Edgy, teen-friendly musical comedy uplifts with song, heart.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 13+?
Any Positive Content?
Language
some
"Bitch" is frequent and casual (and "pitch," which sounds like it, is used as a stand-in). Also one "f--k," "s--t," "t--s," "slutbags," "ass," "crap," "hell," "d--k," and "Jesus" (as an exclamation).
Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.
Characters kiss and make sexual innuendoes about each other's sex lives. Suggestive dancing during musical numbers. A couple's feet are shown sharing one shower, suggesting that they're being intimate.
Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.
A melee breaks out -- though viewers don't really see any of the blows -- and a window winds up shattered. A sprinkling of verbal skirmishes, with name-calling.
Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.
Find your passion, and don't be afraid to take risks. Open your heart to love, and it might find you. Joining groups may require you to overcome your skepticism and fears, but it may also lead you to even greater happiness. Teamwork is important.
Positive Role Models
some
Beca's free-thinking approach inspires the rest of the Bellas, though it does take them a while to learn how to be supportive of one another. Lots of emphasis on teamwork, perseverance, and how sometimes in the pursuit of the good of the team, a member has to be flexible, curious, and unselfish. Unfortunately, many characters are fatphobic, and that's normalized (see Diverse Representations for more details.)
Diverse Representations
a little
The a cappella ensemble is made up of women across races and body shapes, but main storylines are reserved for characters like Beca, Jesse, Fat Amy, Chloe, and Aubrey who are all White. Cynthia Rose is Black and a lesbian -- White character Denise is also a lesbian. The Bellas embrace them but also make several lesbian jokes. Fat Amy reclaims the word "fat" in order to prevent bullies from getting to her, but overall, the film's focus on her weight as her main identity -- and the fatphobic way other characters treat her -- is an issue.
Parents need to know that Pitch Perfect is a winning musical comedy about a college a cappella group that kicked off a franchise. Expect strong language ("s--t," "bitch," "d--k," and one use of "f--k"), drug references, and underage drinking. There's also kissing and lots of sexual innuendo. Although the Bellas are a racially diverse ensemble, main characters are White. Two of the Bellas are lesbians, embraced by the group but also the butt of lesbian jokes. Fat Amy's identity is reduced to her weight. But even with iffy representations that haven't aged well, positive messages include the importance of teamwork, perseverance, and curiosity. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails.
This is not a movie for kids - it's set at a college / University and that's the target audience. There's way too many sexual references and outdated racist / sexist / homophobic jokes throughout this film to let anyone under 16 watch, and even then I'd say only if they were intelligent enough to see the problems with it. Such a shame that most of the movie is funny but it's let down by a dozen or so bad jokes. Really not sure how it got an r13 rating.
my sisters and I watched this movie together. (ages 12,10,7&3) it was very good we had no problem with any of the "sex talk," drinking and language and we had no problem with the violence . my mom had no problem with it and she watched it with my sisters and i. my friend and i have watched it multiple times together without an adult and parents had no problem with it.
What's the Story?
Beca (Anna Kendrick), an aspiring mixmaster/DJ, is a freshman at Barden University in PITCH PERFECT. Her father, a professor, won't let her drop out of college to move to Los Angeles and start her DJ-ing career without having her try college first. He ups the ante when he notices Beca spending more time in her dorm room than out on campus, attending classes and getting to know her peers. If she joins one group and gives it her all and still ends the year determined to move, he'll finance it himself. So off to the Bellas she goes; the Bellas, once an esteemed all-girl a cappella group, need new members. At the nationals the previous year, the now co-captain, Aubrey (Anna Camp), threw up onstage, ruining their chances. Then again, the Bellas have always played second fiddle to the Treblemakers, Barden's all-male group; the Bellas' repertoire is steeped in old songs, and they're stale. Beca thinks it's time to shake things up, and most everyone else agrees, but Aubrey is firmly in the skeptical camp. Can they make a comeback at this year's nationals? And can Beca keep her mind on the game when the Treblemakers' sweet and talented Jesse (Skylar Astin) is such a distraction?
It's a joy to watch a comedy like this, which wraps you up in belly laughs and catchy songs and makes whatever ails you seem far, far away. Let's take it from the top: Pitch Perfect's Kendrick is a delight. Plus, special kudos to Rebel Wilson, whose subversively awesome Fat Amy bravely reclaims a word meant to hurt her. And all of the a cappella troupes assembled here (or the voices behind them) are fantastic. Never mind that they're kitschy and earnest and seriously competitive about their craft (which, in some circles, is considered decidedly uncool). The beauty of it is they don't care; they just want to make music. Pitch Perfect hits lots of the right notes and will leave you in stitches and singing long after the credits roll.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about why Beca seems so jaded when she first steps on campus in Pitch Perfect. Is her position -- that she doesn't need to be in college to pursue her dream -- defensible?
Fat Amy calls herself "fat" as a way to get ahead of any possible bullying and because she's proud of herself just the way she is. What do you think of this approach? (Also, talk to your kids about bullying and why it's not OK, plus how to handle it if it happens to them.)
Do college campuses really have this much competition among student groups? Are a cappella groups this cutthroat? What's the realistic take on this?
MPAA explanation:
sexual material, language and drug references
Last updated:
September 1, 2024
Did we miss something on diversity?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
suggesting a diversity update.
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.