Movie Review: THE 40-YEAR-OLD VIRGIN (2005)

Tweet

RSSS

Tweet

The 40 Year-Old Virgin (2005)–****

If one great thing came out of the cancellation of Freaks and Geeks and Undeclared, it must be The 40 Year-Old Virgin. The TV series, which revealed in the awkward geekdom of high school and self-reinvention in college, respectively, lead up to Judd Apatow’s comedic examination of the insecurities that affect men as the age and still can’t seem to find a place in life.

Andy (Steve Carrel) is the package deal when it comes to male anxiety. He’s a play by the rules kind of guy who exercises every morning, keeps his action figures in the package, signals when he makes a turn on his bike and drinks Fanta soda instead of beer. It’s a last minute invite to fill-up a poker game from his male co-workers who really don’t know or like him that gets him to spill the beans about his virginity.

While the other guys describe their sexual conquests and misadventures, Andy’s description of breasts as sandbags just doesn’t cut the mustard. In the world of men, to not know what a women feels like means Andy must be gay. He’s not, of course, but he is forced to reveal that he has just yet to do “it.” The gang of guys instantly makes a pact to end their co-worker’s lifelong dry spell, whether Andy wants them to or not.

Andy is a man with quirks that don’t fit the status quo as we know it (collecting action figures, playing with miniature armies, not drinking, etc.). That is the basis of the comedy. What I found surprising is how some people didn’t laugh at Andy, but rather empathized with him. Awes, in the screening I attended, were just as common as laughs.

The film has its Carell gone wild moments. The tourettes inducing chest waxing scene is a good example, but mostly Carell is plays down the comedy in the film. It’s not that Carell is turning intoTruman Show Jim Carrey and giving an affective performance; it’s more like an instinctive comedic reaction. Carell knows how tactless this film could have been and with the supervision of Apatow, doesn’t let the comedy overtake the subtler, sweeter moments.

With Carell’s Andy as an empathetic character, we are able to see how the other guys in the film, the ones who have had sex are just as puzzled and unfulfilled as Andy. Paul Rudd (Carell’s “Anchorman” costar) comes on as a heartbroken mess who apparently can’t get over a relationship. Romany Malco is a salesman who can’t seem to settle into his relationship. And then there’s Seth Rogen, an Apatow regular, who focuses his energy on not having a relationship. Virginity seems bad on the surface, but compare Andy’s apparent sexual misfortune to the other guys’ good luck. You’ll see which ones are the sadder sacks.

The sensibility Apatow conveys in these characters allows him to get away with race based humor and gay jokes. This type of mockery is standard in most comedies today, but they are less abrasive here because the film isn’t stereotype-driven comedy (see Dodgeball and American Wedding). Instead, the men lack confidence and these statements are brilliant examples their juvenile attempts at saving face. (That is usually the case in other movies, too, but those comedies don’t portray their characters as losers.)

Maybe, I’m making too much out of this comedy, but I’ve learned to respect Apatow. In his feature directorial debut, his beautiful sense of reality is articulated like never before. He’s no Cameron Crowe, but The 40 Year-Old Virgin shows he has that potential. In a genre that could have lead to a comparison with the guy who directed Anchorman, I can’t think of a bigger compliment.