ICYMI: 'The Last 5 Years' Took Over My Life This Weekend

Finally, yes!  Finally, now!  

We were treated to a glimpse of the much anticipated adaptation of Jason Robert Brown's The Last 5 Years, and some reviews have trickles in from Toronto.  On Friday, it was announced that L5Y would get a Valentine's Day release, and it will be released by RADiUS-TWC.  

A rave review came out early this weekend, but notices from The Hollywood Reporter and Variety have been considerably cooler.  Variety's Peter Debruge praises the sound of the film, but doesn't think it's particularly cinematic.  He says, "Beyond scrappy, The Last 5 Years lacks a unifying aesthetic, as if this were merely the run-through, grabbed on the fly without lights, costumes, or location permits."  Both DeBruge and THR's David Rooney like Anna Kendrick's Cathy.  Rooney says, "While hers is the life crippled by lack of momentum, Cathy's arc paradoxically feels fuller and more lived-in than Jamie's, largely because Kendrick gives her heart."  

As if the reviews weren't enough to whet the appetite of musical theater fans.  Entertainment Weekly released an exclusive clip of Kendrick singing "I Can Do Better Than That" and my Facebook feed all but exploded.  As Jeremy Jordan's Jamie drives a convertible, Kendrick sings to him before they pull off for a quickie in the woods.  Initially, it was hard to hear Kendrick singing the song, because I have only really heard Sherie Rene Scott perform it.  That original recording is very much playing in constant rotation, so it was a bit weird to hear Kendrick singing Brown's lyrics.  After a few listens, however, I just want to hear more.  I want miles and piles of it.

  

What do you think of Kendrick's pipes?