![]() Picking up three years roughly after the events of Pitch Perfect 2, the Bellas are living their post-graduate lives and pursing their respective careers away from each other. Does this latest feature in the Barden Bellas end the franchise on a lyrical high-note or does it sore on its off-key premise? Now, Universal Pictures (and Golden Circle Films) and director Trish Sie present the third acapella film for the Bellas in the movie Pitch Perfect 3. ![]() With success like that, the studio execs behind this franchise quickly greenlit a third installment, capping off the series as a trilogy with a final chapter. This resulted in the movie becoming the highest grossing musical comedy film of all time, which dethroned 2003’s School of Rock ($131.3 million). playing up a bit too much on fan-service moments), which made the film not quite as good as the first one, Pitch Perfect 2 scored big at the box office, making roughly $287 million at the box office against its $29 million production budget. While the movie faced some criticism (i.e. 2015’s Pitch Perfect 2 continued the narrative that began in the first film, following the Bellas as they find a new hopeful acapella singer (Emily), a new rival team (Das Sound Machine), a new competition, and new problems for them to overcome within their own group. Labeled as a “sleeper hit”, Pitch Perfect was well-received from critics and fans and with its success, which made $117 million at the box office against its $17 million production budget, the film was greenlit for a follow-up sequel that materialized a few years later. While the film didn’t have much celebrity star power (with the exception of actress Elizabeth Banks), the film’s musical scenes were the true highlight Pitch Perfect, playing acapella versions of famous songs (both familiar oldies and recent hits) as well in its comedic beats. To the uninitiated, the movie follows freshmen Beca Mitchell and her singing cohort (the Barden Bellas) and the rise to the challenge in an acapella singing competition, bonding with each other and experience the trails and pitfalls of college angst. In “Pitch Perfect 3,” it quickly becomes clear that the best resolution for these young women would be to simply stop hanging out together.In 2012, one of the hidden movie gems that year was the small budgeted musical comedy film Pitch Perfect a film that shone a cinematic light in the cutthroat world of collegiate acapella singing. The first “Pitch Perfect” succeeded not just because of the music and likable characters, but because it felt like there were stakes. Instead everything is quickly erased like a shaken Etch A Sketch, so the filmmakers can start over and make some more money.Īnd then there’s the real problem with “Pitch Perfect 3”: The best thing about the first movie - the singing - feels like an afterthought. It’s the sign of a rushed or lazy screenplay, when the first few minutes of the film are spent quickly and dismissively undoing the boyfriends acquired and happy endings of “Pitch Perfect 2.” There’s no desire for any character-building or continuity. (And this still may be a better Lithgow performance than in “Daddy’s Home 2.”)įrom there, it’s a series of pratfalls, half-explored romances, illogically evil rival singers, misunderstandings and easily resolved conflicts. ![]() Things get worse when John Lithgow shows up as Amy’s grifter father, and isn’t it amazing we’ve said that twice this year? Lithgow, who has been nuanced, dedicated and moving as Winston Churchill in TV’s “The Crown,” is the opposite of all that in “Pitch Perfect 3.” He seems to be workshopping his Australian accent on the fly. Other former Barden University Bellas are having their own failure-to-launch issues, so they drop everything and jump on a tour of military bases - that somehow are all in the most fabulous cities in the world. The film opens promisingly with Beca (Anna Kendrick) quitting her producer job with an idiot rapper, and commiserating with her roommate Fat Amy (Rebel Wilson). He might as well be a bottle of Gatorade. Opportunity awaits at a USO tour, with a battle of the bands to open for DJ Khaled - portrayed in “Pitch Perfect 3” less as a person, and more like product placement. The chemistry that worked for the college-aged singers loses the magic with our heroes in a post-university world, still needing an excuse to get together in one place. Secondary characters have nothing to do for so long, it’s disarming when they finally speak. ![]() The leads belabor the same tired conflicts repeatedly with zero progress. The second sequel to the a cappella choir comedy feels less like a movie than a bunch of deleted scenes strung together in the guise of a plot.
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