Gender: Comedy, Music
Release Date: 5 October 2012 (USA)
Writers: Kay Cannon (screenplay), Mickey Rapkin (book)
Stars: Anna Kendrick, Brittany Snow and Rebel Wilson
Plot:
The story follows an all-girls acapella group, "The Bellas" in their battle to beat the reigning national acapella group. The Bellas are performing at Lincoln Center in the acapella finals. The captain of the team tells Chloe and Aubrey, her two soloists, that she can't believe she's being forced to leave the group in their hands when she graduates in the fall. The group goes out to perform but, stressed from all the pressure, Aubrey ends up getting sick on the stage during her solo.
Beca, a girl who wishes to become a famous DJ in Los Angeles, is forced to go to attend Barden College, where her father teaches, because he does not approve of her choice in careers. Arriving to her first day at college in a cab, Beca sees a male student singing to himself in a car. She enters her new dorm room to meet her roommate, Kimmy Jin, who wants absolutely nothing to do with her. Wanting to escape when her father attempts to visit her dorm room, Beca attends the activities fair. There, she is introduced to the Bellas, who are scouting for new members after their embarrassment in finals the previous year left them in need of new talent. Chloe and Aubrey, now senior members of The Bellas, urge Beca to audition for them, but she turns them down. Beca then receives an internship at the local radio station, along with Jesse, the boy that Beca remembers seeing singing to himself in a car earlier.
Beca's father finds out she has not been going to class and chastises her for not getting involved during the month she's been at school. He makes a deal with her that if she joins a club and proves that she's tried to be involved he will let her leave for LA to pursue DJing at the end of the year if she still wants to. Beca tries to use the radio station as her activity, however, her father says she must find a social group and Beca agrees she will.
Beca is singing to herself as she heads into the shower when suddenly she is cornered by Chloe who heard her singing from the next shower stall over. Beca, tries to get Chloe to leave but Chloe maintains she will not go until Beca sings with her. The girls harmonize on a few lines of "Titanium" and Chloe begs Beca to audition for The Bellas. At the acapella auditions all hopefuls are told to sing a bit of Kelly Clarkson's "Since U Been Gone" and are told if a group is interested in having them join the group will then contact them. Beca decides to audition last minute, performing "Cups" after Chloe tells her she can perform whichever song she likes. Beca, as well as 8 other girls, including "Fat Amy" are inducted into the Bellas. During a post-induction party, Beca finds out that Jesse has made it into the Treble Makers, the Bellas' all-boy acapella rivals.
At practice, Aubrey's determination to stick to tradition and Beca's contemporary beats clash. Aubrey insists on using the same set list that The Bellas have been using for years which does not feature any contemporary songs. She also insists that the girls stick to a cardio routine which does not appeal to Fat Amy. Aubrey is very critical of the group, constantly putting down the other girls and saying that they are not trying hard enough.
Beca provides the head of the radio station which several mixes she has made which combine contemporary songs that she meshes together. However, he puts them aside without listening. Beca then plays some of her mixes for Jesse who compliments her on her talent. He then tries to get Beca to watch the ending of The Breakfast Club after Beca tells him she does not like movies because they bore her and she never gets to the ending.
The group attends a "Riff-Off" in which the acapella groups "battle" through song. A category is chosen and a group starts to sing, another group can interrupt them by singing the same word of a different time as the original singer. The first category "Ladies of the 80s" ends with two acapella groups being disqualified leaving only The Bellas and Treble Makers to battle in the new category of "Songs About Sex."
Despite their issues, The Bellas attend the regional acapella competition. On the way to the venue, the group stops for gas where Fat Amy is hit by a burrito by the passing Treble Makers in their own bus. Screaming that she's 'been shot' the girls clean up Fat Amy and continue on the way to the venue singing their own version of Party In The USA. Fat Amy forgot to actually put gas in the bus after being hit by the burrito so the group is forced to call the Treble Makers to drive them to the venue. In spite of their bland set list, the group manages to place second at the regional acapella competition.
At state finals, Beca sees how bored the audience is with Aubrey's traditional arrangement, she provides impromptu back-up, mash-up vocals. The Bellas come in third in the competition behind the Treble Makers and another group. Even though the audience was pleased, Aubrey was not and kicks Beca out of the group. The Bellas then find out that the other group that made finals was disqualified as one of their members was really in high school. The group gets back together after spring break to prepare for finals but Beca is not included.
The Bellas struggle to find their group without their final group member. Beca begins DJ-ing at the radio station during spring break to fill her time. She finds a copy of The Breakfast Club, Jesse's favorite movie, and watches it. She realizes how much she needs The Bellas in her life. Her father convinces her to re-join the Bellas, who she finds falling apart. The now complete-again Bellas have a heart-to-heart, and decide to kick things up a notch with Beca's 21st century mash-ups. At the national competition, The Bellas sing a piece arranged by Beca, including "Don't You (Forget About Me)", the theme from The Breakfast club.
In the final scene we see the students lining up to audition for the acapellas groups the following fall with Beca amongst the returning Bellas member showing that she decided to skip moving to LA to focus on being in college and enjoying time with her friends.
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