The 40-Year Old Virgin

Nobody chooses to be celibate; we all want to have sex and lots of it, except, of course, if you are a priest. However there are also those unfortunate souls in the world who don’t get to decide. Some of us, like me, got really scared in high school, as we watch all of our cooler friends lose their virginity as we wonder when we will have our day. Well, I got my day, but I was almost out of high school by the time it finally happened! It was the best ninety seconds of my life and I'll never forget it.

Steve Carell is back, and he's playing a guy named Andy who remains a virgin until the astounding age of forty. (I’m sure you couldn't figure this out from the title, but it’s integral to the rest of the review, so, sorry for the spoiler.)

When his friends find out, they go wild on him but remain good friends in an effort to get him laid. Not only do they introduce him to ladies, they bring him into a new world… a world of liquor… pot… and drunken party girls who take kindly to the innocent virgin. Andy makes a lot of close calls, but never seems to nail it. (Pun Definitely intended) In the midst of all this, his buddies find their own problems with women including Paul Rudd who can't seem to get over his ex-girlfriend of two years.

As far as critiquing the film itself, let me begin with a huge sigh of relief on the R rating of this film. Maybe after Wedding Crashers, movies are getting it. This one is no exception. Steve Carell has proven himself as a great leading man. He allows his awkward delivery to work so well without being uncomfortable. Jimmy Fallon and Ashton Kutcher would be examples of actors who are off beat but have horrible deliveries, yet people flock to the theatres… go figure.

The 40-Year Old Virgin is a character the audience will immediately be able to care for, thus raising the stakes for a great film with an ending we can all engage with open arms, or open legs for that matter… The story never drifts off into something that tries to be funny; the comedy is created by the flow of Andy's development into a man. Whether or not he ever becomes a “man” is far from the point; he stays true to himself, he just makes up for all the partying he missed back in high school. The challenges Andy endures make for a future classic. The supporting cast is phenomenal, and all I can really say is we have another candidate for the top comedy of the year. You have a film that isn't predictable and surprisingly has a lot of heart. Carell has made his

mark with The 40-Year Old Virgin; a topic that few would want to address, but the fact is they do exist and god bless those virgins!

Movie Grade: A

The 40-Year-Old Virgin

Synopsis:

40-year-old Andy Stitzer (Steve Carell) has done quite a few things in his life. He’s got a cushy job stamping invoices at an electronics superstore, a nice apartment with a proud collection of action figures and comic books, good friends, a nice attitude. But there’s just one little thing he hasn’t quite gotten around to doing yet–something most people have done by his age. Andy’s never, ever, ever had sex. His friends at the store consider it their duty to help, but nothing proves effective enough until he meets Trish (Catherine Keener), a 40-year-old mother of three. Andy’s friends are psyched by the possibility that “it” may finally happen…until they hear that Andy and Trish have begun their relationship based on a mutual no-sex policy.