The 40 Year Old Virgin (2005)

Dude, don't you have enough taboos in this film without sucking off Buddha?

Genre: Romantic Comedy

Starring: Steve Carrell (Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy; "The Office"), Catherine Keener (Capote; The Interpreter)

Directed By: Judd Apatow ("Freaks and Geeks")

Overview: When Andy's co-workers discover he's a virgin, they go out of their way to 'hook him up' with their various scoring techniques. All the while, he's just trying to get along with the sweet lady who works across the street.

Acting: Turns out this director has spent much of his career producing the more recent Will Farrell films. This should set you up a little for what to expect. The best characters are the ones that go out of their way to be certifiably insane, like the acid-tongued Indian guy and the 'keepin it real' black dude. These characters are what some may find to be the worst, least believable angles of this tale, preferring the quirky but stable champions of normalcy that are played by our leading couple. No it's not all the Lynch I've been watching lately, I just like weird more than mainstream. Overall, the roles were better than decent.
Rating: 8

Cinematography: Remember last night, when you watched TV? No it wasn't TV, it was this movie? You thought it was a TV movie? No. No, no, there were no boom mikes in the shots, there was no crappy editing... Right right, that run-of-the-mill, nothing-to-say-about-it look that mainstream movies indulge in because it's easy.
Rating: 7

Script: "Tell me something, when your child is born, is he already on parole?" - Mooj asking the African-American about his unborn baby.

It's funny because it's racist. And you know what? I'm not afraid to say that, because I see that it's also the writers' COMMENT on racism, so it's funny because it's absurd. Just like this movie. It's not funny, it's a comment on funny, because it's absurd. It makes you laugh, not necessarily because the wit is grand (because it's not anywhere near that great), but because you wonder why this made so much money in theaters.
Rating: 7

Plot: Lame-o! "Hi! Get me laid! I hope that nice girl I just met will be 'the one'." Is there any story besides that? Oh right the 'chase the girl when things get misunderstood' scene. I saw that in half the episodes of "Three's Company" didn't I? Why didn't you just have these people drifting in space-suits trying to get this guy to mack his first alien babe? If you're going to have no plot, at least PUT IT IN SPACE.
Rating: 5

Mood: What kills a basic, modern, light, fluffy, unimaginative Romantic Comedy more than not-so-subtle product placement? One that does blatant product placement. Movie titles mentioned or shown: Liar Liar, Dawn of the Dead (the crappy new one), The Bourne Supremacy. Products mentioned: iPod, Mentos... wait wait, oh I get it, you WANT me to spread the word.

Eat this you corporate whores:
Rating: 6

Alright, alright, fine. The shirt is kind of funny.

Overall Rating: 66% (For People Who Haven't Popped Their Film Cherry)

Aftertaste: I'm not saying it's BAD. I laughed (but not as much as I had hoped). I'm just saying when I'm in a room with eight other people and one of them asks, "Who here has seen The 40 Year Old Virgin, and EVERYONE raises their hand and goes on to talk about how great it was, you believe them, because they're your friends. I'm very glad that I saw this with someone like-minded, someone who said, "I haven't seen it yet because it's mainstream, it's comedy and it's romance." Why didn't I listen to him speaking my thoughts out loud? It was on my damn list and I was going to get around to it anyways.

I need an island of critics to wash up on the shore of. I think I'll fit in there.