'Glee The 3D Concert Movie' review

Chris Colfer, Amber Riley and Jenna Ushkowitz (Credit: Adam Rose/20th Century Fox)

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The kids from Fox’s hit TV series “Glee” embark on their first international concert tour—in character. See Finn (Cory Monteith) and Rachel (Lea Michele) duet on “Somebody to Love,” Kurt (Chris Colfer) fight back tears during “I Want To Hold Your Hand,” Blaine (Darren Criss) and the Warblers redefine the “Teenage Dream,” Brittany (Heather Morris) get her Britney on with “I'm a Slave 4 U” and more! In 3D!

The buzz: You either understand what it means to be a Gleek or you don’t. And if you don’t, sitting through this feature length concert interspersed with bighearted profiles of three real life Gleeks and snippets of behind-the-scenes footage will make sure you get it. Even if you still don’t like it.

The verdict: For all its popularity and industry acclaim, “Glee” has also spawned some serious backlash. Conservative pundits criticize its upfront portrayal of teen sexuality (especially homosexuality), cranky TV critics gripe about rapid-fire tonal shifts and inconsistent characterizations (while giving less ambitious series a pass), and music snobs lament the chart domination of the cast’s quickie cover tunes. None of these haters are likely to be won over by “Glee The 3D Concert Movie,” a cheerfully pure pop experience designed for fans first and everyone else…well, whatever. Director Kevin Tancharoen (“Fame”) helms the high energy concert footage with a smooth efficiency—the performances were captured over two dates at New Jersey’s IZOD Center, revealing a well-oiled machine that includes solo numbers for nine of the 14 cast members between group performances and duets. The songs—all drawn from the series—represent a range of pop hits current (Katy Perry, Lady Gaga) and old school (from Michael Jackson and Rick Springfield to Tina Turner and Aretha Franklin, with a little Barbra Streisand for good measure). Briefly glimpsed backstage antics find Michele and Morris scoring the biggest laughs with their characters’ broad comic stylings, while Monteith, Dianna Agron, Jenna Ushkowitz, Chord Overstreet and Ashley Fink are noticeably absent from the fun. But the real message of “Glee”—and, yes, the slickly packaged concert movie has a candy-coated message—is a positive celebration of outsiders. Each of the three real life “Glee” fans profiled by documentary filmmaker Jennifer Arnold movingly reveal their personal struggles and triumphs to underscore the show’s central thesis that everyone is a misfit in some way, and the only solution is self-acceptance. Go ahead, hate on that.

Did you know? Look out for a brief flash of “The Glee Project” contestant Damian McGinty in one of the film’s many crowd shots. Is it a hint that he’s the one headed from reality TV to season three of “Glee”?

Follow Metromix's Geoff Berkshire on Twitter: @geoffberkshire