Starring: Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson and Skylar Astin
Directed by: Elizabeth Banks
Rated: PG 13
Running time: 1 hour 55 mins
Universal
Our Score: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Get ready folks, the Bellas are back! And they’re just as ACA-funny as they were the first time.
It’s been three years since the Barden College Bellas captured their first collegiate a Capella championship. Now a three-time champion, the group, now led by the spirited Becca (Kendricks) has been asked to perform for the President. However, during a very elaborate aerial stunt involving “Fat” Amy (Wilson), something goes horribly wrong and soon the term “Muff-gate” has become part of the common lexicon. The resulting punishment strips the group of their title but allows them the chance to continue to compete in the World Championships versus groups from all over the world, including Germany’s current champions Das Sound Machine. With a few new voices in the group, will everything go as planned?
Fans of the first film will be pleased to learn that most of the original Bellas are back, with a few new voices to lead them. Among them is Emily (“True Grit’s” Hailie Steinfeld) a legacy whose mother (Katy Segal) is a Bella-legend and hopes to follow in her footsteps. Many of the returning characters are equally fun to watch, especially John Michael Higgins an director Banks as the smarmy hosts/commentators of the various competitions. Special attention to David Cross, as an eccentric a Capella fan who hosts “sing-offs” in his home featruing, among others, various members of the Green Bay Packers. The other main story follows Becca asshe continues to try to make it as a music producer. She gets her chance when she works with Snoop Dogg on his upcoming Christmas album. I must say here that when he’s crooning holiday classics, Snoop sounds a lot like the late, great Nat King Cole.
The script is fun, with many of the best lines going to Wilson’s “Fat” Amy, who considers David Hasselhoff the last great German singer and has been intimate with “three of the Wiggles.” The songs performed are familiar “sing-a-long” numbers and director Banks has a fine eye for capturing the excitement and exhileration of competition. If you enjoyed the first film, you won’t be disappointed with “Pitch Perfect 2.”