“Pitch Perfect 2,” released on May 15, 2015, just didn’t hit all the same marks as the last movie. It had a lot of good parts, but was just a cheap remake of the first.
At the beginning of the movie, the girls start out as seniors, making up one of the top acapella groups. When performing for the President goes terribly wrong, they are no longer allowed to compete anywhere but at Worlds. Only if they win will they be reinstated.
“Pitch Perfect 2” had the characters go through many of the same problems in different ways, and it doesn’t really seem as if any of the characters developed in the three year gap. It’s not very realistic and just repeats all of the same conflicts between the girls.
Beca continues to cause tension in the group with her hopes for a career in music, but Anna Kendrick does a very good job in this role once again. Fat Amy (Rebel Wilson) is just as funny as ever and never fails to make the audience laugh.
Unfortunately, the Treble Makers are not very present throughout the movie, despite their awesome performance at the new version of a riff-off.
“Pitch Perfect 2” did add in a bunch of new, fun characters this go-around. We got to watch some Green Bay Packers sing, and meet the new face of the Bella’s known as Legacy or Emily (Hailee Steinfeld). Emily’s quirkiness and growing relationship with Benji was nice to see mixed into the movie.
The German group, Das Sound Machine, led by Birgitte Hjort Sorensen and Flula Borg, make awesome villains, and watching the Bellas get flustered while trying to make up comebacks was very funny (even though Beca’s were really awkward).
The worst addition to the movie was Flo (Chrissie Fit), a Bella from Guatemala. The new Bella has few lines, but most of them include some form of deportation joke or stereotype about Latin America. Her awfully racist character does not do much to make the movie any funnier at all.
“I think that they could have made a lot less racist jokes in the movie. Especially with the new Guatemalan Bella. Pretty much every one of her lines were completely racist,” freshman Amy Fuller says.
Despite a couple of low points with characters and awkward scenes (thanks Beca), the movie had a lot of heartwarming parts as well. They brought back Aubrey for help, and the girls went on a retreat to finally start working together as a group again. It took them a while to figure it out, allowing for us to have some laughs, but when they finally did, it became one of the best parts of the movie.
“I thought it was really funny, and also sweet when the girl shared how they would be moving on,” Fuller says.
Another high note of the film was the end; it was heartwarming and exciting, leaving viewers on the edges of their seats. You’ll have of watch to find out what happens here, though.
“It showed a form of competition and teamwork. With the world championships, I loved how they brought all the old Bellas back,” freshman Mary Riccardella says.
The music choices in the sequel were plentiful. During the new riff-off, we hear a bunch of different songs from the five groups like “Timber,” “Rocky Mountain High,” “Wrecking Ball,” and “This is How We Do it”. There are enough different songs in the movie for anyone to enjoy.
The Barden Bellas also added in their own original song, “Flashlight.” The song is sort of catchy, but heard so much throughout the movie that it loses its power by the end.
Overall, “Pitch Perfect 2” was worth watching, and any fan of the first movie will enjoy it, but it just didn’t have the same success as the first movie did.
What was your favorite part of the movie?