Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Melanie Martinez, a Season 3 contestant on The Voice, released her sophomore album Friday.

The version of “K-12” that includes the film was sitting at number four on the albums chart, below Post Malone, The Highwomen and TOOL.

The version of “K-12” that doesn’t include the film was sitting at number seven.

And both of the reviews I’ve found for the film so far are extremely complimentary.

In part, here’s what they have to say.

Altpress: “Martinez managed to do the near-impossible by delivering an even more cohesive and impressive effort than her previous. The vocalist presents a literal lesson on life, which for some may be a hard pill to swallow. But with Martinez, it comes in pastel pink and disguised by a bubble gum flavor, making it easy enough to accept while still getting the same expected results.”

Idolator: “It can’t be overstated what an epic achievement this is. Melanie has created a cohesive, funny, empowering film from scratch — and also delivered 13 bops.”

“K-12” also has a 94 percent score today on Rotten Tomatoes, and the YouTube version — which you can watch for free — has already been viewed more than 1.5 million times.

I watched the film as soon as it came out digitally and, quite frankly, was hoping for a bit stronger story line.

Melanie certainly tackles plenty of heavy / serious topics in the new songs — body image and self-love, bulimia and bullying, the pressure to fit it, the complications young girls face dealing with boys and men.

There are others too, so many that the film sometimes feels like it’s being pulled this way and that to accommodate the songs.

That said, it’s a marvelous looking film, featuring some wonderful moments of dark comedy.

In addition to serving up 13 new tunes sure to please fans, Melanie’s Cry Baby character has picked up a few dance moves.

And given the film’s cliff hanger ending, it’s likely not the last such project Melanie is envisioning.