The 40 Year Old Virgin

Reviewing a film with a title like The 40 Year Old Virgin, you expect it to be a gross out American Pie-esque teen comedy extravaganza, and even though it does feature some amusingly crass moments, it differs, due to the quality of the characters and the writing.

The plot revolves around Andy Stitzer (co-writer Steve Carell), and the attempts by his workmates Dave (Paul Rudd), Jay (Romany Malco) and Cal (Seth Rogen) to get him to lose his virginity, and what happens when he meets Trish (Catherine Keener).

It probably won't break any rules to reveal the ending. Guess what? Andy does lose his virginity, but the film handles the storyline in a sweet way, and, hey, the morally repugnant characters end up learning "life lessons" - how American is that? - as Dave, Jay and Cal realise that sex isn't everything, relationships are important, too.

Despite the somewhat bizarre lapse into morality, which could have been planted by George W Bush's No Fun thought police, the writing and performances are generally very amusing. Carell, last seen playing David Brent in the US version of The Office, makes the character of Steve very likeable; the gorgeous Keener is just as good in this as she was in Living In Oblivion all those years ago and the co-workers, especially Rudd, are very funny, as is the much discussed waxing scene.

The one true flaw is the movie's length. A slapstick rom-com that's nearly two hours long!!?

If the film had been cut by at least 15-minutes, it would have made a difference. However, in a year thin on comedy, this is one of the best.