‘Pitch Perfect 2:’ Musically on pitch but far from perfect

Let’s be clear. This movie is on pitch musically. It is — however — far from perfect. To use a baseball metaphor, the first plot pitch is low and in the dirt. The a cappella champs are derailed when, at a Kennedy Center performance attended by President Obama and first lady Michelle, Fat Amy’s private parts get exposed.

Banned by the college from competition or from recruiting any new members, the only hope the Barden Bellas have is to perform is at the world championships. No American group has ever won that competition.

Ball one.

Plot line No. 2 misses the plate high and outside. A German a cappella group has replaced the Barden Bellas on campus and have psyched them out totally. No way do the Bellas think they’ll win in head-to-head competition. Bickering begins, and group — no pun intended — harmony disintegrates.

Ball two.

Plot pitch three is low and inside. Beca has taken a music producer internship and doesn’t have the courage to tell Chloe she’s not completely focused on the Bellas.

Ball three.

Pitch four dribbles out of the pitcher’s hand and doesn’t even get to the plate. The Bellas — against the rules — take on a new member whose mom used to be a Bella. She’s cute and talented but wants to write her own music. That’s a no-no.

Ball four.

There are about 10 other subplots; enough of them to load the bases and all are as predictable and boring as an old episode of the TV sitcom The Love Boat.

Where it gets a zero in plot, Pitch Perfect 2 hits a home run musically. The singing and performances are as good as it gets.

Aimed at young women, it will pack theaters with twentysomething females and a poor guy or two forced to go along. The rest of us will find it mind-numbingly boring. Personally, if I’m going to go to a theater to see this kind of music, I’d rather see the real thing in one of those special events the area’s theaters book from time to time.

This story was originally published May 14, 2015 at 4:00 PM with the headline "‘Pitch Perfect 2:’ Musically on pitch but far from perfect."