7/12/2013

The 40 Year-Old Virgin (2005) or, Let the Sunshine In

♥♥


+ Best Debut Movie of the Year + Best Comedy of the Year 


What happens if it just never happens? That is the question in Judd Apatow's The 40 Year-Old Virgin


40 year-old Andy owns toy figures for upwards of 100,000 $, works in an electronic store (which he rides his bicycle to), - and is still a virgin.

Thank God, this movie is not as stupid as the title could lead you to believe. It is not a dumb package of frat boy humor, crazy comedy or a tacky sex comedy. In truth, The 40-Year-Old Virgin is a loving, very funny and intelligent romantic comedy, (which, however, might appeal more to men than women in general.)
Some of the funniest comedians of today are in it: Feature-debuting New Yorker master writer-director Judd Apatow (Trainwreck (2015)) regulars like Seth Rogen (The Night Before (2015)), Paul Rudd (Ant-Man (2015)) and Apatow's wife, Leslie Mann (This Is 40 (2012)), but also Jane Lynch (Paul (2011)) is hilarious as the extremely foul-mouthed store manager, and Jonah Hill (The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)) also has a very fun tidbit in the film.
Star and co-writer Steve Carell (Curly Sue (1991)) plays the protagonist Andy like a real human being, and he makes the film moving and (more) real, as he courts the lovely Catherine Keener (Into the Wild (2007)).
A few scenes in the film go on for too long for my taste, SPOILER especially the gross chest hair removal scene. SPOILER The Hair (1979) 'homage' during the end credits, on the other hand, is outrageously funny and surprising, a great feel-good final few minutes for a VERY funny movie.

Related posts:
 
Judd ApatowTrainwreck (2015) - Amy Schumer's breakthrough is a lot of fun

2011 in films - according to Film Excess
Bridesmaids (2011) - Subversive comedy with laughs a-plenty (producer)

2005 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I] 
The Cable Guy (1996) - Stiller's dark comedy is a riot (producer) 


If nothing in the trailer for the film here makes you laugh, The 40-Year-Old Virgin might not be for you

Cost: 26 mil. $
Box office: 177.3 mil. $
= Huge hit (returns 6.81 times the cost)
[The 40 Year-Old Virgin premiered 11 August (Los Angeles, California) and runs 116 minutes. Filming took place in LA and Pasadena, California around January 2005. The shoot reportedly involved lots of improvisation and used over 1 mil. feet of film, prompting Technicolor to send free Champagne to the set. The film opened #1 with a 21.4 mil. $ first weekend in North America and spent another 4 weeks in the top 5 (#1-#2-#2-#4), grossing 109.4 mil. $ (61.7 % of the total gross), and becoming the 19th highest-grossing film in North America of the year. The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were the UK with 13.5 mil. $ (7.6 %) and Germany with 7.5 mil. $ (4.2 %). Apatow returned with Knocked Up (2007). Carell returned in Little Miss Sunshine (2006). The 40 Year-Old Virgin is certified fresh at 85 % with a 7.2 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of The 40 Year-Old Virgin?

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