Pitch Perfect 2
Universal Pictures | Release Date: May 15, 2015 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
63
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 39 Critic Reviews
Positive:
25
Mixed:
12
Negative:
2
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
83
Entertainment WeeklyLeah GreenblattMay 13, 2015
PP2 sometimes feels less like a movie than a two-hour episode of Glee ghostwritten by Amy Schumer; jokes fly like they’re being shot from T-shirt guns at a gonzo pep rally, and not all of them stick the landing. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesBetsy SharkeyMay 14, 2015
The comedy choir wars are more intense, more absurd and more lowbrow fun than ever in Pitch Perfect 2. It is almost impossible not to be amused by the cutthroat world of competitive a cappella. Read full review
80
The TelegraphPatrick SmithMay 14, 2015
Pitch Perfect 2 is a joyous harmony of bawdy humour, campus high jinks and crisp musical performances. Read full review
80
EmpireOlly RichardsMay 12, 2015
The golden-larynxed franchise graduates with a merit. Read full review
80
Time Out LondonCath ClarkeMay 11, 2015
Pitch Perfect 2 is totally goofy but very sweet. Read full review
80
The Hollywood ReporterLeslie FelperinMay 7, 2015
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 full review
80
VarietyGuy LodgeMay 7, 2015
Kay Cannon’s script is even lighter on narrative than its predecessor, but fills any resulting void with a concentrated supply of riotous gags, and a renewed emphasis on the virtues of female collaboration and independence. Read full review
79
TheWrapAlonso DuraldeMay 13, 2015
The one element of “Pitch Perfect” that this new film can’t provide is surprise; if you’re willing to forfeit discovery in favor of some breezy déjà vu, however, Pitch Perfect 2 is totally playing your song. Read full review
78
Austin ChronicleWilliam GossMay 13, 2015
Mostly succeeds in spite of the apparent strain to serve the agendas of both its loyal audience and its fledgling stars. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerMolly EichelMay 15, 2015
The sameness of the two movies doesn't make the second feel like a re-tread. If anything, it feels comfortable. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalleMay 14, 2015
As of today, this is the most delightful movie out there. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeTom RussoMay 14, 2015
It’s simultaneously silly and progressive, a familiar movie moment reserved for the girl you’d least expect. Read full review
75
Washington PostStephanie MerryMay 14, 2015
A comedy that, if not always better than the first, is certainly more uproarious. Read full review
75
Rolling StonePeter TraversMay 14, 2015
The sequel is more musically varied, though Kay Cannon's script amps the sass at the expense of structure. But the MVP here is Elizabeth Banks. Read full review
75
New York PostKyle SmithMay 13, 2015
Not as aca-mazing as “Pitch Perfect” (which made my 10-best list for 2012), the follow-up should have been cut by 10 or 15 minutes. First-time director Elizabeth Banks (who returns as a snarky announcer) doesn’t have the zippy comic timing of the first film’s helmer, Jason Moore. Read full review
75
Slant MagazineRichard Scott LarsonMay 12, 2015
Even stronger than its predecessor, which didn't quite go as far in terms of representing these young women in a wider context. Read full review
75
HitfixGregory EllwoodMay 9, 2015
Where Banks truly excels is in directing the film's musical numbers. Read full review
70
SlateCarl WilsonMay 15, 2015
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. All that said, will I see it again, and would I watch a third installment? No doubt. Read full review
70
The New York TimesA.O. ScottMay 14, 2015
Some of the underdog appeal is gone, but a victory lap can be its own kind of fun, and more is not necessarily something to complain about, especially when what there is more of is Fat Amy. Read full review
70
Arizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzMay 14, 2015
We've been down this road before. But Pitch Perfect 2, goofier than the original, makes it an enjoyable trip. Read full review
67
Tampa Bay TimesSteve PersallMay 14, 2015
It's all more extravagant yet less charming then before. Read full review
67
The A.V. ClubJesse HassengerMay 13, 2015
It’s at once an encore, a postscript, and a fresh start. Read full review
63
RogerEbert.comSusan WloszczynaMay 15, 2015
As for the a capella performances, there is something a little prefab and not as organic as those in the first film. Read full review
63
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Brad WheelerMay 14, 2015
Although it works well as an encore, the likelihood is that this thing isn’t over until the Fat Amy zings again. Read full review
63
USA TodayClaudia PuigMay 14, 2015
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 full review
60
CineVueJames LuxfordMay 16, 2015
The biggest strength is in the Bellas themselves. More confident in their respective roles, Anna Kendrick in particular develops her lead from a prickly outsider to someone slightly more goofy, and by extension a little more likeable. Read full review
60
Total FilmMatt MaytumMay 12, 2015
If you loved Pitch Perfect you’ll find plenty to enjoy here because it’s pretty much exactly the same film, but there’s enough wit and warmth that it feels like a worthwhile sequel. Read full review
60
Screen DailyFionnuala HalliganMay 5, 2015
Pleasantly entertaining, Pitch Perfect 2 scrabbles for a raison d’etre, however, hoping that goodwill from the first show, coupled with a few raunchy gags and cameo appearances, will be enough to get by in the post-Glee age. Read full review
50
St. Louis Post-DispatchJoe WilliamsMay 14, 2015
Second verse, not as good as the first. Read full review
50
Chicago TribuneMichael PhillipsMay 14, 2015
It's a two-hour lesson in how to act like a frenemy to your alleged friends. And it's not funny enough. Read full review
50
The DissolveGenevieve KoskiMay 13, 2015
While there are individual delights within Pitch Perfect 2’s 115 minutes, they don’t add up to a functional, coherent film. There’s no harmony, only loud grandstanding. Read full review
50
Movie NationRoger MooreMay 13, 2015
So while the jokes often land and the music is still perfectly in tune, the novelty’s gone from “Pitch Perfect”, the sequel to the surprise hit of 2012. Read full review
50
Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperMay 12, 2015
Pitch Perfect 2 strains to find some plot conflicts while balancing the line between satire and rousing musical numbers. Read full review
50
Village VoiceStephanie ZacharekMay 12, 2015
The story is stuffed with subplots and gags that are sometimes fun by themselves but don’t quite cohere into a whole — the picture has a melismatic waywardness, as if it’s singing as fast as it can yet is never quite sure where it’s going. Read full review
50
The PlaylistRodrigo PerezMay 9, 2015
Perhaps due to its rote, by-the-numbers story, all of the original film’s less tangible, hard-to-bottle qualities are absent: its delightfulness, its playfulness, and its natural charisma. Read full review
40
New York Daily NewsJacob HallMay 15, 2015
Pitch Perfect 2 follows the same template as part one, but it’s unmemorable. Read full review
40
New Orleans Times-PicayuneMike ScottMay 15, 2015
While Pitch Perfect 2 feels like it leaves much on the table, that'll be plenty good enough to give its fans something to sing about -- until the inevitable "Pitch Perfect 3." Read full review
38
ReelViewsJames BerardinelliMay 17, 2015
Regardless of whatever ephemeral entertainment this production may offer to some, it is not by any reasonable definition a good movie. It is badly written, inexpertly directed, poorly acted, erratically paced, and features music of dubious worth. Read full review
30
New York Magazine (Vulture)David EdelsteinMay 17, 2015
I’m also guessing Kendrick did not want to come back. I’ve never seen her so flat-out bad — distracted, depressed, conviction-less. Anna, I still adore you, but you should have tried to make it work. Read full review
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