THE 40 YEAR OLD-VIRGIN (2005)
Reviewed by Jerry Saravia
Original review from 2006
I suppose it was only a matter of time before we saw a
comedy with a title like "40 Year Old Virgin." Though this
comedy has a few misses, it does score some direct hits
at the funny bone and it has a truly likable lead character.
Steve Carell is Andy, a 40-year-old virgin who works in
the stockroom of an electronics store. His weekends are
none too exciting, relegated to mostly making egg salad
sandwiches ("I just forgot the bread.") One day, some
staff workers invite Andy to a poker game where they
spend more time discussing sex than actually playing
(though Andy is a poker expert since he plays it online).
To the group's dismay, they discover that Andy has no
real sexual experience since he has no key details to
outline an experience (his giveaway line is stating that
breasts feel like sandbags). Thus, his co-workers are
now intent on getting him laid.
The helpful co-workers include David (Paul Rudd), who
is still pining for his ex-girlfriend and has issues over
singer Michael McDonald; Jay (Romany Malco) who's
sexually confident and takes pride on his appearance;
and Cal (Seth Rogen), who wears a Sonic Youth shirt
and declares that getting women drunk can lead to sex.
None of these guys prove very helpful to Andy, especially
after a frightfully painful chest-hair waxing scene. Then
there is Andy's first date, a disastrous encounter with a
drunk (Leslie Mann) who vomits in his face. Another
potential date follows with a younger woman, Beth
(Elizabeth Banks), who works at a bookstore and whom
Andy smoothly lays sexual innuendoes on with the flair of
a playboy. But the woman whom Andy feels connected
to is Trish (Catherine Keener), an Ebay store owner and
a divorced mother and grandmother! Yes, no spoiler alert
needed here, this Trish will be Andy's true love. Now if he
would only admit his virginity...
Critics have not admitted this but "40 Year Old-Virgin" is
really a romantic comedy with profanity and sexual
suggestions galore. This is the story of a man who is
looking for the ideal woman to marry and then have sex with.
Yes, we can believe he's had failed sexual dalliances
before, but he is really a Puritan model for abstinence.
I am a bit disappointed that the writers (including director
Judd Apatow and Carrell who co-scripted) didn't delve more
into his daily habits. Andy is an avid toy and action-figure
collector, watches "Survivor," rides a bicycle to work and
tries to make egg salad sandwiches, but there is precious
little insight into what makes him tick. He is a virgin and he
wants the right woman to settle down with, but why does
he keep women at arm's length? Fear of women, fear of
commitment or, wait a minute, fear of his virginity? Or
maybe he hopes the right woman will understand his sexual
status and want to settle down anyway? Either way, more
insight would've been nice.
Most of the movie contains scenes of Andy's co-workers
commingling by one-upping each other with graphic insults
or speaking about sex in graphic detail (one such
discussion involves the opening phrase: "Know how I know
you're gay..."). One memorably funny scene involves Andy's
boss (Jane Lynch) who suggests becoming sex buddies
("I'll haunt your dreams.") Still, despite occasionally
tickling the funny bone, most of these scenes seem like
filler when they don't directly involve Andy. I would have
liked more scenes of Andy at home, living his life the best
he can with the knowledge he is a virgin.
I enjoyed "40 Year Old Virgin" overall though it is far too
long (the version I saw was 133 minutes). The last
sequence, which involves a song-and-dance performance
of "Age of Aquarius," is certainly far more tolerable than
the song-and-dance routine at the end of "Hitch" (Question:
did "Shrek" begin this whole finale-has-to-end-with-needless-song
performance shtick?) Carrell and Keener have appealing
chemistry and the whole cast performs up to par. But with
a juicy concept and major star in the making like Carrell,
I expected more.
