1) People Singing Together Is A Really Happy Activity
When you rewatch Pitch Perfect it can be kind of a mystery why we want the Barden Bella's to succeed at all. Sure Anna Kendrick is super charasmatic, but she seems happy doing her own thing and chasing other goals. And for the most part the Bella's are an incredibly dysfunctional group who we know almost nothing about. It would be easier to think they'd be happier if they weren't together, but you don't feel like that for some reason.
And it's really as simple as a song. Before or after every low point in the film, there's a scene of the Bella's spontaneously singing together, not in contest, but because they're all sharing in something happy that they love.
Tyrannical training montage? Immediately followed up by everyone forgetting the riff-off and singing Anna Kendricks song. About to break-up? Preceded by a sing-a-long in the bus.
There's something just pure happiness about people choosing to sing together just for fun. And Pitch Perfect 1&2 understand this perfectly and use it to smooth over all the bumps in the narrative. These moments are literally all the driving motivation in the films, but it's all there needs to be.
2) It's Really About Aubrey
It might not look like it, but Pitch Perfect 1 is Aubrey's story, the leader of the Bella's. I don't think the script even meant it to be that way, but Anna Camp is such a good actor in this film that she ends up making it about her.
You can see every beat of the film in Aubrey's expressions. Disdain, surprise, happiness-in-spite-of-herself fear... She's meant to be an obstacle for Anna Kendrick to overcome, but instead it becomes a redemption story for her strange mix of perfect posture control with insecurity and the film becomes about her learning to be a more happy person.
Most of the narrative threads in PP 1 are pretty weak, but Aubrey's becomes the spine that keeps everything going. If you want to see them succeed because of the fun when they sing, Audbrey shows you what the success is.
And this is where Pitch Perfect 2 flounders a little, it's songs are amazing and capture the pure fun of the first film. They easily make it worth watching, but Aubrey is relegated to a cameo and whilst they have a lot of plot threads, no-one really steps into her role to tie it all together.
Two Keys To Staying in Tune
1) People Singing Together Is A Really Happy Activity
When you rewatch Pitch Perfect it can be kind of a mystery why we want the Barden Bella's to succeed at all. Sure Anna Kendrick is super charasmatic, but she seems happy doing her own thing and chasing other goals. And for the most part the Bella's are an incredibly dysfunctional group who we know almost nothing about. It would be easier to think they'd be happier if they weren't together, but you don't feel like that for some reason.
And it's really as simple as a song. Before or after every low point in the film, there's a scene of the Bella's spontaneously singing together, not in contest, but because they're all sharing in something happy that they love.
Tyrannical training montage? Immediately followed up by everyone forgetting the riff-off and singing Anna Kendricks song. About to break-up? Preceded by a sing-a-long in the bus.
There's something just pure happiness about people choosing to sing together just for fun. And Pitch Perfect 1&2 understand this perfectly and use it to smooth over all the bumps in the narrative. These moments are literally all the driving motivation in the films, but it's all there needs to be.
2) It's Really About Aubrey
It might not look like it, but Pitch Perfect 1 is Aubrey's story, the leader of the Bella's. I don't think the script even meant it to be that way, but Anna Camp is such a good actor in this film that she ends up making it about her.
You can see every beat of the film in Aubrey's expressions. Disdain, surprise, happiness-in-spite-of-herself fear... She's meant to be an obstacle for Anna Kendrick to overcome, but instead it becomes a redemption story for her strange mix of perfect posture control with insecurity and the film becomes about her learning to be a more happy person.
Most of the narrative threads in PP 1 are pretty weak, but Aubrey's becomes the spine that keeps everything going. If you want to see them succeed because of the fun when they sing, Audbrey shows you what the success is.
And this is where Pitch Perfect 2 flounders a little, it's songs are amazing and capture the pure fun of the first film. They easily make it worth watching, but Aubrey is relegated to a cameo and whilst they have a lot of plot threads, no-one really steps into her role to tie it all together.