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Birth gets messy in "Knocked Up"

Written by Michael James Allen

Wednesday, 06 June 2007

Judd Apatow has done it again: The man behind "The 40 Year Old Virgin" has followed that incredibly successful film with "Knocked Up," a follow-up that has opened to 30 million dollars (making back its entire budget in just the first weekend) and near-unanimous critical praise. The film is so well-loved, in fact, that I feel as though I'm confessing a shameful secret in telling you that I just didn't think it was all that good.

"Knocked Up"

Entertainment

Art

Written and directed by Judd Apatow
Starring Seth Rogen, Katherine Heigl, and Paul Rudd
Rated R for sexual content, drug use, and language
Released on June 1, 2007

"Knocked Up" is funny, no question about it. Telling the story of Ben (Seth Rogen) and Alison (the admittedly scrumptuous Katherine Heigl), and their one night of wild passion that turns into nine months of unplanned pregnancy, the film traverses between raunchy sex-comedy and sweet romantic comedy, scoring laughs on both counts. Particularly humorous are Ben's interactions with his slacker/pothead roommates, played by a stable of Apatow regulars like Jonah Hill, Martin Starr, Jason Segal, and others. To Apatow's credit, these characters play as exactly what they are: They are merely lazy losers with a good sense of humor, never glorified, but never sinking into depths of caricature either. A peek into Alison's life proves equally funny, with interactions between her, her cheerfully slimy boss (Alan Tudyk), and his assistant (Kristen Wiig) being a nice stand-out.

So no, "Knocked Up" does not suffer from a shortage of laughs. The problem is that the film is messy. I know that Apatow likes to let his actors improvise on set, and I realize that the process is capable of inspiring some great comedy. The film, however, seems overly dependent on improvisation (an inherently sloppy process), so for every joke that lands there is another bloated attempt that keeps going on and on. The most flagrant example of this is a scene in which Ben and his possible brother-in-law, Pete (a hilarious but underused Paul Rudd), take a trip to Vegas to see Cirque du Soleil on mushrooms. I had heard raves about this sequence in early reviews but, honestly, nothing particularly funny happens there. In fact, nothing at all happens. No doubt Apatow thought it would make for solid laughs to just go to Vegas and let his actors riff, but you can feel the improv process failing them, and what might have been a great, tightly written set piece is squandered instead.

The film is sloppy, story-wise, as well. Subplots about Ben starting a website devoted to movies with nude scenes, and the marital problems between Pete and his shrewish wife, Debbie (Leslie Mann, grating on the nerves), are just introduced and then forgotten. Also, while this may just be a pet peeve of mine, the film dates itself with strange references to characters going to see "Spider-Man 3." This is funny (kinda) in the immediate weeks following that film's release, but in a year from now it'll fall completely flat. Not a good quality for a film that's touted as being an "Instant Classic" on its poster.

"The 40 Year Old Virgin" had many of these same problems, but benefitted greatly from its effortless charm. In "Knocked Up," things just feel a little more forced, a little more obvious, and a little more messy. Still, the film is funny, and for a lot of people that will be the only requirement. For my part, however, I see it as a missed opportunity, one that could've been easily fixed with tighter writing and editing. Judd Apatow is truly gifted, and he works with truly funny actors. Here's hoping that his next outing (perhaps August's "Superbad," which Apatow produced and Seth Rogen wrote and co-stars) will be a little cleaner.

Comments

Written by Guest on 2007-06-06 10:25:18

Your rating is the dumbest thing I have ever seen. THIS could very well be the top comedy of the year, let alone EVER! What a great film.

Perhaps you need a sense of humor in order to review films like this.

The Previous Comment
Written by Guest on 2007-06-06 11:06:59

Now you know what I mean when I say "I feel as though I'm confessing a shameful secret." I fully realize that there's a lot of love out there for "Knocked Up," and I'm not saying that it's completely unearned, but I'm surprised at how rabid fans of this film are at defending it.

Also, please note that I deliberately mention, again and again, that the film is funny. Is that, however, enough to warrant a good film? There are tons of funny comedies out there ("Wedding Crashers," "Old School," "Dogma" to name a few) that fail in the story department. This doesn't completely discredit their value, but (for me, at least) a truly great comedic film has to do more than just make me laugh. It also has to tell a cohesive and satisfying story.

~Michael James Allen

Wow.
Written by Guest on 2007-06-07 12:31:47

The writer enjoys the movie, writes a thorough account of his opinions (what went well, what didn't) and it's the dumbest thing you've ever seen? Oh, his opinions don't perfectly mirror yours? I guess you're right, that is very dumb and the writer clearly has no sense of humor, good point. Hey post a link to your magazine, I can tell you'd have some real intelligent things to say.

Well done review, Michael, and a good response. I'll probably give the movie a whirl.

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