The 40-Year-Old Virgin
The 40-Year-Old Virgin is a 2005 American sex comedy film directed by Judd Apatow in his directorial debut. The film stars Steve Carell as the titular 40-year-old virgin Andy, a clerk at an electronic goods store, whose colleagues resolve to help him lose his virginity. Catherine Keener and Paul Rudd also star. The screenplay features a great deal of improvised dialogue. The film was released theatrically in North America on August 19, 2005. It received positive reviews from critics and grossed $177 million worldwide.
Plot
Andy Stitzer is a shy 40-year-old virgin, who lives alone in his apartment filled with his collection of action figures and video games, and is an employee of electronics store Smart Tech. At a poker game with his co-workers David, Cal, and Jay, when conversation turns to past sexual exploits, they learn that Andy is still a virgin and resolve to help him lose his virginity.Andy begins to socialize and form friendships with his co-workers, who give Andy various pieces of advice, both on his appearance and how to interact with women. Jay drags Andy to various social events, books a painful waxing appointment, and later has him meet a transvestite prostitute, but all end with embarrassing results. Cal advises Andy to simply be confident and "ask questions", which he practices on attractive bookstore clerk Beth, who quickly becomes intrigued by him. David gives Andy his porn collection, encouraging him to masturbate.
Andy eventually lands a date with Trish Piedmont, a woman he meets on the sales floor. At the end of Andy and Trish's first date, they are about to have sex only to be interrupted by Trish's teenage daughter, Marla. Trish suggests that they postpone having sex, and Andy enthusiastically agrees, the couple promising to abstain for twenty dates. Andy and Trish's relationship flourishes over the following weeks. Trish encourages Andy's dream of starting a business, suggesting they fund it by selling his collectibles. After Marla argues with Trish over wanting birth control, Andy takes her to a group session at a sexual health clinic, where she is derided as a virgin. Andy admits his own virginity to defend her, earning him Marla's respect.
Meanwhile, David suffers an emotional breakdown at work over his obsession with his ex-girlfriend, Amy, and takes a vow of celibacy. Jay, who previously boasted of his promiscuity, gets into an argument with a customer after his girlfriend breaks up with him over his infidelity, and concedes to Andy that sex can ruin a relationship. Jay and his girlfriend eventually reconcile, and he invites Andy and the others to a nightclub to celebrate his girlfriend's pregnancy. Concerned for David, Cal hires an attractive woman named Bernadette to work at the store so that he can match her with David.
On Trish and Andy's twentieth date, Trish tries to initiate sex but Andy remains awkward and resistant, which upsets her. The two argue, and Andy leaves for the nightclub where he meets his friends, gets drunk, and praises them for encouraging him to have sex. Cal gets David and Bernadette to hook up, while Andy runs into Beth and the two leave for her apartment. Marla convinces Trish to make up with Andy. By this time, Andy has sobered up and is having second thoughts, and his friends arrive and encourage him to go back to Trish.
Andy returns to his apartment, where he finds Trish waiting for him and had just found David's porn collection. Andy tries to explain but she flees in alarm and disgust, fearing Andy may be a sexual deviant. Andy then pursues Trish on his bike, but collides with her car and flies through the side of a billboard truck. Trish rushes to his side, and Andy finally confesses that he is a virgin as explanation for his behavior. Trish is surprised but relieved, and the couple profess their love for each another.
Andy and Trish eventually marry in a lavish ceremony with everyone in attendance, with a sidelong mention that Andy's action figures sold for over half a million dollars. The couple then consummate the marriage, and the film transitions into a musical sequence where all the characters sing and dance to "Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In".
Cast
In addition, Jonah Hill, Kevin Hart and Wayne Federman appear as eBay and Smart Tech customers, respectively. Mindy Kaling plays David's ex at the speed dating event, where WCW wrestler Kimberly Page exposes her breast. Gillian Vigman and Page play Woman Speed Daters. Stormy Daniels has a cameo as herself. Nancy Carell, Steve's wife, plays the health clinic counselor. Cedric Yarbrough and David Koechner appear as Dads at Health Clinic, Steve Bannos plays Father at Restaurant and Jenna Fischer plays Woman #1.Production
The film is based on a sketch Carell created while performing with the improv comedy troupe Second City. Carell did many versions of the sketch, trying out different scenarios where the 40-year-old man is hiding a "big secret."Apatow had difficulty coming up with the ending for the film. Garry Shandling suggested it was important to show that Andy was having better sex because he was in love, and instead of directly showing the sex they decided to have Andy sing and have a musical number.
Apatow started casting the film early in the development process and having no preconceptions about the friends and workers in the store was able to tailor the script to the strengths of the actors. Catherine Keener was the first choice for the female lead.
Production started on January 17, 2005, and wrapped on April 1, 2005. Production on the film was halted by Universal Pictures after the first week, due to concerns that the physical appearance of Carell's character resembled that of a serial killer, and that the early footage was not funny. Paul Rudd was criticized for being overweight and the studio was unhappy with how Apatow was "lighting like an indie". Universal had also refused to allow Apatow to cast Jason Segel in the film.
The chest waxing scene was done for real, with five cameras set up to capture the moment.
