But how do I feel about the movie being released in light of
my novel, which came out just under a year ago?
A little backstory is in order. I have several friends working
to help market the film across the country and attending these test screenings.
For weeks, I’ve been getting messages like, “Did you know the Pitch Perfect
movie uses the word ‘acapolitics?’ Is that legal?” My response is that of
course it’s legal. The idea of me, or anyone else, owning the use of “aca”-anything
is laughable.
And then there were text messages like, “You know the Pitch
Perfect movie is nothing like his book, right? Actually more like yours.” ‘His
book’ referring to Mickey Rapkin’s nonfiction Pitch Perfect, released 2009. A similar sentiment was recently
echoed by A Cappella Records’ President Chris Crawford. Crawford posted, “Saw a
screening of Pitch Perfect last night. Nothing like the book which is a really
good thing.”
I have to admit that I was concerned by the possibility that
the Pitch Perfect movie had used elements from AcaPolitics that were not found in Rapkin’s book. I’m also surrounded
by law students for most of the day. This can lead to the unhealthy belief that
suing is actually a good idea.
Upon seeing the film, however, I’m pretty much relieved. That
is, I think Pitch Perfect the film and my novel are substantially different.
This is not to say that there aren’t an awful lot of
similarities between AcaPolitics and the
Pitch Perfect movie. Off the top of my head: both introduce the main characters
at Freshmen Move-In Day; both zero in on the revelry of A Cappella Initiation
Night; both feature an all-female group that insists on singing traditional
girl pop from the 80s; both focus on the rivalries between acagroups at a
single university . . . Even the similarity between "Brighton" and "Barden" universities is a little funny. None of the resemblances I just mentioned are to be found in
Mickey Rapkin’s Pitch Perfect, even though
the film is supposedly based on this book.
For the most part, though, I think the commonalities stem
from the use of classic themes. For instance, the story of AcaPolitics starts with the two romantic interests being separated
into rival a cappella groups. This is the same story as Pitch Perfect the film,
but not the book. But obviously no one can cry foul here. This is just the ancient
tale of star-crossed lovers.
Similarly, I think screenwriter Kay Cannon and I are both drawing
heavily from stereotypes from the actual a cappella world. For example, the habit
of some singers to add “aca” as a prefix to every other word, with only occasional
success. E.g. Acacrush, acadrama, acaflirt, acatypes, acaverse, etc. Although I
must confess, Anna Camp’s delivery of “acascuseme?” in the film is priceless.
Of course, a film can do things a novel cannot, in this
case, audio-visual performance of songs. For any artistic treatment of
collegiate a cappella, actual singing is pretty darn helpful, even if the film’s
on-the-fly arranging is a little unrealistic.
By the same token, a novel can do things a film cannot. A
novel can explore, in much greater depth, a character's thoughts and feelings. And since we believe, or at least I believe, that great singing comes from
a deeper place, this internal inquiry seems relevant as well.
I saw Pitch Perfect at a theater in St. Louis, which is
admittedly a place where I know many members of the a cappella community. A
few memories stuck out during the screening. First, about two dozen heads
turned my direction when John Michael Higgins finally said the word
“acapolitics” in the film, and there were even a few cheers. Second, someone
approached my non-singing law school friend outside the bathroom and asked if I
was the guy who’d written AcaPolitics.
Seeing the movie had made him want to check out the original story.
Already “Pitch Perfect” is being compared in the press to
cult classic films like “Clueless” and “Bring It On.” Like them or hate them,
these movies have obsessive fans. (Those who have read my novel will remember
Wilson’s utter devotion to “Mean Girls.”) If the critics are correct and “Pitch
Perfect” turns out to be just such a film—if Beca, Bumper, and Fat Amy bring many
an obsessed fan into the fold—then this will be a great thing for the a
cappella movement. And I will be a happy acawriter, indeed.
*
AcaPolitics on Amazon; Pitch Perfect soundtrack.
*
AcaPolitics on Amazon; Pitch Perfect soundtrack.
(Amazon has reduced the Kindle version of AcaPolitics to just $2.99 for the month of October!)
