Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

The Five-Year Engagement, a Spinning but Aimless Turnstile of Gags

Emily Blunt rescues parts of The Five-Year Engagement, but not the movie.
Emily Blunt rescues parts of The Five-Year Engagement, but not the movie.
Movie

Five-Year Engagement *

thumbnail

Emily Blunt is so honestly appealing that she saves moments, but nothing can save the film. Director Nicholas Stoller wrote this glib junk with actor Jason Segel, who has many moments of stupid, fumbling vulnerability as a young chef resentful when teacher Blunt outpaces him. Engaged, they push off marriage, and the main reason (unspoken) is that they never seem like a couple. Pathetic, often crude jokes extend their silly predicament in dumb ways, though Blunt keeps this mess intermittently watchable.

Find showtimes

Emily Blunt is so sanely appealing that her honest touches rescue parts of The Five-Year Engagement, but not the movie. What could? Director Nicholas Stoller wrote it with actor Jason Segel, who gave himself a showcase as Tom, engaged to Violet (Blunt). They meet cute in San Francisco (poorly shot, which is an achievement), then fail to get married after moving to Michigan for Violet’s academic career.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Resentful Tom, formerly a rising chef, works in a mediocre shop, grows a beard, drinks, learns to kill deer, and makes dull meals of venison. The one clear reason the couple are not yet married is never spoken: they lack real chemistry together. Blunt has sure, unforced charisma. But Segel is like a sitcom variation of Brendan Fraser and is given too many close-ups (also butt shots).

He plods through the ridiculous plot, a spinning but aimless turnstile of gags about Tom Hanks, Princess Diana, Star Trek, Gwyneth Paltrow, a lesbian chef, ethic types, Michael Jordan, the Cookie Monster, Midwestern dolts, frostbite, tacos, Violet’s smarmy boss (Rhys Ifans), dead grandparents, kids, vomiting, and many sex performance jokes.

In this chick flick full of chatty tangents, comedy often seems targeted to a young male demographic. Is that for a unisex balance of crass laughs? When a pretty blonde suddenly spews crude abuse at Tom, it feels unfair to her, him, and us. These dumb comedies are running out of ways to shock us, and they lack the screwball wit to cover their silly, gaping contrivances.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

SDSU pres gets highest pay raise in state over last 15 years

Union-Tribune still stiffing downtown San Diego landlord?
Next Article

2024 continues to impress with yellowfin much closer to San Diego than they should be

New rockfish regulations coming this week as opener approaches
Emily Blunt rescues parts of The Five-Year Engagement, but not the movie.
Emily Blunt rescues parts of The Five-Year Engagement, but not the movie.
Movie

Five-Year Engagement *

thumbnail

Emily Blunt is so honestly appealing that she saves moments, but nothing can save the film. Director Nicholas Stoller wrote this glib junk with actor Jason Segel, who has many moments of stupid, fumbling vulnerability as a young chef resentful when teacher Blunt outpaces him. Engaged, they push off marriage, and the main reason (unspoken) is that they never seem like a couple. Pathetic, often crude jokes extend their silly predicament in dumb ways, though Blunt keeps this mess intermittently watchable.

Find showtimes

Emily Blunt is so sanely appealing that her honest touches rescue parts of The Five-Year Engagement, but not the movie. What could? Director Nicholas Stoller wrote it with actor Jason Segel, who gave himself a showcase as Tom, engaged to Violet (Blunt). They meet cute in San Francisco (poorly shot, which is an achievement), then fail to get married after moving to Michigan for Violet’s academic career.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Resentful Tom, formerly a rising chef, works in a mediocre shop, grows a beard, drinks, learns to kill deer, and makes dull meals of venison. The one clear reason the couple are not yet married is never spoken: they lack real chemistry together. Blunt has sure, unforced charisma. But Segel is like a sitcom variation of Brendan Fraser and is given too many close-ups (also butt shots).

He plods through the ridiculous plot, a spinning but aimless turnstile of gags about Tom Hanks, Princess Diana, Star Trek, Gwyneth Paltrow, a lesbian chef, ethic types, Michael Jordan, the Cookie Monster, Midwestern dolts, frostbite, tacos, Violet’s smarmy boss (Rhys Ifans), dead grandparents, kids, vomiting, and many sex performance jokes.

In this chick flick full of chatty tangents, comedy often seems targeted to a young male demographic. Is that for a unisex balance of crass laughs? When a pretty blonde suddenly spews crude abuse at Tom, it feels unfair to her, him, and us. These dumb comedies are running out of ways to shock us, and they lack the screwball wit to cover their silly, gaping contrivances.

Comments
Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Centennial Salute to San Diego’s Military, East Village Block Party, Birding Basics Class

Events March 29-March 30, 2024
Next Article

Nation’s sexy soldiers stage protest at Pendleton in wake of change in Marine uniform policy

Semper WHY?
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.