Centered around a competitive college acapella group, the Pitch Perfect films have offered some of the most unique comedic products in recent times. “Pitch Perfect 3” is another winning entry in the series that wraps up the characters’ stories effectively while succeeding as an entertaining romp in its own right.
A few years after graduation and the events of “Pitch Perfect 2,” the Barden Bellas live unsatisfying lives in the real world.
Beca (Anna Kendrick) is a producer for untalented musicians, Fat Amy (Rebel Wilson) is jobless and Chloe (Brittany Snow) desperately misses performing acapella. So when an opportunity presents itself for the Bellas to tour for the troops overseas, the girls leap at the chance to come back together for one last hurrah.
“Pitch Perfect 3” smartly ditches some of the more insignificant material of the last two films.
There are no tedious romantic subplots plaguing Beca or Fat Amy, giving the film better comedic streamlining. Similarly while Elizabeth Banks and John Michael Higgins return as the tasteless acapella competition co-anchors, they are also thankfully less present. Although the pair could be funny, I often found their cutaway gags intrusive in the past two films.
Like the last two films, “Pitch Perfect 3” can get a bit gratuitous in its music numbers, considering the film itself isn’t really a musical. The numbers are well directed and entertaining enough — and you should already know what you’re getting into by this point.
The film also continues the weirdly irreverent, wonky sense of self-aware humor from the past two entries to great effect.
Jokes are fired non-stop from the main and supporting cast, and it’s easy to miss many of them on a first viewing. From Kendrick’s deadpan delivery as Beca to the returning mania of Anna Camp’s Audrey, the quality of the comedy is never compromised for the great quantity. This is what allows for the diverse cast to work so well, making even the most minor of roles stand out from the crowd.
Wilson is also allotted a lot more screen time as Fat Amy this time around. With the return of her long-absent father, played by John Lithgow, her arc takes up a decent portion of the film. The arc was fun enough, and Wilson’s over-the-top antics were often hilarious.
It could be argued the film jumps the shark near the end, but I’d recommend to just go with it and have fun. It’s not like this is a particularly serious series anyway.
“Pitch Perfect 3” is a good progression of the last two films, hitting notes of post-grad terror and yearning for the heyday past. As a likely finale for the Bellas, the film is a gratifying and sweet conclusion to the Pitch Perfect series.
A-
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Hector Valverede is a culture reporter with the Daily Lobo. He primarily writes movie reviews. He can be contacted at culture@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @hpvalverde.
