It must have been hard to decide how to approach making a sequel to the 2012 surprise hit Pitch Perfect. There’s always the question, I presume, of how to maintain the essence of a hit film’s appeal without settling for just creating a duplicate. The balance between what stays and what new directions are added plays a large part in determining whether the sequel is more satisfying than the original. Kay Cannon again produces the script for the film and, although Pitch 2’s setting has been tweaked and there are a few new faces on the screen, she and first time director Elizabeth Banks choose mainly to stay with the stuff that worked the first time. Some of the old and new notes work in Pitch 2 but a few don’t.
At the core of the success of first Pitch Perfect was the A Cappella soundtrack. That’s A Cappella… you know, instrument free singing… making music with your mouth. Yeah, go figure. But if you think I’m off base with that assessment, check out the sales of the Pitch Perfect soundtracks – the first quickly went platinum and the new Pitch 2 album debuted last week at number one on Billboard. The gorgeous harmonizing (ok extremely auto-tuned harmonizing) in Pitch 1 was backed up with a solid cast and an upbeat and life-affirming message, and Pitch 2 tries to hold fast to those winning and money-making attributes. The Barden College Bellas are still singing, cast intact, with the extremely likable Anna Kendrick as Beca now leading the group. The Bellas have put together a string of national championships and are riding high as seniors until a severe wardrobe malfunction befalls Fat Amy, the self-titled, plus-sized soloist played by Rebel Wilson, at a performance for the President and the group is banned from national competition as a penalty. There is a loophole though – the Bellas can still compete Internationally. The deal becomes that if they triumph at the World A Cappella Championship the ban will be lifted – but if they lose, there done for good.
Like I said – bit of a new setting but the tricks, jokes, and story path are pretty much the same. The Bella girls – with their diverse spirits and talents, and unique quirks, must find themselves again as they pass through a new crossroads. I wont tell you whether they are, in the end, able hit their tonal centre in this new and bigger stage but I will let you in on the off- and on-key notes produced along the way.
A little flat-
- Marginalizing the Treblemakers – As the Barden Bellas move to the global stage they effectively leave behind their local competitors from Pitch 1, The Barden College Treblemakers. That’s a shame as the all-boy group sounded great and provided the feel-good budding romance between their lead singer Jesse (Skylar Austin) and Kendrick’s Beca. Neither the sound nor the romance is adequately replaced in Pitch 2.
- Beca’s identity crisis – The small subplot and gags involving Beca slipping from her true alternative DJ style into a cliché pop-girl and her alarming (to her) attraction to the statuesque female lead of the German A Cappella team, seem like random and late script add-on’s and generally fall flat.
- The new Bella Pledge – Hailey Stienfeld (True Grit) as Emily, a freshmen pledge to the Bellas and the only new member to the group, is a complete miss. Stienfeld, who was so good in her starring True Grit role, seems way out of place here and her performance comes off forced and awkward. Stienfeld’s Emily adds little and a new romance between her and the geeky magician Trebleman Benji (Ben Platt) is less interesting than the Beca-Jesse pairing.
On key-
- Becas Internship – Becas new job as an intern at a major music production shop working for a major music producer played by Keegan Michael Key (Key and Peele) is the best new piece in Pitch 2. Key’s great as Beca’s I’m-successful-so-I-have-a-right-to-be-rude music boss who turns the browbeating of his want-to-be interns into an art form.
- The Germans – Pitch 2’s soundtrack is good but does not equal the energy and freshness of the first movie's sound. However, Das Sound Machine from Germany, the reigning World A Cappella Champs, injects some major electricity into the film. For a minute I thought I was watching Dodgeball on The Ocho.
- Anything that Fat Amy says of does – Removing Wilson’s Fat Amy from this film would be like taking Lebron James off the Cavs – what remains wouldn’t be in the running for much. Regardless of the material she has in Pitch 2, Wilson “crushes” every scene and is good for a laugh in the most awkward of moments.
Sometimes more of the same is ok. Pitch 2 is not as fresh and energetic as its parent but it’s still fun and has its share of big laughs. A wise man once told me that the key to happiness is lowering your expectations. Expect good, not great, with Pitch 2 and enjoy. 7 out of 10.
