Tractor Tire Award of the Week - The Five Year Engagement ~ LightsRemoteAction

Have you ever watched a trailer and had that one scene, that one shot that made you go "Wow, that was cool!"? Or maybe there was something you saw that stuck with you, something that for some reason was in the back of your head and despite how insignificant it was you were waiting for it to show up in the final cut of the film. But when you watched the movie that scene was nowhere to be found or has been altered in a significant way. Well, that is what the Tractor Tire Award of the Week is all about. We try to track down those scenes that didn't make it into the final version of the film and make sense of them. Where in the film was it supposed to be? Why might it have been cut? Why has it been changed? We may not always have the answers for you but at least you will have your piece of mind and know that you aren't crazy. So, this weeks award goes to The Five Year Engagement!

Restricted Trailer Scenes

Cut Scene #1-A

What was that about her Va Jay Jay?

Cut Scene #1-B

Oh sorry, THEIR Va Jay Jay...

Wow! Leave it to the Judd Apatow group to not only make a movie that is grossly over long but also stuff their multiple trailers with EVEN MORE deleted scenes. Makes you wonder how these people ever decide on a final cut. Anyways, first up here is a quick discussion between Tom and Violet about her Vagina. The dialog goes, Tom "Let me see your vagina", Violet "Gross!", Tom "Oh babe you're right, it's our vagina". First of all who the hell knows where this was supposed to go. I'm guessing near the beginning of their first year engaged. Secondly it seems like just another scene to show off their chemistry and how cute they are together. In other words this was a wise cut and something I could really care less about.

Cut Scene #2-A

Discussing their finances.

Tom and Violet decide to clear up their financial situation at a somewhat intimate dinner. This scene can only have been the result of the older woman at their first rehearsal dinner that mentions their financial state. Tom reveals he has very little money saved up and Violet reveals that she has a ton which results in the obscure line from Tom, "Who are you, Gordon Gecko?", which was in reference to Wall Street in case you were wondering. While I think the scene could have worked, it is yet another one of those details we didn't need to see which makes me happy that it was cut out. Plus from the other scenes used in the other trailer that clearly came from this exact scene leads me to believe this was a pretty long sequence. So yeah, not a huge loss but also something that I wouldn't mind seeing on the unrated version of the film we are certain to get when it gets released on blu-ray.

Cut Scene #3

This wasn't funny the first time they tried it.

I did not care for any of the scenes involving Violet and her fellow students. So any scene that deals with any of them is something I would rather not see. Guess how I feel about this one then? This scene is clearly from that mundane and unnecessary party where we get to see Tom interact with the guy who loves to talk about masturbation. It was never funny the other times he said it and it was even less funny in this scene. You will be hearing this a lot but with the film already running too long and this being a part of an already useless scene it was what I consider a merciful cut.

Cut Scene #4

He likes his pedicured look.

Shortly after Tom turns into a mountain man they get a visit from Alex and Suzie. While I have gone on and on about the length of the film I can't say no to more Alex and Suzie. Plus the mountain man stage for Tom was probably some of the funniest stuff in the film so I kinda wished they would have kept this. All it is though is more dialog with the only time anyone questions his new look (which as a side note had me confused as to why nobody was mentioning it in the finished cut). It's a funny scene that was cut more or less for the same reason as all the others but remains as one of the only scenes listed here that I would have liked to see remain in the final cut.

PG-13 Trailer Scenes

Cut Scene #5

About those guest invites...

Here we have a brief scene and the ONLY time we see Violet interact with Tom's mom where they are looking at the guest list of the wedding. This is yet another scene where we get to see our characters going through the stereo-typical motions of preparing for a wedding and trying to play it as a joke. Watching this scene made me realize how little we actually got to see Tom and Violet interact with any family members in the final cut but it also made me realize how much of a godsend that was. Completely unnecessary and a very good decision to cut it.

Cut Scene #6

The Man-apron returns.

There comes a point later in the film where Violet learns she has to postpone the wedding for another handful of years and we see her sitting by a table with a bottle of wine with a couple of glasses. Tom comes in talking about the wedding preparations and that is when she unloads the news on him. This sequence implies that either there was an alternate version of that scene (since she is wearing the same outfit) or that the scene may have gone on longer than it showed. Another possibility is that there was another moment somewhere in there where she had to postpone that was cut all together. Either way it doesn't matter because this scene looking to be rather repetitive which we definitely didn't need more of.

Cut Scene #2-B

The make up dance.

Different trailer, same cut scene but a different part of that scene...huh? Yeah, these trailer people are really confusing sometimes. It feels like they are just rummaging through piles of unedited scenes and just pulling out stuff that looks like it belongs in a romantic comedy trailer. Either way this appears to be the finale to that financial argument that had in the Restricted trailer where they dance the night away...*yawn*.

Cut Scene #2-C

Violet shows off her dope moves.

Here is yet another part from that scene...what the f**k? Anyways, here we see Violet get jiggy with it and that is all there is to say about this one. I'm done.

The Five Year Engagement Restricted trailer:

Cut scene #1-A/B at :24

Cut scene #2 at :33

Cut scene #3 at 1:16

Cut scene #4 at 1:28