This week’s ‘Film Friday‘ comes a day late because I was busy colouring my hair. Sounds like a cop out, but I’m off work for two weeks and that means its the perfect time to turn my hair purple. The chlorine in the water at work (I’m a swimming teacher) just strips the colour straight off. So because I was preoccupied, I forgot all about this post. Oops.
Beware! There be spoilers ahead.
Pitch Perfect (2012). This film follows Beca as she starts at Barden University, and how she joins the on-campus all-female a capella group, ‘The Barden Bellas’. The group are fighting against the all-male group on campus, ‘The Treblemakers’, to win Nationals.
It stars Anna Kendrick as Beca, Skylar Astin as Jesse, Brittany Snow as Chloe, Anna Camp as Aubrey, Rebel Wilson as Fat Amy, Alexis Knapp as Stacie, Ester Dean as Cynthia Rose, Hanna Mae Lee as Lilly, Ben Platt as Benji, Adam DeVine as Bumper, Elizabeth Banks as Gail, and John Michael Higgins as John.
Beca joins the Bellas simply to appease her father who believes she isn’t participating in college life. Which is true because she doesn’t want to be there, she wants to be trying to get a career making music. Beca ends up radically changing the Bellas, for the best, and helping them win Nationals. Along the way the new group of girls become close friends, and Beca learns that she doesn’t have to always push people away.
I know a lot of people don’t like the Beca and Jesse relationship, but personally I think it’s perfect (HA. Pitch Perfect…). Jesse is sweet, and kind, and funny. He genuinely likes Beca, and at first is just trying to be her friend. She’s so closed off and dismissive of people it’s a little surprising that he even bothers to try. But he sees that she’s really this super loyal, smart, and spunky girl. I particularly love ‘The Breakfast Club’ plotline. It’s completely perfect, and no one can convince me otherwise!
The Bellas are all awesome. It’s such an eclectic, and representative, group of young women. The movie even points out their differences, but also strengths, in the way the Aubrey and Chloe are looking for specific girls for the group. But they end up with people they weren’t expecting, and learn that they can still do amazing things. In the end they are actually better for it, because this time they actually win!
The music in this film is also wonderful. The arrangements, and the harmonies, and even the choice of songs, are beautifully done. I never knew before how much I like a capella, but I left the theatre wishing that I could sing. Also the mashups! Boy, the mashups. Ugh. I just don’t know how to express how much I love it all.
It’s basically just a fun watch, incredibly funny, and completely quotable.
~*~
Aubrey: What’s your name?
Fat Amy: Fat Amy.
Aubrey: You call yourself Fat Amy?
Fat Amy: Yeah, so twig bitches like you don’t do it behind my back.
Bumper: I have a feeling we should kiss. Is that a good feeling or an incorrect feeling?
Fat Amy: Well… sometimes I have the feeling I can do crystal meth, but then I think, mmm… better not.
Jesse: You’re one of the a cappella girls. I’m one of those a cappella boys, and we’re gonna have aca-children. It’s inevitable.
Beca: You’re really drunk right now. I don’t think you’re gonna remember any of this.
Jesse: No, I’m not drunk at all. You’re just blurry.
Fat Amy: I’m gonna kill him! I’m gonna finish him like a cheesecake!
Fat Amy: You guys are gonna get pitch-slapped so hard, your man boobs are gonna concave.
Lilly: I set fires to feel joy.
Donald: That’s adorable.
Gail: Nothing makes a woman feel more like a girl than a man who sings like a boy.
~*~
I’ve decided to look at the sequel to ‘Pitch Perfect’ next! (though not next week, but the week after) Woo! Should be aca-awesome. Yeah. I went there.
– Gabi
