The Last Five Years (film)

The Last Five Years
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Richard LaGravenese
Produced by	Janet Brenner Kurt Deutsch Richard LaGravenese Lauren Versel
Screenplay by	Richard LaGravenese
Based on	The Last Five Years by Jason Robert Brown
Starring	Anna Kendrick Jeremy Jordan
Music by	Jason Robert Brown
Cinematography	Steven Meizler
Edited by	Sabine Hoffman
Production company	Grand Peaks Entertainment Lucky Monkey Pictures
Distributed by	Radius-TWC[1]
Release date	September 7, 2014 (2014-09-07) (TIFF) February 13, 2015 (2015-02-13) (United States)
Running time	94 minutes[2][3]
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$2 million[4]
Box office	$145,427[5]

The Last Five Years is a 2014 American musical comedy-drama film starring Anna Kendrick and Jeremy Jordan. Based on Jason Robert Brown's musical of the same name, the film is written and directed by Richard Lagravenese.^[6]

The film premiered on September 7, 2014 in the Special Presentations section of the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival.^[7][8] The film was released in select theaters and on video on demand on February 13, 2015.

Premise

The musical chronicles the romance between Jamie Wellerstein (Jordan) and Cathy Hiatt (Kendrick). However, it does not take place in chronological order: all of Cathy's songs begin after they have separated and move backwards in time to the beginning of their courtship, while Jamie's songs start when they have first met and proceeds through their crumbling marriage.

The musical, as presented on stage, is a two-person show, with no other actors besides the ones playing Jamie and Cathy. Additionally, it consists almost exclusively of solo numbers; Jamie and Cathy alternate songs, do not share the other's time frame, almost never sing together and frequently are not even present while the other character unburdens themselves. This gives each character space to present their side of the story, biases and all. In adapting for film, LaGravanese made the decision to have the other character present for each monologue, but no music was altered. Additionally, a number of other actors appear in other parts, though Jordan and Kendrick still provide the bulk of the dialogue and all singing.

Plot

Cathy sits alone with a letter from her husband Jamie declaring their marriage over ("Still Hurting"). She removes her wedding rings, as well as her wristwatch and bracelet.

Five years earlier, Jamie is an up-and-coming Jewish writer who has just met Cathy. He is overjoyed to be dating outside his Jewish heritage ("Shiksa Goddess"), and declares, "I could be in love with someone like you."

Summer 2013: Cathy and Jamie are in Ohio, where she is working in summer stock. It is her birthday, and he has come to visit her. She is anxious to fix any problems in their marriage but she becomes angry when Jamie tells her he has to go back early to New York. She accuses him of egotism, of caring only about himself and of being unwilling to spend time with her ("See I'm Smiling").

Jamie receives a phone call that ultimately leads to a book deal with Random House Publishing Group. He calls Cathy and agrees to move in with her. He comments on how lucky he feels that he is getting a book published at age 23 and that he is in a relationship with Cathy ("Moving Too Fast"). Elsewhere at an audition, Cathy makes a call to her disinterested agent: it seems her career isn't going the way she planned, as she does not move on to the dance audition.

In late 2009 and early 2010, Cathy attends multiple social functions for the promotion of Jamie's novel and for celebrating its success (63 weeks as a bestseller). She sings about how his newfound fame and success in writing have changed their lives and jokes about how focused or "catatonic" he becomes in his writing process. She expresses that she feels the best way to love Jamie is to focus on him and his growing career. She chooses to "follow in his stride" and put herself and her dreams second to his new success. But she believes this sacrifice is the best way to support and love Jamie ("A Part of That").

After a horrible day working as a bartender, Cathy come home to an excited Jamie. He tells her a new story he has written about an old tailor named Schmuel, who had given up on his dreams but is able to turn back time, and right past wrongs with the help of a magical clock. The story is complete with dancing and decorating the house and Cathy with Christmas decorations. After the story Jamie compares Cathy to Schmuel and encourages her to take more risks and continue to pursue her own dreams. For her Christmas present, Jamie gives her an appointment for new headshots, a Backstage magazine, and a wristwatch, as well as the promise to support her as she pursues acting ("The Schmuel Song").

