The 40 Year-Old Virgin (www.the-usher.com)

"I'm getting me some poohnany"

At forty years old, Andy (Carell) has got his life just how he wants it. He has a decent job, his hobbies and his TV shows making his life as organised as anyone's could be. But when Andy inadvertently starts spending more time with David (Judd), Jay (Malco) and Cal (Rogen) from work, they discover that he is missing something monumental from his life and they just can't believe it.

With an abundance of gross-out and spoof comedies dominating Hollywood's comedic out over the past few years, there has been very few comedy movies that really hit the mark, 'The 40 Year-Old Virgin' changes all of that.

Hollywood's main problem is that it finds a formula and sticks to it until it can bleed it dry. This is what has happened to comedy over the past ten years. Both gross-out and spoof comedies have been flogged to death by the all of the major studios. There have been some shining lights however and this has been the output of new generation of comedic talents. One of those comedians is Steve Carell.

Better known for his supporting roles in 'Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy', 'Bruce Almighty' and the American version of 'The Office', Carell finally gets his chance to shine in a lead role that he really makes his own. As innocent Andy, he is still living this life like he is in his late teens. Obsessed with video games, comics and collectables, his life has become a route after suffering years of rejection and embarrassing moments while trying to get closer to the fairer sex. He has given up on women and because of that sex. Carell plays the role superbly, making Andy that nice guy that women never notice and not the geek that could be so easily ridiculed. This fact makes both the character and, as a result of this, the movie a real success.

What all great comedies need is a collection of supporting characters to play on the lead's predicament. Paul Rudd, Romany Malco and Seth Rogen are excellent as Andy's work colleagues David, Jay and Cal. Each of them has different advice on how Andy should approach women and the performance of each of these actors brings these characters to life. David is man hurt by a failed love, who has differing reactions to women depending on how he is remembering his relationship with his ex. Jay is the ladies man, who tries to teach Andy how to pick up the 'easy' women. Cal is the everyman who tries to give Andy advice on how to actually speak to women. These three performances are important to the film as they drive Andy's character into most of his misadventures with the opposite sex.

The female support is also good. Catherine Keener is a good as ever as Trish, the ideal woman for Andy, whom he just happens to be too scared to talk to. Elizabeth Banks plays Beth, the girl Cal pushes him towards and the one who might just push him a little too far. Leslie Mann is Nicky, a woman who really can't handle her drink and definitely someone who wouldn't accept a ride from. Lastly we have Jane Lynch as Andy boss Paula, who finds his predicament intriguing.

What sets the film apart from most other comedies that have graced the silver screen over the last few years is the quality of the laughs. This is a movie that will have you giggling constantly and laughing out on many occasions. With hit after hit after hit, there are very few misses, even when the film slows down slightly towards the end.

'The 40 Year-Old Virgin' is a hilarious movie with a good story and extremely likable and funny characters. While it may be slightly over long, there are more than enough laughs to captivate you throughout. Steve Carell is a comedic superstar in the making.

PICTURE & SOUND

Presented in Anamorphic Widescreen 1.35:1 with Dolby Digital 5.1, the movie is presented extremely well.

BONUS FEATURES (Double Your Pleasure Edition - Region 1)

Disc 1

Feature Commentary with director/co-writer Judd Apatow and co-producer/actor Seth Rogen
Recorded especially for the 'Double your pleasure' uncut version of the film, this is a very funny and informative commentary for 'The 40 Year-Old Virgin'. The pair talk about the sense of humour for the movie and many a behind the scenes story from the making of the movie.

Deleted Scenes
Entitled 'Getting Ready', 'The first karaoke', 'Rooftop confessions', 'Kid costumers', 'Andy and Jazzmun', 'Andy's fantasies', 'Cal and Paula', 'Stockroom', 'Advice from Mooj', 'Telemarketer call', 'Stockroom - on meth', 'Neighbourly love', '6 Year-old Andy', 'Only hit on drunk girls', 'First time trespassing', 'First time peeing in public', 'Fight time fighting', 'Jay's apology', 'Just ask questions', 'Orange soda kiss', 'Date book', 'Jay prepares Jazzmun', 'On dust' and 'Speed dating', these deleted or extended scenes have optional commentary from director Judd Apatow and co-producer/actor Seth Rogen.

Trailers
Previews of 'The Office', 'Because I said so' and 'The Hitcher'

Disc 2

You Know How I Know You Are Gay? (5.31 mins)
With optional commentary by director Judd Apatow and actor/producer Seth Rogen, this is an extended version of the conversation between David and Cal while playing video games at Andy's house. The scene shows the hilarious improvisational skills of the two comic actors.

Date-a-Palooza (9.17 mins)
Watch the full version of Andy and the guys trying speed dating. Line-O-Rama (6.21 mins) Watch the hilarious different versions of the same line and situation

Judd's Video Diaries (20.45 mins)
The co-writer and director Judd Apatow, takes you behind the scenes of the fifty-two day shoot for 'The 40 Year-old Virgin'. These funny and informative dairies reveal what it was like for the first time feature filmmaker to be in charge of a potential Hollywood blockbuster.

