Distributor: Universal
Pictures
Opening Weekend Box Office:
#3 with 14,700,000
Domestic Box Office
Gross to-date: $36,085,000
Gross Revenue: $36,542,459
Production Budget:
$17 million
Director: Jason Moore
Make no mistake, in no way do I
identify myself as a “Gleek,” but that doesn’t change the fact that I do enjoy
musical performances and generally feel that they can add considerable value to
both film and television when executed correctly…hence my rage over this past
summer’s insultingly bad Rock of Ages. Either way, one can understand my interest
when I first caught wind of the trailer for Pitch
Perfect, especially when you consider that Universal Pictures was
positioning this upcoming musical comedy as something far edgier than has been
associated with the genre beforehand. As
a play on words, the tagline of “Get Pitch Slapped” may be one of the best that
I have seen over the course of my blogging; sure it is funny, but at the very
least, it is an attention-gabber, as I guarantee that many potential audience
members did a double-take when seeing the poster…talk about effective exposure
that also hints at the tone and humor of the movie. In terms of building positive word of mouth,
the early limited release more than did its job, with the surprisingly high per
theater average and strong critical praise indicating to mass audiences that
this newest wide-release demanded both attention and respect. Plain and simple, the more and more I saw
of Pitch Perfect, the more I liked,
so it was an absolute no-brainer heading to the theater with high expectations.
Entering the world of competitive a
cappella performances, Pitch Perfect
introduces audiences to Barden College, where two singing groups, the all-girls
squad “The Bellas” and the all-boys team “The Treble Makers” engage in a heated
rivalry for national recognition.
Following an embarrassing showing at last year’s competition, the new
leaders of The Bellas, Chloe (Brittany Snow) and Aubrey (Anna Camp), seek to
rebuild the group with fresh talent and soon come across Beca (Anna Kendrick),
a musically gifted loner whose greatest ambition is become a DJ in Los Angeles
and is only attending Barden to placate her father. Though initially hesitant to join the group,
Beca complies once her father agrees to finance her trip to Los Angeles as long
as she shows initiative in socializing with others on campus; so, alongside new
recruit Fat Amy (Rebel Wilson), Beca is inducted into the world of a cappella
singing. Though socializing with Treble
Makers is expressly forbidden, Beca begins to form a relationship with fellow
student and singer Jesse (Skylar Austin); this, along with her refusal to go
along with Aubrey’s focus on traditional performance, put Beca at odds with the
rest of her team. Finding herself now
fully invested in the competitive nature of the a cappella world, Beca must
find a way to repair her relationship with The Bellas and help present a strong
showing at this year’s national championship.
Despite a relatively
straightforward and simplistic narrative, Pitch
Perfect’s quality skyrockets into the upper atmosphere thanks largely to
the compelling and thoroughly entertaining characters brought to life by the
talented cast. Maybe it is because I am
not that far removed from undergraduate life, but I connected with the
characters immediately, and I’d wager that everyone will be reminded of someone
they know by the multiple zany and eccentric personalities presented. Like I said in the “Short and Sweet” review,
Anna Kendrick and Rebel Wilson are brilliant, with the former perfectly
embodying the sassy underdog and the latter being an absolute comedic
scene-stealer. Two surprise additions to
the cast are comedic veterans Elizabeth Banks and John Michael Higgins, playing
the judges to the singing competitions and providing lightning-fast commentary
that perfectly demonstrates the sharp and humorous dialogue that saturates the
script. With high levels of humor,
strong characters, and impressive singing performances, Pitch Perfect will keep a perpetual smile on your face, regardless
of some of the weaker elements presented.
Stripping away all the jokes,
characters, and singing performances, the bare-bones progression of the
narrative is rather formulaic and predictable, but given the strength of the
aforementioned variables, it is really hard to care about a singular weakness. There have undoubtedly been stronger scripts
within the musical comedy genre, but never has such amusing dialogue and crazy
characterizations combined so effectively…I found myself just wanting to see
more and more of both The Bellas and The Treble Makers. The truth is that Pitch Perfect is so effortlessly charming that you will find
yourself fully invested in the singing competition, and with that investment,
you are rewarded with stylish and energetic performances that will have you
humming to yourself days after you leave the theater. Apparently every one of the cast members did
their own singing, which makes the overall accomplishment all the more impressive;
even as I’m sitting here writing the review, I have the soundtrack playing in
the background, wishing I could sing…trust me, I can’t. In the end, I realize that it may be
difficult to convince some member of the male demographic to give Pitch Perfect a chance, but make no mistake;
there is something within this film for absolutely everyone.
With a limited per-theater average
of over $15,000 from its first weekend, hopes were understandably high when Pitch Perfect expanded to a larger
release, but even with its high quality, there was no way that this musical
comedy was going to be able to take down a Liam Neeson sequel. Still, with a modest $17 million budget, a
third place opening of nearly $15 million is definitely a good sign, and a
to-date gross of over $36 million can be seen as a considerable success. If it hasn’t been incredibly obvious from
this review, I fully expect Pitch Perfect
to benefit from positive word of mouth, and I for one would be front of the
line should a future sequel be green-lit.
At the very least, expect the young cast of this blockbuster to enjoy a
far more prevalent presence in Hollywood in the coming years, and if this film
is any kind of indication of what we can expect, then audiences are in for a
considerable treat. Trust me, I
guarantee you will be pleasantly surprised by Pitch Perfect, so don’t miss out.