The production used over a million feet of film, a milestone reached on the last day of filming and recognized with free champagne by Technicolor. Using the conversion of 90 feet of film per minute, this means that the shooting ratio for the film is 96:1 for the theatrical version.
The American Humane Association withheld its "no animals were harmed..." disclaimer due to the accidental deaths of several tropical fish used in the film.
Reception
Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 85% based on 186 reviews, with an average rating of 7.18/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Steve Carell's first star turn scores big with a tender treatment of its titular underdog, using raunchy but realistically funny comedy to connect with adult audiences." Rotten Tomatoes declared it the "Best Reviewed Comedy of 2005." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 73 out of 100 based on 35 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A–" on an A+ to F scale.Ebert and Roeper gave the film a "two thumbs up" rating. Roger Ebert said, "I was surprised by how funny, how sweet, and how wise the movie really is" and "the more you think about it, the better The 40-Year-Old Virgin gets." The pair gave minor criticisms, with Ebert describing "the way she empathizes with Andy" as "almost too sweet to be funny" and Richard Roeper saying that the film was too long, and at times extremely frustrating. Roeper later chose the film as the tenth best of 2005. Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly gave the movie an A-, saying that Carell "plays him in the funniest and most surprising way possible: as a credible human being." Manohla Dargis of The New York Times called the film a "charmingly bent comedy," noting that Carell conveys a "sheer likability" and a "range as an actor" that was "crucial to making this film work as well as it does." Emanuel Levy gave the film a B+ grade calling it "Raunchier and funnier than Wedding Crashers, this is an R-rated comedy that despite crude surface and foul lingo has a generous heart and a sweet, almost naive center."
Brian Lowry of Variety wrote: "Crude, sophomorically homophobic but frequently funny, pic also overstays its welcome a bit and indulges in some juvenile excesses. All told, though, The 40 Year Old Virgin delivers enough belly laughs." Lou Lumenick of the New York Post gave the film 2 out of 4 stars, and called it "A calculating crowd-pleaser aimed squarely at the under-25 crowd, who can feel free to add a star or two to my rating." Ann Hornaday of the Washington Post is critical of the film but praised Carell for his performance: "the most surprising thing about 'The 40-Year-Old Virgin
The film was criticized by Harry Forbes of Catholic News Service for promoting "the false premise that there's something intrinsically wrong with an unmarried man being sexually inexperienced," and by political columnist Cal Thomas for being an example of societal decline in regards to "self-control or what was once known as purity."
Box office
The film was a summer hit, and opened at No. 1 at the box office, grossing $21,422,815 during its opening weekend, and stayed at No. 1 the following weekend. The film grossed a total of $109,449,237 at the domestic market, and $67,929,408 internationally, for a total of $177,378,645. The film was 25th in global gross, and 19th in the United States that year. The film was released in the United Kingdom on September 2, 2005, and topped the country's box office that weekend.Accolades
In December 2005, the film was chosen by the American Film Institute as one of the ten best movies of the year, the only comedy film to be so recognized. The film was also ranked No. 30 on Bravo's 100 Funniest Movies.| Association | Award | Recipient | Result |
| American Film Institute Awards | Movie of the Year | ||
| ASCAP Film and Television Music Awards | Top Box Office Films | Lyle Workman | |
| Award Circuit Community Awards | Best Original Screenplay | Judd Apatow Steve Carell | |
| Boston Society of Film Critics Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Catherine Keener | |
| Critics Choice Awards | Best Comedy Movie | ||
| Gold Derby Awards | Best Original Screenplay | Judd Apatow Steve Carell | |
| Golden Schmoes Awards | Best Comedy of the Year | ||
| Golden Schmoes Awards | Best Surprise of the Year | ||
| Golden Schmoes Awards | Best Breakthrough Performance of the Year | Steve Carell | |
| Golden Schmoes Awards | Best Line of the Year | ||
| Golden Schmoes Awards | Best Screenplay of the Year | Judd Apatow Steve Carell | |
| Golden Schmoes Awards | Favorite Movie Poster of the Year | ||
| Golden Schmoes Awards | Most Memorable Scene in a Movie | ||
| International Online Cinema Awards | Best Original Screenplay | Judd Apatow Steve Carell | |
| Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Catherine Keener | |
| MTV Movie Awards | Best Movie | ||
| MTV Movie Awards | Best Breakthrough Performance | Romany Malco | |
| MTV Movie Awards | Best Male Performance | Steve Carell | |
| MTV Movie Awards | Best Comedic Performance | Steve Carell | |
| MTV Movie Awards | Best On-Screen Team | Steve Carell Paul Rudd Seth Rogen Romany Malco | |
| National Society of Film Critics Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Catherine Keener | |
| New York Film Critics Circle Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Catherine Keener | |
| Online Film & Television Association Awards | Best First Feature | Judd Apatow | |
| Online Film & Television Association Awards | Best Breakthrough Performance - Male | Steve Carell | |
| Online Film & Television Association Awards | Best Original Screenplay | Judd Apatow Steve Carell | |
| Online Film Critics Society Awards | Best Breakthrough Filmmaker | Judd Apatow | |
| St. Louis Film Critics Association Awards | Best Animated, Musical, or Comedy Film | ||
| The Stinkers Bad Movie Awards | Most Overrated Film | ||
| Writers Guild Awards | Best Original Screenplay | Judd Apatow Steve Carell |