Pitch Perfect 2 2015

Christy Lemire, ChristyLemire.com: Stop me if you think you've heard this one before. Read more

Wesley Morris, Grantland: There's no interest in surprising us even a little bit. Read more

Kyle Smith, New York Post: There are a half-dozen hilarious scenes, the Barden Bellas' new nemesis is awesomely weird, and you could hardly find a more endearing group of college students played by 30-year-old actresses. Read more

Guy Lodge, Variety: Elizabeth Banks makes a credible directing debut with a riotous, even more female-driven sequel to the 2012 hit. Read more

Jesse Hassenger, AV Club: It's not as smooth a ride as Pitch Perfect, but it doesn't really need to be. Read more

Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic: The movie is really just a group of sketches strung together. But so was "Animal House" and "Caddyshack," really, and no one complains about them. Read more

Tom Russo, Boston Globe: Actress-turned-director Elizabeth Banks delivers a comedy that's slightly broader than the first film, and just as infectious. Read more

Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune: For big fans of the first "Pitch Perfect," the sequel will not aggravate or offend. But I swear, in one party sequence Kendrick appears to be stifling a yawn. Read more

Tom Long, Detroit News: A movie with attitude and energy that's not as aca-amazing as the original, but still makes for semi-shiny summertime fun. Read more

Leah Greenblatt, Entertainment Weekly: Jokes fly like they're being shot from T-shirt guns at a gonzo pep rally, and not all of them stick the landing. But the story also gives big, joyful voice to groups whose members have spent their whole lives being targeted because of who they are ... Read more

Leslie Felperin, Hollywood Reporter: Reprising the kind of musical performances, campus hijinks, stinging humor and sassy sisterhood put in place by its eminently likeable predecessor, Pitch Perfect 2 remixes the elements and comes up with something even slicker and sharper. Read more

Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: It is an impressive feature directing debut, with Banks handling the high-octane chaos of "Pitch" with almost perfect aplomb. Read more

Tony Hicks, San Jose Mercury News: "Pitch Perfect 2" actually is more enjoyable than the original. First-time director Elizabeth Banks manages to move the story forward and wrap it up nicely without killing the concept. Read more

Rafer Guzman, Newsday: Inspired musical numbers, an uninvested Kendrick and too many ethnic jokes make this comedy a mixed bag. Read more

Richard Brody, New Yorker: Ethnic cliches abound, college comes off as a free sleepaway camp, and the simple wonders of unaccompanied singing are inflated to Las Vegas-style bombast. Read more

Andrew Lapin, NPR: Despite so much returning talent (the film also shares the same screenwriter in Kay Cannon), Pitch Perfect 2 is singing a completely different tune from the 2012 original. And the notes are feeling a bit over-produced. Read more

Jacob Hall, New York Daily News: Like many of the musical artists whose songs are covered, the series has suffered a slump with its second outing. "Pitch Perfect 2" plays the notes, but not the music. Read more

A.O. Scott, New York Times: The casual busyness of the plots does not distract from the essence of the movie, which is the pleasure and occasional stress of hanging out with like-minded girlfriends as you ease your way toward adulthood. Read more

Jocelyn Noveck, Associated Press: Really, all the news is good about this sequel: It is, if anything, funnier than the original. Read more

Molly Eichel, Philadelphia Inquirer: The sameness of the two movies doesn't make the second feel like a re-tread. If anything, it feels comfortable. Read more

James Berardinelli, ReelViews: It is badly written, inexpertly directed, poorly acted, erratically paced, and features music of dubious worth. Read more

Richard Roeper, Chicago Sun-Times: For a movie about the cheerfully bizarre world of competition a cappella singing, "Pitch Perfect 2" seems just as obsessed, if not more so, with characters who seem to be sexually confused. Read more

Peter Travers, Rolling Stone: There's no effing fun in a summer where you can't sing along with the Barden Bellas. So thank the aca-gods for this spirited sequel in which familiarity does not breed Glee-style contempt. Read more

Anna Silman, Salon.com: It's a big, estrogen-filled, foot-stompin, booty-shakin' a cappella party, and I didn't want to leave. Read more

Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times: As before, it's great fun to hear the singing, watch the choreography ... and enjoy the camaraderie of the extremely well-coiffed Bellas, all of whom are first-rate at bantering and hair-flipping. Next time, though, can we try another key? Read more

Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle: As of today, this is the most delightful movie out there. Read more

Carl Wilson, Slate: This sequel succumbs to a predictable syndrome and goes big when it should have gone home. Its self-satisfaction is a step toward cynicism, and that is what a Pitch Perfect film must never be. Read more

Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune: Once again it's the story of a group whose members must improve a stale repertoire if they hope to win a competition. Which is essentially what sequels like this have to do. Read more

Joe Williams, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Second verse, not as good as the first. Read more

Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic: What felt like winking cheekiness in the first movie can come across now more like clumsy provocation. Read more

Brad Wheeler, Globe and Mail: What we have is an update that is tighter, slicker and fine-tuned in more ways than one - no doubt music to the ears of the fans of a flowering franchise. Read more

Bruce Demara, Toronto Star: There are just too many moments when jokes fail to ignite and Banks' answer seems to be: "throw in another song." Read more

Alonso Duralde, TheWrap: Serves it all up again, with just enough flashes of absurdist wit, musical brio and new characters to keep this serviceably fun follow-up from going down like a plate of lukewarm leftovers. Read more

Cath Clarke, Time Out: Totally goofy but very sweet. Read more

Liz Braun, Toronto Sun: Pitch Perfect 2 is sweet, predictable story, but it's shored up by some hilarious and absurd action on the sidelines. Read more

Claudia Puig, USA Today: While just a jot less fun than its predecessor, Pitch Perfect 2 is a worthy sequel in tone, even if the story feels padded with a few too many montages. Read more

Stephanie Zacharek, Village Voice: Pitch Perfect 2 tries to fork over many of the pleasures of the first movie without changing them around all that much. Read more

David Edelstein, New York Magazine/Vulture: It actually is difficult to write a review of Pitch Perfect 2. First you have to think up and reject a bunch of adjectives and nouns to pair with "a ca," as in, "It's a ca-lousy" ... Read more

Stephanie Merry, Washington Post: A comedy that, if not always better than the first, is certainly more uproarious. Read more