In summer of 2010, Cathy is in Ohio doing summer stock and video chatting with Jamie who is still in New York. She describes to Jamie her disappointing life in Ohio, her dysfunctional and eccentric colleagues, and her desires to be back in New York and to never return to Ohio ("A Summer in Ohio"). At the end of this song it is revealed that she and Jamie are married.

Jamie and Cathy walk to a gazebo in Central Park, sharing a conversation, though, at first, the audience only hears Jamie's side. Jamie proposes to her, Cathy eventually says yes, and they are then shown getting married in same location ("The Next Ten Minutes"). It is the only point in the film when the characters sing a duet and are in the same time and place. Afterwards, Cathy's side of the conversation at the gazebo is heard, as Cathy's timeline continues to moves towards the beginning of their relationship.

Jamie is facing and resisting temptation and advances from other women, especially now his fame as a writer has escalated (33 weeks as a bestseller). He expresses his desires to remain faithful to Cathy, and continues to try and resist ("A Miracle Would Happen"). Cathy, meanwhile, is auditioning for an off-Broadway role in New York ("When You Come Home to Me"). The audition goes well and she calls Jamie about her hopes for landing the role and not returning to Ohio for another summer. Another Christmas passes and Jamie gives Cathy a gold bracelet. Cathy is back at the summer theater in Ohio for the summer of 2011 and receives a text from Jamie about his coming to see her.

Cathy is shown unsuccessfully auditioning and calls Jamie to talk about her rejection and the fierce competition she has at these auditions. We next see Cathy attending a book reading for Jamie's book "Light out of Darkness." At this event Cathy realizes that she does not want to be a suburban housewife or a "girl who requires a man to get by" ("Climbing Uphill").

Jamie and Cathy are having a bitter fight. Jamie wants Cathy to attend a party to celebrate the publishing of his book. She states she has been to so many of them only to be neglected and ignored by her husband. He decides he'll go but questions Cathy about why she really refuses to go with him. He suggests that the lack of success in acting (and having to go back to Ohio) is the reason. He says that he believes in her and that they would not be together if he didn't. He asks her to be supportive of him and the fact that he's living out his dream. He accuses her of being unsupportive of his career just because hers is failing ("If I Didn't Believe in You"). Cathy ultimately refuses to go with Jamie.

An unmarried Cathy is in the car with Jamie, who is going to meet her parents. She tells him about her past relationships and hopes not to end up in a small town life like her friend from high school and her parents ("I Can Do Better Than That"). Upon arriving to her parents' house, she asks Jamie to move in with her.

Near the end of the relationship, Jamie wakes up in his apartment beside multiple women, including his editor, Alise, and the receptionist at Random House ("Nobody Needs to Know"). About to leave for Ohio to visit Cathy, he tries to defend his actions and blames Cathy for destroying his privacy and their relationship. Jamie promises not to lie to Alise and tells her, "I could be in love with someone like you," just as he did to Cathy.

Cathy is ecstatic after her first date with Jamie ("Goodbye Until Tomorrow"). She proclaims that she has been waiting for Jamie her whole life. Simultaneously but five years after their first date, Jamie sits in their apartment writing a farewell letter to Cathy about how hard he tried to save her and their marriage and he couldn't find a way for them both to be happy ("I Could Never Rescue You").

As a hopeful Cathy waits for a tomorrow with Jamie, a discouraged Jamie tells Cathy "goodbye". He leaves behind his keys and wedding ring and then exits their apartment. Later that evening, we see Cathy return to the apartment and open the front door, which relates us back to the opening scene of the film.

