Pitch Perfect 2

I'm just saying, the fact that the summary says, "performance at Lincoln Center" yet it's mentioned multiple times in the movie as the "Kennedy Center"really disappoints me in the quality of summary for this site - but hey at least both are president names. Yes, I'm picky.

The movie was entertaining - got a few good laughs. Again as with most sequels, it doesn't quite live up to nor exceed that of the previous PP.

Great characters, and further development of them which I am always a fan of in movie sequels. As a young adult, I don't necessarily enjoy certain jokes or aims of humour that come off as immature; I realise they are aiming for a wider range of consumers though. Worth a watch definitely!

The three-time champs Barden Bellas has an embarrassing incident when Fat Amy (Rebel Wilson) flashes the audience during a performance for the President. They face punishment and replaced on the tour by the German Das Sound Machine. Beca (Anna Kendrick) starts an internship with a record producer (Keegan-Michael Key) keeping it a secret from the Bellas. Chloe (Brittany Snow) is more driven than ever before. Emily Junk (Hailee Steinfeld) is a legacy and joins the group. They vow to win the World Championship to regain their standing.

I really like the first movie. The girls are lovable. Their friendship is charming. There is just the right amount of humor. This one has made a few changes. Adding Hailee Steinfeld is nice. Elizabeth Banks' directing skills are functional. The girls remain charming. I personally like Rebel Wilson although there may be too much of her in this one. The problem is that the humor seems dumber. I don't mean it's simply broader and more coarse. I mean it seems stupider and less well written. The whole movie feels like a step down.

When I watched the original "Pitch Perfect" a number of years ago, I was disappointed in an experience that I felt wasn't sure of itself. That movie struggled to figure out whether to be grounded in semi-serious character development or fully embrace the comedy. In this sequel, however, they choose to fully embrace the comedy, and at least for me that was a decision that led to more entertaining experience.

For a basic plot summary, "Pitch Perfect 2" sees a return of the Borden Bellas...but only until they make themselves a national embarrassment after some "exposure" from Fat Amy (Rebel Wilson). Now, with the program about to be put on academic probation, it begins to fracture from within. Beca (Anna Kendrick) is spending just as much time on her own music career, while the routines just don't seem to be coming together like they used to. It takes freshman newcomer Emily (Hailee Steinfeld) to rally the troops and compete in the seemingly unwinnable "Worlds" competition featuring the dominant German squad.

Even though I am nowhere near the target audience of this movie (30 year-old male), I found this one to be a pretty entertaining experience because of its willingness to embrace its own silly humor throughout. Instead of trying to ground this movie in any sense of reality, it goes all-out for the jokes and music and I think it fits the style of director Elizabeth Banks better. Once you think of it as a pure comedy, it makes it a lot easier to get through.

Another great addition to the franchise was the Steinfeldt character, who breathes some new life and youthful exuberance into all proceedings. Without the new perspective given by her character, this could have been a pretty large repeat of the original. Steinfeldt can sing and act with equal measure (and both at a very high level), and is set up perfectly to be the star of subsequent sequels should Kendrick tire of the mantle.

Overall, "Pitch Perfect 2" was more fun for me than the original. It doesn't try to sell itself as anything other than a comedy, the songs are catchy and fun (as usual), and the Steinfeld performance is mesmerizing. This genre will never be my favorite, but it didn't struggle to finish this film like I did the first one.

Let me lay my cards out there straightaway. I'm a 31 year old bloke, married with two kids, who loves films and music.

And I love this film.

I Ioved the first film, and this one builds on it. But you have to appreciate that the film is based around college. For anyone that's actually been to college they should have experienced parties/people/incidents replicated in this film. I don't really understand why people show so much disdain for the 'childish' humour!

That aside...

Hats off to Elizabeth Banks for her directorial debut, you'd never know there was any change from the first film. And her inserts with John Michael Higgins are excellent, if you take them at face value for exactly what they are intended to be; humour! And pretty sexist, misogynistic humour!

Anna Kendrick is, as always, stunning (yes, the wife knows!) and simply brilliant. Shows just how much of an actress she is having improvised almost half her lines and proves once again that she can actually sing (albeit that the singing is not on set and pre-recorded).

The rest of the cast is brilliant and it's nice to see a little more of Esther Dean actually singing/rapping rather than her usual producing.

Hailee Steinfeld has stepped in seamlessly. I don't think we saw enough of Rebel Wilson though, reckon there'll be a few deleted scenes that didn't make it.

Good to see a lot of humour applied to the Ashley/Jessica situation (unless you know the film you won't get this).

The final song was actually very good. Maybe not as unexpected as the first film but brilliant with an original start and an excellent surprise at the end that I think added a very personal and moving touch.

It will be a shame if the franchise is over!

Have you seen pitch perfect? who didn't? it's one of the most popular comedy movies in 2012. Did you like it? Well if you didn't, I advise you not to carry on reading this review because you probably won't also like the sequel.

Pitch Perfect 2:

The Video: Thanks to its experienced director Elizabeth Banks, the video shines brightly. Even though it's a comedy, its really special: the parties, the performances and almost everything in this movie is captured to comfort your eyes and to prevent the audience from falling asleep. Basically, an eye candy.

The Soundtrack: The best thing about this movie is the non-stop flawless music. Das Sound Machine really rocked the movie and made it challenging for the Barden Bellas to win. Famous songs and a great track-list, thats all i can say.

The Pace: I have recently seen many movies this year that were good but there's always that moment in the movie where you feel bored. Gladly, Pitch Perfect 2 doesn't fall for that mistake and it never slows down, you actually never feel bored in the movie.

The Story: The usual story about the Bellas trying to win their competition. Except that this time, it's bigger, a World Wide Championship! And some side stories about each of the characters and what they're going to do after graduating.

Overall: As a huge fan of the first part, i found it very original to make a good movie about Acapella which is something new and could be a great advance in the music process of this generation,Pitch Perfect 2 doesn't disappoint at all.Everything we liked about the first part is doubled here.It's like they checked what part of the movie the fans liked and added more of it which means MORE SONGS,MORE FAT AMY,MORE CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT,MORE CHALLENGES and Definitely MORE LAUGHS!

After reading the review and watching the trailer you probably know what you're getting from this movie. Feeling into it? Then go watch it because you're surely going to like it

Final Score: 8/10