The 40 Year Old Virgin

August 19th, 2005







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The 40 Year Old Virgin

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Still of Leslie Mann and Steve Carell in The 40 Year Old VirginStill of Steve Carell and Seth Rogen in The 40 Year Old VirginJudd Apatow at event of The 40 Year Old VirginStill of Catherine Keener in The 40 Year Old VirginStill of Seth Rogen in The 40 Year Old VirginStill of Romany Malco in The 40 Year Old Virgin

Plot
Goaded by his buddies, a nerdy guy who's never "done the deed" only finds the pressure mounting when he meets a single mother.

Release Year: 2005

Rating: 7.3/10 (138,511 voted)

Critic's Score: 73/100

Director: Judd Apatow

Stars: Steve Carell, Catherine Keener, Paul Rudd

Storyline
Andy at the age of 40 still hasn't had sex. He lets his secret slip at a poker game with his buds from work. After the revealing all his friends are on a mission to help get him laid. Along the way Andy meets a nice mom: Trish who fall head over heels for each other.

Writers: Judd Apatow, Steve Carell

Cast:
Steve Carell - Andy
Catherine Keener - Trish
Paul Rudd - David
Romany Malco - Jay
Seth Rogen - Cal
Elizabeth Banks - Beth
Leslie Mann - Nicky
Jane Lynch - Paula
Gerry Bednob - Mooj
Shelley Malil - Haziz
Kat Dennings - Marla
Jordan Masterson - Mark
Chelsea Smith - Julia
Jonah Hill - eBay Customer
Erica Vittina Phillips - Jill

Taglines: Better Late Than Never.



Details

Official Website: UIP [France] | Universal Pictures [United States] |

Release Date: 19 August 2005

Filming Locations: 12016 Moorpark Street, Studio City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office Details

Budget: $26,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend: $21,422,815 (USA) (21 August 2005) (2845 Screens)

Gross: $177,378,645 (Worldwide) (29 January 2007)



Technical Specs

Runtime:  | Philippines: (cut)  | (unrated version)



Did You Know?

Trivia:
A deleted scene has Andy fantasizing about a television reporter named after one of the film's producers, Shauna Robertson.

Goofs:
Continuity: In one of the deleted scenes, Andy is shown getting out of the car after Nicky has thrown up on him. However, no vomit is visible anywhere on his clothes.

Quotes:
[first lines]
Joe: Hey Andy! What's up, dude?
Andy Stitzer: Hey Joe. Hey Sara. How you doing?
Joe: When you gonna get a car?



User Review

"The 40 Year-Old Virgin" does the deed and then something else

Rating: 10/10

In the previews, "The 40 Year-Old Virgin" boasts the image of another immature sex romp about a 40-ish Lonely Guy who suddenly feels the urge to do the deed simply because he hasn't. Too many past bad experiences have dampened his enthusiasm to the point that he avoids women completely. And then the unexpected happens: he falls in love. What's more, there's a movie out about it, and it's called "The 40 Year-old Virgin."

The virgin of the title is Andy Stitzer (Steve Carell), who is indeed 40, works as an employee at an electronics store and collects vintage action figures, which are displayed all throughout his nice bachelor pad for all to see. He has a lovely home theater system and watches "Survivor" with his two kind elderly neighbors. He's a pretty picturesque definition of the Lonely Guy who needs to go out more and talk to more women.

Now here's the real novelty with this picture: it does the impossible task of actually dealing with its subject matter in a cute, mature fashion. This is a movie that could very easily have turned out a lot differently in the hands of a more transparent team of filmmakers. It could have descended into endless sex gags and jokes but thankfully this picture never stoops that low. Sure there are sex jokes here and there and even a few prods are aimed at the gay community (which are, in no way, meant to be taken as gay-bashing), as two of the characters exchange insults towards each other while playing a video game ("Mortal Kombat: Deception," no less - the ultimate testosterone-driven fightfest for guys).

As someone who is rapidly approaching 20, collects McFarlane Toys action figures AND has himself never done the deed, I found this film amusing and touching in a way that a similar-themed movie could never have been. I was able to relate to the character of Andy Stitzer more than anyone in the theater because I was the only teenager present at this showing; everyone else looked like they were all past 40. A bit arrogant, I know, but would you ("you" is italicized) still be able to relate if you were the only teen present at an afternoon screening of "The 40 Year-Old Virgin"?

Of course Andy has never had sex and wakes up everyday with "morning rise" (don't ask), and he's pressured by his buddies to try outlandish methods of gaining the attention of the opposite sex. When it's first discovered Andy is a virgin, at 40, his three buddies and fellow electronics store coworkers David (Paul Rudd), Jay (Romany Malco) and Cal (Seth Rogen) all at first assume he's gay because he's never been with a woman, which couldn't be any further from the truth. The truth is, Andy loves women, but past traumatic experiences (revealed hilariously one after the other in a flashback sequence) have put him on the sidelines for good.

David, Jay, and Cal each embark on a mission to get Andy laid, so help them all. But you know that such escapades will only end in disaster, as proved by one date with Nicky (Leslie Mann), who puts Andy through the worst drunk-driving experience I think anyone would not want to go through and he has a rather creepy encounter with Beth (Elizabeth Banks), the pretty girl who works in the bookstore and is eventually revealed to be a total sex fiend.

Things brighten up for Andy when he meets Trish (Catherine Keener), the friendly woman who works at a store across the street that sells stuff on eBay for people. Hmmm. And with that nice-looking collection of action figures, you can go figure that in the end a large financial payoff awaits him, that is if he can ever "do the deed."

At last, this is the sex romp we've been waiting for. It deals with a very real issue a lot of Lonely Guys probably go through, not that anything is wrong with being a virgin but let's look at the big picture: How many of us "Lonely Guys" want to be a lonely guy forever? The important thing we're taught in this picture is that Lonely Guy must be himself. I don't think he needs to go through body waxing like Andy does (which is side-splitting to be honest, and according to this website and various other news articles, was in fact real, and so was the blood on Carell's shirt afterward).

"The 40 Year-Old Virgin" was directed by Judd Apatow and co-written by himself and Carell, which originated as a skit that starred Carell. Carell is sweet and human, as his character is not some layabout who approaches this thing with his eyes shut. This is probably one of the most intelligent romps I've ever seen and is not offensive (a whole lot) because its characters are treated with dignity and respect. Even Carell's buddies, who pass off bad advice to cover up their own relationship insecurities, can be related to on a fundamental level.

The way "The 40 Year-Old Virgin" plays out is indeed funny in the end, but I'll leave that up to you, the viewer, to observe. Surely, if anyone can go through the things Andy does and still have the strength to attract a woman as sexy as Catherine Keener, then it's true: It is never too late!

10/10





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