They say college is the time to find yourself and to make friendships that will last a lifetime. Well, if any university in the real world can boast a peer group and aca-adventures like those in Pitch Perfect, I’ll write them a check for all four years right now.
Pitch Perfect exhibits a rare blend of inspired and comedic genius–the kind of film that only comes from putting a well-crafted script in the hands of a top-notch cast…and letting them have their way with it. Each and every quip hits its mark and is memorable for both its composition and its delivery.
Pitch Perfect stars silver screen veterans Anna Kendrick, Brittany Snow, Rebel Wilson, John Michael Higgins, and Elizabeth Banks, and shoves TV/Broadway vets Anna Camp, Skylar Astin, and Adam DeVine, and relative rookies Alexis Knapp, Ester Dean, Hana Mae Lee, Utkarsh Ambudkar, and Ben Platt, firmly into the Hollywood limelight.
From hostile Beca (Kendrick), no-boundaries Chloe (Snow), dictatorial Aubrey (Camp), and hot-boy-next-door Jesse (Astin), to trash-talking Bumper (DeVine), enthusiastically nerdy Benji (Platt), and utterly hilarious Fat Amy (Wilson)–not to mention the frequently sarcastic and un-P.C. color commentators (Banks and Higgins)–there is not one character in Pitch Perfect that disappoints. Each individual performance is so vital to the whole that we would feel a void were any one omitted. There is no doubt that Pitch Perfect exemplifies ensemble casting and acting at its best.
The musical numbers–including audition and rehearsal montages, Nationals’ performances by the Treblemakers and the Bellas, and an epic “riff-off”–are literally pitch perfect. The wow factor of each performance will make you thank goodness for the pitch slap you’ve just received. (P.S. The Official Motion Picture Soundtrack is now available on iTunes!)
As Clueless popularized use of “Whatever!”, so Pitch Perfect has ensured a lasting legacy by creating its own jargon that is sure to be quickly and decisively adopted by fans. From stand-alone terms like “toner” (a “musical boner,” experienced by one a cappella singer for another), “pitch slap,” and “horizontal running” (see picture below), to a seemingly omnipotent prefix, “aca-”, that adds a cappella-related sincerity or outrage to any preexisting word (ex. “Aca-scuse me?!”), the language of Pitch Perfect will undoubtedly revolutionize American pop culture for years to come.
Get pitch slapped ASAP. This is one aca-mazing assault you won’t regret.
Pitch Perfect (PG-13, 112 min.)–directed by Jason Moore, with a screenplay by Kay Cannon, based on the book Pitch Perfect by Mickey Rapkin, and distributed by Universal Pictures–will be released in select cities on Friday, September 28, and everywhere on October 5.
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All photos: © 2012 – Universal Pictures.
