The Hit Girls

"Pitch Perfect" (PG-13, 112 min) is a light, inconsequential musical comedy about college and Capella groups. It's one of those movies that would have been a big box office smash hit in the early '90s when these types of comedies really sold. The film has enough pleasures to overcome its failings, even if the margin is fairly slim at times and entirely predictable, which makes the whole feel, like thing been-there-done-that. In a way, "Pitch Perfect" (2012) is pretty much "Bring It On" (2000) with a Capella-singing instead of cheer-leading. The cast is full of good actors ( Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson, Elizabeth Banks) but like most modern comedies, it's ~20 minutes too long, yet at least the music works well.

Rating: 6+/7-

When my girlfriend suggested put this on I mimed blowing my brains out with an imaginary revolver.

That was a mistake. This is a great, fun film!

An all girl acapella group have to regain their crown by winning a competition. So a motley crew of underdogs is assembled, including our main character, to challenge the superior competition.

The characters are heavily stereotyped, and this is the source of a lot of the comedy. I found the characters engaging and lovable, and laughed along with most of the gags. The cynical, misogynistic, judgemental, biased commentators were especially funny.

The singing segments are short and sharp and just enough to get your foot tapping without going full blown Mary Poppins.

I didn't expect (or particularly want) to enjoy this but I did a lot.

My recommendation is that even if this is not your kind of movie force yourself to watch the first fifteen minutes, their is a good chance you will make it to the end with a smile on your face.

Take Bring It On, Glee (not in the icky cheesy way, but because there's singing involved, the good kind), Mean Girls, and add some quick-witted, sharp-tongued dialogue and commentary, and you have the funniest of movies.

At first I was leery: a movie about A Cappella singing groups; I thought at best, it would be a teen flick. Yes, I know, Anna Kendrick. But bigger (some better) names have made some doozies. But, I was unbelievably surprised. Every kind of humour is covered here, and done to absolute perfection. You will be adopting many, many of the lines into your daily lexicon.

For me, Rebel Wilson (as Fat Amy) and Elizabeth Banks (as Gail, the commentator) have some of the most hysterically smart lines ever committed to celluloid (right up there with Young Frankenstein).

Loved it.

That I loved so much. I scored free tickets to a Denver Screening awhile back and was just going to have my wife and 13 year old daughter go , but I watched the trailer and really thought Anna Kendrick was terrific in 50/50 and very good in Up in the Air so I thought, what the heck, I'm going too. Was I glad that I did. I laughed like crazy and loved the a capella singing. This film is really raunchy and just skirts around an R rating several times, but it is just so fun.

I am pretty confident that it is going to be the surprise box office hit of the fall and it is so much better than the films that it is bound to be compared to like Mean Girls, Bring it On, and even Bridesmaids.

Speaking of Bridesmaids Rebel Wilson almost steals the show with every scene that she is involved with being hilarious, and in a lesser movie her scenes most certainly would be worth paying the price of admission alone, but there are so many other talents involved. Elizabeth Banks has never been funnier. Skylar Astin as the love interest is also terrific though he needs to change his name, because for me the name Skylar brings only one thing to mind and she is married to Walter White.

This is no Oscar Winner, I am certain that I will see a dozen or so better movies this year, but none will having me laughing and smiling as much.

We two 50+ grandmas went to see this film on the spur of the moment because we enjoy musical movies. We were probably the oldest people in the audience which ranged down to younger teens but everyone, regardless of age, was laughing and having a grand time. Much less schmaltzy and self-serious than Glee, but wonderful vocals and dancing and personality. You can't help but fall in love with the hilariously quirky characters, especially Rebel Wilson as the irrepressible Fat Amy, Elizabeth Banks as Gail, the sexually frustrated female announcer, and Hanna Mae Lee as Lilly, the wackadoo who releases the most shocking comments in a voice that barely exceeds a murmur. Fun, feel-good and highly entertaining.