Wednesday, October 3, 2012

The Five-Year Engagement (2012)


After one year of dating, Tom (Jason Segel) and Violet (Emily Blunt) decide to get married. Living in San Francisco, Tom is a highly skilled sous chef. Violet is a psychology graduate, and she receives an acceptance letter for a psychology program….but the program is at the University Of Michigan. Being the faithful and understanding boyfriend, Tom gives his two week notice, turns down a job offer as a head chef at a new restaurant, and he agrees to move to Michigan with Violet. But the happy couple endures some serious setbacks during a lengthy five-year engagement.

The Five Year Engagement’s run time caused a good amount of complaints. The complaints are somewhat exaggerated, because The Five Year Engagement clocks in at two hours and four minutes. The run time didn’t bother me at all, and boredom wasn’t a problem. In fact, The Five Year Engagement’s lengthy run time actually helped the story. This story isn’t complex at all. It’s quite formulaic, but still, the screenplay features a good amount of depth. The lengthy run time gives the story more breathing room, and with more time, the ups and downs in Tom and Violet’s relationship are clearly illustrated, as the story progresses.

Jason Segel and Emily Blunt are the true stars of this cast. Chris Pratt is hilarious, but Blunt and Segel shared some very believable chemistry. The supporting cast delivers a good amount of laughs, and acting is the major highlight for this film.

No real complaints about the directing. Nicholas Stoller’s style is pretty basic, but his directing doesn’t hurt this film at all.

The Five-Year Engagement can’t rise above your standard mainstream romantic comedy. This film could’ve been something special, but the ending is SO predictable. The happy ending is kind of corny, and of course, Tom and Violet deliver their “this is why I love you” speeches.

Still, The Five-Year Engagement is enjoyable. This film provides consistent laughs, Blunt and Segel share some excellent chemistry, and the entire supporting cast is fantastic. It’s a shame, because The Five-Year Engagement could’ve been so much better, but as far as romantic comedies go, this film isn‘t good enough to stand out amongst the pack.

Final Rating: 5/10

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