Cast

• Anna Kendrick as Cathy Hiatt
• Jeremy Jordan as Jamie Wellerstein
• Natalie Knepp as Alise Michaels
• Marceline Hugot as Mrs. Linda Whitfield
• Rafael Sardina as Richard
• Allison Macri as Carole Ann
• Alan Simpson as Ryan James
• Nic Novicki as Karl
• Betsy Wolfe (uncredited) as Cathy's former stripper roommate^[9]
• Sherie Rene Scott (uncredited) as a woman in one of Cathy's auditions^[9]
• Kurt Deutsch^[9] (uncredited)
• Jason Robert Brown (uncredited) as a pianist in one of Cathy's auditions^[9]
• Georgia Stitt (uncredited) as a pianist in one of Cathy's auditions
• Ashley Spencer as Receptionist

Musical numbers

The film's song numbers follows the musical's, alternating between Cathy and Jamie with a song or two sung by both.

Timeline

Below is an estimated timeline placing events in chronological order using the songs from the musical.

2009:
"Goodbye Until Tomorrow"
"Shiksa Goddess"
"I Can Do Better Than That"
"Moving Too Fast"
"The Schmuel Song"

2010:
"Climbing Uphill"
“The Next Ten Minutes”
“A Summer in Ohio”

2011:
“A Miracle Would Happen/When You Come Home to Me”
"A Part of That"

2012-2013:
“If I Didn’t Believe in You”

Summer 2013:
"Nobody Needs to Know"
"See I'm Smiling"
"I Could Never Rescue You"
"Still Hurting"

Production

Principal photography began on June 17, 2013 in New York City.^[10] The film wrapped on July 16, 2013 in Harlem.^[11] It inked foreign distribution deals with countries in Eastern Europe and Asia in August 2014.^[12]

Betsy Wolfe, who played Cathy in the 2013 Off-Broadway revival, plays the former stripper that Cathy rooms with in Ohio. Composer Brown plays one of the accompanists during Cathy's auditions in "Climbing Uphill". Sherie Rene Scott, who originated the role of Cathy in the Off-Broadway production, also appears in one of the audition scenes with her husband Kurt Deutsch.

Release

Radius-TWC announced a February 13, 2015 release date in the United States, simultaneously releasing it in select theatres and on VOD.^[1] It was previously set for release in the United Kingdom on December 12, 2014, but was later pushed back to February 6, in line with its US release.^[13] Icon Film Distribution then pushed the release date back indefinitely, and they have not yet announced a new date.^[14]

Box office

In its opening weekend in North America, the film grossed $42,042, opening in limited release in three theaters. By the end of its run, the film had grossed $145,427 in the domestic box office.^[5]

Critical response

The Last Five Years received mixed to positive reviews from critics. Anna Kendrick's performance was met with widespread critical acclaim, with many citing it as the best performance of her career.^{[15][16][17][18]} Jeremy Jordan's performance was met with positive reviews. The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 59% approval rating, based on 84 reviews, with an average rating of 6.2/10. The site's critical consensus states, "The Last Five Years hits a few awkward notes in its transition from stage to screen, but its freshness and sincere charm – and well-matched stars – offer their own rewards."^[19] Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score, calculated an average score of 60 out of 100, based on 28 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".^[20]

In The Observer, Jonathan Romney found the film to be "an enjoyable anomaly. The Last Five Years is not just a romcom for people who hate romcoms, it’s also a musical – although people who devoutly hate those may not click with its literate wit and knowing, more-bitter-than-sweet poignancy". Less positively, he wrote: "It’s not as cinematically confident as it might be: director Richard LaGravenese isn't always the most imaginative at providing visual settings", before adding, "this does feel like an organic film rather than a show forced into movie glad rags". Romney found the songs to be "unfailingly sharp, though one or two take on clunky rock colourings; even then, they’re only as bad as, say, Billy Joel on one of his better days". He concluded, "It’s a film to bring tears to the eyes of a cynic – in fact, a cynic might relish it more than anyone, since it’s the counterpointing of exuberance with unashamed bleakness that makes The Last Five Years so rich. You may even, just possibly, come out humming the tunes."^[21]

Accolades

References

External links

• The Last Five Years on IMDb
• The Last Five Years at Box Office Mojo
• The Last Five Years at Rotten Tomatoes
• The Last Five Years at Metacritic