Yesterday, I snuck out to see a movie. There is not much at the $3 theater. Actually, there is nothing at the $3 theater because they have raised their prices to $3.50. Over the weekend, Matt Yglesias tweeted something to the effect that Pitch Perfect was very good. I have my problems with Yglesias, but he is smart so I didn’t even think about it. Plus, I saw the poster for it and it looked kind of industrial to me so I thought it might be something like Rent—but good. I should have known better.
Matt Yglesias is a big Breaking Bad fan. He even blogs about it. I too am a fan of the show. But whereas I saw that the fifth season was a complete failure—something that fans should forget about and assume the series ended at the very natural fourth season—Yglesias was very happy with it. So I think despite his notable intelligence and erudition, he doesn’t have much insight into drama. Especially after Pitch Perfect.
I should be clear: I didn’t see Pitch Perfect. At least, not all of it. I got into the theater, found my traditional seat in the middle of the fourth row and waited. I sent a text to Andrea, “I am seeing Pitch Perfect.” She shot back, “Ah. I thought that went straight to DVD.” Bad sign. It turned out she was wrong. Pitch Perfect made a bundle. Worse sign.
The movie starts with an a capella group competition. It was the kind of music I hate, but okay. Whatever. Then the girl group gets up and one of them vomits on stage. And then we are at the first day of college. And the nerdy kid thinks he isn’t because he does close-up magic (actually, that had a certain charm). And the girl with her midi keyboard and people making music on laptops. And the guys in chairs giving ratings of all the girls who walk by…
I ran from the theater. It had been 15 minutes. It was all too much Glee without the salve of Jane Lynch. Too much useless music. Too much teenage angst. I didn’t even like this kind of thing when I was 17. I remember being bothered in the movie Fame that Bruno would would write a stupid pop song like Fame. So I was glad to be rid of this unfortunate experience, even if it continues to haunt me.
Having said all this, I suspect the film is very good for teens and others who haven’t yet developed must taste for art. Or entertainment.
SO. So. So. True. Rented it on Amazon.com for 4 dollars. How I wish I had that $4 back. Awful film.
@Mary – Yeah, although I do kind of regret not finishing it. Recently, I went back and finished a really bad novel I had abandoned 10+ years earlier. But I’m glad to hear it didn’t improve.