Pitch Perfect 3 (2017)

“Pitch Perfect 3” stars Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson, Brittany Snow, Anna Camp, Hailee Steinfeld, Alexis Knapp, Hana Mae Lee, Ester Dean, and Chrissie Fit.  Released on December 22, 2017, the film has the Bellas performing at the United Service Organizations tour.

The film is directed by Trish Sie, who also directed Step Up: All In, and it is the third and final film in the Pitch Perfect series.  These young A Cappella women have stolen our hearts for five years, going from a small-budget sleeper hit to an unsuspecting trilogy filled with toe-tapping music and fun characters.  It has been a crazy journey for these girls, but alas, all things must come to an end.  Pitch Perfect is one of the films that I didn’t expect to like so much, while its sequel, Pitch Perfect 2, offered more of the same, but still has its moments.  With the success of the last two movies, Hollywood has decided to make at least one more chapter before the franchise reaches its highest peak of staleness.  While the payoff was slightly above average compared to the other trilogy-ending films, it never lost sight on some of the qualities that made the first two installments enjoyable.

After graduating from college, the Bellas have gone their separate ways to pursue their own careers.  Unfortunately, for them, their paths didn’t go exactly as planned.  Soon afterwards, they decided to perform one last show together at an overseas tour which will lead them on a globe-trotting adventure.  The film’s story does contain a couple of similar plot elements that were introduced in its predecessors, such as the Bellas competing with the opponents that perform better than them, but there were also some different surprises that make this installment stand out, for better or for worse.  In terms of its execution, the story didn’t do that much to send the franchise out on a high note.  Instead, it send the franchise out on an average note.  The main elements that carried the first two Pitch Perfect films forward were the chemistry between the main cast and the cover songs, and this one is no exception.  Most of the main cast once again reprised their roles as their respective characters, such as Kendrick as Beca and Wilson as Fat Amy, along with some new characters that didn’t quite shine as much as the old characters.  We got Ruby Rose as Calamity, the lead singer of one of the bands competing against the Bellas, DJ Khaled as the film’s version of himself, and surprisingly John Lithgow as a character who may or may not be related to Fat Amy.  All I can say about him is that if they remove him out of the film completely, the plot will still be the same.  I didn’t mind Lithgow being in the movie, but his character is, without a doubt, the most predictable and pointless character that the franchise has to offer.  Aside from that, the actresses that portrayed the Bellas provided some really entertaining chemistry together.  The cover songs that were performed by the cast are delightful as usual, with the riff-off sequence being my main highlight of the film.  The humor was also a bit of an issue compared to its predecessors.  Based on what I saw, I can clearly understand why they wanted to make it their last.  It was able to provide a few humorous scenes, but most of them were either stale or overdone, most notably Fat Amy.

Overall, “Pitch Perfect 3” concludes its five-year tour with a small bang instead of a big bang.  The film still retains the cast’s charming chemistry and its fun cover songs, but due to its storytelling, some weak humor, and John Lithgow’s character, these elements aren’t enough to provide a strong farewell to the remarkable A Cappella gang.  It’s enjoyable for those who like the other Pitch Perfect films, but noticeably flawed for non-fans.

C+