film poster, this lead to women posing in front of the film poster in her same, arms-crossed IDGAF way. Kendrick’s no-nonsense Becca from the first film is alive, kicking and is amusingly intimidated and in awe of the lead of their main rival, Das Sound Machine, Birgitte Hjort Sørensen’s Kommissar. This has some sweet moments where Becca, as the Bellas leader, is supposed to talk trash to the opposition but instead leads to her fawning over Kommissar’s beauty.
The commentators and A Capella committee members from the first film, Elizabeth Banks’ Gail and John Michael Higgins’ John are here to show the world how bad sexism is and to see if it’s too soon for a WW2 joke. There were a few times John’s sexist remarks made our almost full cinema oooh and ahh, vocalising their outrage, is there a better way to show that their cringe worthy comments are on point?
Mash-ups are tried and tested in this post-Gleek world and I feel Pitch Perfect 2 could have benefitted from more well-known songs. Though I could just be showing my age! If you want to see how the first film used well-known songs to their advanatage, at the end of 2015, get down to Prince Charles Cinema to see Pitch Perfect An Aca-Along Event, complete with Cup Song competition and disco balls on the roof
Pitch Perfect 2 is simply not as good as its first film. It is vibrant, fun and got me dancing in my seat. It is not, however, as clever, funny and the mash-ups we love are not as catchy.