Best Judd Apatow work since Freaks & Geeks

Rating: 9/10 (20 April 2007)

I saw this recently and left with a stomach ache from laughing so hard. I watched 40 Year Old Virgin again to make a fair assessment, and i found this to be funnier. Don't get me wrong, I love all of Judd Apatow's work, but this to me was the best thing since Freaks & Geeks. Apatow has a brilliant way of letting the audience get to know all of the characters(anyone who has seen his stuff will know that it is a lot and usually the same people)which gives you the feeling that you are a part of what's going on, and makes you interested. By now, I am sure everyone is familiar with the plot summary. Couple meets, hooks up and surprise she's pregnant. I find it amusing that some of the previous comments mention that it it such an unbelievable concept. Well of course it is, it's a movie!!! But come on, is it not entirely true that someone would hook up on a celebratory night out with someone they normally wouldn't? Of course they would! Thus, the meeting of Alison( Ketherine Heigl) and Ben (Seth Rogen)seems so genuine and awkward. The aftermath is the best part though. Since this is a movie, trying to make the best out of a bad situation is a given. The getting to know someone AFTER they have gotten you pregnant, meeting family and friends, realizing the many differences you have, etc. All of this is explored is very realistic fashion, especially the emotion and the trying to have sex while six months along!! Of course the whole thing can't be comedy. With so many other characters to help take the focus off the main two, there will be parts of the story that are more "serious". True is the case towards the end with Alison's sister (Leslie Mann) and her husband (Paul Rudd) having a falling out. This is a very nice, but what seems eternally long, scene about the importance of understanding in a relationship. Could that be the moral of our story Alison and Ben, understanding and acceptance? I think so. Naturally the only thing left is birth and the happily ever after. The hospital scene is definitely NOT for the squeamish. I really hope those parts are not cut from the movie, because they received some of the most reactions. I found this whole seen to be painfully realistic, more so than any other movie has dared to be. Finally, the happy ending is upon us and the closing credits are filled with family snapshots and even childhood photos of cast and crew, very cute. So to you the potential viewer I say that this is an exceptional comedy. It is definitely the funniest thing I have seen this year. I will definitely be seeing it again to see all the parts I missed while laughing. And I must say I was absolutely delighted to see both Martin Starr (do NOT leave the theater during the scenes with his girlfriend) and Loudon Wainwright. Put one more in the win column for Judd Apatow.