PRINTMovie Review: The Five-Year Engagement
Jason Segel provides comic relief in this otherwise dry film
Universal Pictures
Emily Blunt and Jason Segel attempt to make audiences laugh with their relationship woes.
April 28, 2012 | 10:12 a.m. CST
The previews for The Five-Year Engagement are all somewhat funny. Unfortunately, those are the only somewhat funny parts about this movie.
Only after a year of dating, a nervous Tom, played by Jason Segel, asks Violet, played by Emily Blunt, to marry him. Violet says yes, but everything in their lives is screaming no. After accepting a two-year research position at the University of Michigan, they postpone the engagement and move from San Francisco to Michigan. After the move, the relationship is tested, and again the wedding is postponed. Between the move, Tom losing himself and growing a scary lumberjack-esk beard and the death of about three grandparents, nothing seems to be going right for this pair and makes the movie almost depressing.
The biggest let down, however, is seeing a scene from the previews that I couldn’t wait to see put into context. We all know the scene. A little girl in the kitchen saying, “I’m Katniss,” while shooting Violet with a bow and arrow. Let’s just say, the little girl in the movie probably has no idea who Katniss Everdeen is — sadness.
Luckily, seeing Jason Segel in a pink bunny suit and heinous handmade knit sweaters can most likely make anyone smile. The ending makes up for all of the sadness as well. It is a romantic comedy after all. Do we really have to tell you how it ends?
Vox Rating:
