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Wednesday, May 18, 2005
40 Year-old Virgin review
I was part of the first test screening for this film and since some of you are fans of this sort of comedy (think Anchorman, Dodge Ball and other films like that) as well as some comic book fans concerned about how their hobby is portrayed I thought I’d file a little report. Keep in mind that the movie could change between what I saw and what will be released nation wide and I suppose some of my review can be seen as haveing spoilers, if that kind of thing bothers you.
I was really excited to see this film become it seemed like it would be a good combination of two talented people I like, Steve Carell and Judd Apatow. I thought Carell was incredibly funny in The Daily Show, Anchorman and most of The Office and Apatow was one of the people behind what I feel is one of the best television shows ever, Freaks & Geeks. I’m happy to say Carell certainly lived up to my expectations but I feel Apatow has a ways to go before his movie-making prowess matches his talent at creating great television.
Carell plays Andy, the overage virgin of the title. He works at a Circuit City-like store filled with boorish guys around his age who don’t mind telling of their past sexual exploits (as someone who worked at Circuit City I can assure you this is not too far off from reality). The plot is set early on, Andy’s co-workers find out he’s a virgin and do what any fellow man would do: they try to get him laid. It’s the premise of a typical teenage sex comedy, only this features middle-aged men. Luckily Carell’s supporting cast is pretty funny at playing these men with the minds of teenagers. Carell’s Anchorman co-star Paul Rudd is the nice one who still longs for his ex-girlfriend (which is something that gets funnier throughout the movie), Apatow regular Seth Rogen has some funny lines and while there’s a bit of “token black guy” to Romany Malco’s role he and Rudd’s characters are fleshed out enough and their performances are good enough that they do help the film. Other funny parts are Best in Show’s Jane Lynch as the guys’ boss who is more than willing to help Andy and the third Anchorman star David Koechner who has a really funny cameo.
The movie soon enough becomes one mishap for another as Andy gets some rather dubious advice on how to finally make it with a member of the opposite sex. The film does feel a bit stretched out and the scenes aren’t terribly imaginative but the saving grace is Carell being his usually hysterical self. A scene where Andy gets his chest waxed and then - guess what! – finds out that it really hurts is only made worthwhile by the way Carell swears madly only to then apologize to the woman performing the grooming (although finding out it was Carell’s real hair does make the scene seem funnier to me after the fact). Most of the real humor is Carell’s nice guy trying to be something of a stud by only asking questions when he talks to a girl or saying things like “she was a ho…fo’ sho’.”
The real development in the movie is when Andy meets Catherine Keener’s Trish, a mother of three and grandmother of one who is just the type of nice woman Andy could see himself being happy with. Unfortunately Apatow doesn’t do anything really interesting with how their relationship progresses although there are some very good “Apatow scenes” like when Carell is awkwardly put in the middle of a fight between Keener and her middle daughter as well as Carell and the daughter’s trip to a family planning center. Still, I was cringing at the climax where Keener and Carell have some type of strained misunderstanding, he tries to win her heart by chasing after her while she goes “he’s so creepy…and nice…I miss him.” The scene pays off well enough because Carell and Keener are great actors but it was still way too conventional for a movie with this much talent behind it. Thankfully the final scene has some of the best laughs in the film as it hits a note very similar to a one scene from Anchorman and just as funny, too.
40 Year-old Virgin is a movie to see if you think Carell is funny and/or you like these type of comedies. It doesn’t really work as a twist on the teenage sex romp or offers much of a story. It is a funny movie, though, because of the players involved. The mainstream crowd I saw it with thought it very funny so hopefully it will propel a guy like Carell to greater heights, which I’m all for.
As for those of you worried about the “comic book nerd virgin” stereotype, don’t worry. The movie concentrates more on Andy’s obsession with action figures (many based on comic book characters) and that does become something of a plot point. The movie does get a few laughs at of his nerdiness but nothing too mean and it does make sense that someone who thinks too much all the time would have so many hobbies. Andy is always the character the audience roots for and his friends who are less inclined to own an action figure of the Six Million Dollar Man’s boss come off far worse. If you go to the movie wanting to be offended because someone who has a Mystery Science Theater 3000 poster on his wall is portrayed as anything less than a Casa Nova you’ll find plenty to complaining about on message boards because you’re looking too hard. Everyone else will relax and have a fun time at the movies.
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