However, Andy Stitzer (Steve Carell) in "The 40 Year Old Virgin" has no chance of losing his "V-card." Andy's inability to lose his virginity is not for immediately obvious reasons like bad looks or a bad body; in fact he has nice pectorals and a moderately handsome face. After seeing his apartment and a few interactions with his co-workers, it becomes clear that the reason he still holds his "V-card" is primarily because he's a huge tool, and unfortunately, the chance of a tool of this caliber getting girly action is pretty slim.
The most painful part about watching Andy is that he's not even the Napoleon Dynamite tool type who's somewhat intriguing; instead, he can be summed up as an immature eighth-grader more interested in video games and action figures than girls. For example, when he talks to his "Halo"-playing colleagues about women, he sounds like a junior-high kid trying to impress older, high-school-age boys by feigning interest in women and fabricating sexual experiences. He drops lines like "Oh man, I love titties," and says that his ex-girlfriend "gets down with sex."
But it is this clueless behavior regarding the opposite sex that creates the basis of humor in this film. When his co-worker tells him a story about screwing animals, Andy describes his weekend highlight of spending three-and-a-half hours making an egg salad sandwich. In fact the funniest parts of the movie show how utterly unsmooth Andy is; for example, when an attractive woman tries to give him her number, he questions the necessity of having it when her store is across the street.
However, "Virgin" is not based only on a funny subject topped with hilarious situations; the key element of its success as a comedy was the connection among the four main male characters: Andy, David (Paul Rudd), Jay (Romany Malco) and Cal (Seth Rogen). At first the other characters are wary of Andy; Cal believes he is a secretive, creepy serial killer. However, it turns out that Andy is just an eccentric collector who is accustomed to being a loner. His room looks like it belongs to a nine-year-old boy since it is decorated with superhero dolls, collector items and posters. Worst of all, Andy still rides his bike with a little red basket everywhere he goes.
Andy comes out of his shell once his co-workers discover that he is still a virgin, and even his boss and a dorky duo peanut gallery make fun of him. David, Jay and Cal decide to help this untouched 40-year-old become a man by making it their mission to help him finally lose his virginity. Things begin to look up when Andy meets and falls for the beautiful Trish (Catherine Keener)-but then she hits on the brilliant idea of suspending their physical relationship, and Andy is no closer to getting rid of his purity.
The funniest of Andy's coworkers is Cal, the tough tattooed guy whose personality and funny lines never get old. David is too much of a softy, and his character gets obnoxious after about the first 45 minutes of the movie. Cal, on the other hand, makes frank, one-line punchlines like pointing out to Andy that "everyone rides a bike ... when they're six!" In the classic scene from the trailers, he also advises Andy to "just ask girls questions," and to "plant seeds to keep options open."
Even after seeing the trailers, these scenes and many others with Cal stirred audible laughs in the theater. This is the first movie I've seen since "Zoolander" where all of the characters are funny-some of them very much so-and each one plays a role in the overall success of the comedy. Even the manic and overly mushy David adds simple touches to the humor; for example, he brings a box of pornos including "Harry Twatter" to Andy's apartment and forces the quartet of coworkers to go to Date-A-Palooza.
Overall, the movie is everything a light summer comedy can be. Carell upholds the reputation he gained from "Anchorman" as a quirky, yet hilarious actor, but in this movie his style is slightly different from his previous roles. In parts he even reminds me of Jason Schwartzman in "Rushmore" and "Slackers." Most importantly, though, the four main actors perfectly complement one another's humor in every scene, from Andy's wax to the finale performance of "Age of Aquarius." Whether bickering with each other or plotting for Andy's long-lost prom night, complete with an awkward condom opening and quick finish, this group of actors makes the ideal dirty and silly comedy team, clicking as well as Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson or Chris Farley and David Spade.