dvd of the week
Written by 30 Rock writer Kay Cannon and directed by Avenue Q’s Jason Moore; Pitch Perfect is Bring It On crossed with Glee with an injection of Bridesmaids. It’s not perfect, but it’s a damn funny crowd-pleaser.
Beca (Anna Kendrick) is a world-weary freshman at Barden University who spends her free time making mash-ups on her DJ equipment. Barden is an a cappella powerhouse, with two out of four of its groups having made the national championships.
The men’s group the Treblemakers always wins, while the women’s group the Bellas was humiliated at the previous championship when Aubrey (Anna Camp), it’s now-leader, vomited during her solo.
This year is for rebuilding, and Aubrey and her friend Chloe (Brittany Snow) aggressively recruit a new group, scoring a motley crew of weirdos, including a very reluctant Beca, “the best singer in Tasmania” who named herself “Fat Amy” (Rebel Wilson) and a girl named Lilly (Hana Mae Lee), whose voice is barely audible.
Aubrey is desperate to beat the Treblemakers at nationals, and since it is a genre film, Cannon doesn’t stray from the expected plot turns.
