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shanster [ 0.0 ]
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I left after 30 minutes having not laughed once. It was my own fault, knowing that it was an R-rated movie and not reading the synopsis. This is one Puritan who won't be seeing an R-rated movie for quite some time. That was the most vulgar offensive pointless juvenile crap I have ever seen, including anything by the Farrelly Brothers.
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Dancing_P [ 8.5 ]
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Forget Kevin Smth; I'm a Judd Apatow fanboy. After creating two critically acclaimed but unpopular cancelled series, several unsuccessful pilots and producing a couple of Will Ferrell movies, Apatow makes his big-screen directorial debut with The 40 Year-Old Virgin. Apatow takes his keen observational humor to the story of Andy (Steve Carrell) , a 40 year-old loner who lives in a house full of toys. Andy works at an electronics store, where his nerdy ways scare off his coworkers (when asked what he did that weekend, Andy recounts making an egg salad sandwich). When found one short for the weekly poker game, they decide to invite Andy along, only to find out that he's never had sex. Disturbed at this thought, his friends (the awesome Seth Rogen, Paul Rudd and Romany Malco) decide to do all they can to get him laid. It's a concept that could've devolved into a lot of pie-fucking gags nad misunderstanding that leave him stranded naked somehwere had it fallen into the wrong hands. True, the film doesn't shy away from below-the-belt gags, but they're done with more hoensty and truth than the usual stuff (the film also features, strangely enough, the most accurate vomit scene I've ever seen). Anyone who's ever suffered a similar predicament as any of these guys (and since you're reading some guy give his thoughts on a movie on the Internet, this means you) will wince at least once at the realism of the whole thing. Like Freaks and Geeks before it, it completely nails the characters. Carrell is perfectly cast as Andy; what's most striking about his character and performance is that he's not as completely out of the loop as you'd assume him to be. There's much more to his character (and the movie) than you'd ever expect. Catherine Keener is, as always, extremely sharp as his love interest and the buddies realistic enough in their actions and purusits that they don't become walking Stifler wannabes. It's a little over-written, resulting in scenes that go on too long or simply don't work, but I as much as I hate to admit it, it struck a chord. It's a fucking riot, yeah, but there's also more heart and truth in it than any comedy you'll see this year.
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chapter11 [ 9.5 ]
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I concur. This is a fine, fine movie, filled with such lovable characters and heartfelt moments that it's a bit surprising that it's so crude; sweetness and insight collide head-on with an endless supply of dick jokes, but in a good way. Something that "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" manages that just might be its biggest feat is the fact that the laughs simply don't let up. There are moments of profound sweetness, moments that are so wide-eyed and genuine that you want to just reach out and hug somebody, and yet all the way through, the film is pants-pissingly hilarious, and usually crudely so; whereas, generally, the practice is to cram all the laughs in one section and turn serious halfway through before lightening the mood with some half-assed dance sequence or something. As icing on the cake, "Virgin" not only manages to even the film out more, but _still_ concludes with the musical sequence. And it's awesome. It's even better than "Anchorman"'s "Afternoon Delight" quartet, but I won't spoil it all for you here.
And the cast? Phenomenal. In a role that may have gone to Will Ferrell or Jim Carrey or some other comedic star, ever-reliable Steve Carrell plays the title character as if he was born to, and plays him with more depth and pathos than, arguably, anyone else could have. The Greek chorus of buddies represent the movie in all of its obscene glory, launching sex jokes like heat-seeking torpedoes, and dispensing bad horny sidekick advice with the most inspiring glee of all buddy comedies. Catherine Keener is such a marvel to watch, and slips comfortably into the hot-grandma role, hitting all the right notes (happy and sad) in a performance that, in a perfect world, would at least be chatted up for award consideration, but won't. The film is episodic and long, but it works that way, as a series of gags strung together by a story that's, well, kind of touching, actually. And speaking of gags, people will be talking for years to come about Steve Carrell's magnificent chest-waxing scene, a transcendent scene that hits some sort of comedic nirvana, and struck me (and the audience I saw it with) as one of the funniest things I've ever seen or heard at the movies. It is a work of art.
But so is this film. I raved about "Wedding Crashers," the other R-rated comedy blockbuster of this summer, but as wonderful as that film was, "Virgin" is every bit its superior. If you're old enough to handle the raunch, see it. If not, hell, sneak in. It's worth it.
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reptltd [ 9.0 ]
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Easily the funniest movie I've seen all year AND it combines the sweetness that Wedding Crashers tried to acheive in a much more successful way (and it didn't feel as protracted). Great performances by everyone (especially for Carell since he made his character likeable, but in all honesty all the main characters turned out to be likeable). The movie has its shares off raunchy humor, but as mentioned by everyone, it has this sweet side to it that doesn't really feel forced. I think it's because Carell comes across as a nice guy so it's hard to not want him to win in the end. And I thought his collection of mint condition action figures was a nice metaphore for his life. As when he is on the bed with Catherine Keener about to have sex with her and they crush some of the boxes and he comments on how "their value is lessened with damage to the box". Who would've expected such depth from a racy sex comedy? But Apatow did do Freaks and Geeks.
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brandon [ 6.0 ]
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I always hate it when i go in with certain reservationns, and each them turn out to affect a vviewing of film. I like steve correll, particularlly in the office, but just watching the trailiers i felt i knew exactly where this movie was going. and it did. so i gave it a six.
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babyduck [ 9.0 ]
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Will this the be the best romantic comedy of the year? I hope so!
While it certainly had some "over the top" elements, at the soul of the movie had a moving core that held the movie together. Catherine Keener's performance and character definitely kept the movie in check so the other characters were free to see how far they could take it.
Considering the slew of bad movies this summer, this one made the trip to the theater worthwhile.
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thunderbolt [ 9.5 ]
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A laugh riot. Beware of the tons of swearing. I didn't find it offensive and actually well placed.
I have a friend who doesn't like "dirty humour" and "swearing", and I recommended this film for her, and she loved it.
As a side note, Seth Rogen is an awesome actor and really should be in more stuff.
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astrosheil [ 6.5 ]
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The main characters are particularly likable and sweet, especially Keener. The movie is a little long and I would have liked even more of a focus on the two main characters and less on the "helpful friends".
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DokBrowne [ 9.0 ]
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Rivals last year's "Anchorman" as one of the most perfectly funny movies I've seen in ages, but manages to top it by virtue of also having a great script that somehow fuses endless amounts of profane, absurd hilarity with a mature, affectionate telling of the story. Of course, nothing less should be expected from writer/director Judd Apatow, he of the impossible-to-overpraise "Freaks and Geeks". I really can't think of enough adjectives to describe the elated reaction I had to this movie, though. It was incredibly entertaining from start to finish, with brilliantly portrayed characters (Steve Carell, Catherine Keener, Seth Rogen, Paul Rudd, and Romany Malco should - but won't - qualify for an ensemble acting award, and I like how Rudd kept channeling the spirit of "Anchorman") and one insanely funny moment and line after another, and a top of it all a blossoming romance between Carell and Keener that shows so much spark and warmth that I kinda wish there were another cousin film to this that just focused entirely on their relationship.
Yeah, you get the idea.
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jeff_v [ 8.0 ]
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Pretty much what everyone else said --consistently funny, fine acting all around, manages to make you care about the characters w/o sacrificing the humor. Catherine Keener is now the lust object for 40 year-old virgins everywhere.
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| Weighted Rating | : 7.4 |
| No. Ratings | : 21 | |
| No. Reviews | : 15 | |
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