Auditions (7.34 mins)
Watch Jonah Hill, Elizabeth Banks, Romany Malco, Shelley Malil, Jane Lynch, Gerry Bednob and Jazzmun's auditions for their roles in the movie.

Raw Footage (19.21 mins)
Watch unedited and b-roll footage from various scenes from the movie

Rehearsals (5.12 mins)
Watch the first read through of the poker, sex talk scene featuring Steve Carell, Paul Rudd, Romany Malco and Seth Rogen.

Reel Comedy Round Table (21.06 mins)
Co-writer and director Judd Apatow, Steve Carell, Paul Rudd, Romany Malco and Seth Rogen gather to talk about the movie and ask each other questions.

Cinemax Final Cut: The Forty Year-Old Virgin (12.43 mins)
Director Judd Apatow and stars Steve Carell, Paul Rudd and Seth Rogen talk about the tone of the movie, the character, been and working with first time director, improv and the infamous hot wax scene.

1970s Sex Ed Film (5.27 mins)
Watch an educational film that teenagers were expected to watch back in the 1970s

My Dinner with Stormy (2.08 mins)
Seth Rogen has a romantic dinner with famous porn star Stormy Waters

Gag Reel (4.36 mins)
Watch outtakes from the making of the movie

Waxing Doc (3.30 mins)
Steve Carell takes you behind the scenes of the infamous waxing scene and the pain he had to go through for the movie.

OVERALL

While many of the extra features were on the original release of the film, this is the ultimate release of 'The 40 Year-Old Virgin'. Those of you who bought the film the first time around, won't get that much out of it, with only the new deleted scenes, the interviews and the director's video diaries standing out, there isn't really enough to recommend buying this version but if you haven't added the film to your collection yet (and the big questions is why), this is version you should buy.

DVD

BONUS FEATURES (Original Release)

Extended version of the Movie (Unrated Version - Region 1)
With an extra seventeen minutes added on to the theatrical cut, this is now an even better film. The extra minutes bring more comedy to the proceedings as we see more of the 'Date-a-Palooza', more of Andy's sexual fantasies and much more of Gerry Bednob as Mooj. A hilarious movie just got even funnier.

Feature Commentary with director/co-writer Judd Apatow, actor/co-writer Steve Carell and the cast (Region 1 version only)
The director and star are joined by Seth Rogen, Paul Rudd, Romany Malco, Jane Lynch, Gerry Bednob, Shelley Malil and Leslie Mann come together for a funny commentary track for 'The 40 Year-Old Virgin'. Recorded before the film's box office release, the group reveal how the film came about and how Steve came up with the idea for the character. This is a really good group commentary that is very funny throughout, with the guys really taking the mickey out of each other.

You Know How I Know You Are Gay? (5.31 mins)
With optional commentary by director Judd Apatow and actor/producer Seth Rogen, this is an extended version of the conversation between David and Cal while playing video games at Andy's house.The scene shows the hilarious improvisational skills of the two comic actors.

Andy's Fantasies (1.59mins)
With optional commentary by director Judd Apatow and actor/producer Seth Rogen, you can see two of Andy's fantasies, one with a porn star and one with a very sexy newscaster.

Cal and Paula (2.55 mins)
With optional commentary by director Judd Apatow and actor/producer Seth Rogen, this extended scene shows the improvisational talents of Jane Lynch and Seth Rogen as Cal and Paula talk about Andy's problem and their own fantasies.

Deleted Scenes (12.45 mins)
Entitled 'Getting Ready', 'Drunk driving alternate ending', 'First time karaoke', 'Rooftop confessions', 'Kid costumers' and 'Andy and Jazzmun', these deleted or extended scenes with optional commentary by director Judd Apatow and actor/producer Seth Rogen, are extremely funny, especially the karaoke scene.

Extended Scenes & Gag Reel (27.14 mins)
Extended scenes entitled 'Advice from Mooj', 'Waxing Doc', 'Date-a-Palooza', 'Line-o-rama', 'My dinner with Stormy' and the Gag Reel, these are the complete versions of the scenes and a behind the scenes look at Andy's waxing scene. The full version of 'Date-a-Palooza' is hilarious as we see how obsessed David was with his ex-girlfriend Amy. We also get to see the alternative and improvisational lines from the cast from funny moments within the film. These scenes are hilarious and a real added bonus to the DVD, especially lucky Seth Rogen's dinner with porn star Stormy.

Trailers
Previews of 'The Skeleton Key' and 'Serenity'

OVERALL

Universal has done a good job with the DVD version of 'The 40 Year-Old Virgin' but not as good as it could have been. While the Region 1 (North American) version has commentaries and an extended/unrated cut of the movie, the Region 2 (European) edition however has the same extra features but doesn't have either the commentaries of extended version of the film. This is a real same for fans, making you want to import the Region 1 version. This aside, the extra features are extremely funny and well worth a watch.

DVD

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2005