Best Comedy In 40 Years

Rating: 10/10 (22 October 2005)

This comedy's principal achievement is in its laid back, shrugged shoulders attitude. When you can take life as not-so-seriously, even being a virgin past age 17 is solvable. For those less fortunate (in either sense), this comedy shows the way.
This film combines a gross-out teenage comedy, slapstick oldie, a life-is-easier-without-sex message (i.e. 7th Heaven) and an overarching touching love story whose ever-present cheesiness is kept in check thanks to the actors' sincerity and casual delivery.
The one-liners are so good, you'll share them with friends for the few hours after getting out of the movie. The best part is knowing you share a similar critical review and reaction to the film.
This film pushes the R-rating with bestiality, porn clips, condom installation, legs wrapped around a male pelvis, bare breasts in public, vaginal models, husky seduction (use your imagination on that one), female masturbation, and the standard bed scene, but those watching the film aren't likely to cringe. Except maybe at ... oh, let's not spoil it.
Too many formulaic comedies trained me to expect a twist at any second, but this comedy's not doing so actually bucks that standard and leaves a very pleasant, heart-warming aftertaste. This pleasant nod to reality and real lives raises the film's reality and believability in addition to the aforementioned actors' sincerity and talents. The ease with which the actor's chemistries happen is a wonderful testimony to both writing and casting.
I saw it because Steve Carell was so wonderfully self-effacing in the American version of the BBC's "The Office". His talent again shines enormously. This movie is very much not my usual type of brooding, intellectual, and philsophical film which radically and permanently changes one's thinking, but I laughed clear through the entire film. Let's hope Carrell's not type cast into the self-reducing type of role, but even if he is, he brings smiles and laughs to all as he does so. Correspondingly, Keener's bright, shining, simply radiant presence in the film gives such wonderful goodness to the film's believability. She doesn't over- or under-play her part, but it seemingly entirely comfortable as the hot grandma whose temporary romantic woes are the woes of many.
The film's ending credits are stunning in a way in which I hope more movies do so, but I won't spoil it. Seeing is believing.