I never saw the 40 year old Virgin, but if that movie was as funny and true to life as Knocked up, then I might just be a Judd Apatow convert. Knocked up is the story of loser stoner, Ben and his lucky night of passion with the beautiful and successful, Allison, and the ensuing pregnancy that forces this mismatched couple to look at their future with new eyes.

Ben is the boy who has become a man, but hasn’t noticed yet. He lives in a stinking, bong infested house with his four mates, and his idea of a job is the upcoming lunch of a website that tells people how much nudity is in a film, and when they can expect it. Allison, on the other hand, is an up and coming E News! reporter who’s just promised to “tighten up” her buns for an opportunity to go on camera. Instead she ends up with a bulging bra cup, baby bump and widening ass.

Knocked up is not the kind of film I would normally see. The trailer looked frat-boy funny, which is not my thing, but the reviews promised more than a one gag film and this movie was definitely that. It is testament to Apatow’s skilled direction that a movie relying on “boys will be boys” humour also manages to be both insightful and emotionally compelling. It would be easy for Ben and Allison to be written as common caricatures, the princess and the frog, but Katherine Heigl and Seth Rogen have amazing chemistry and the complexity they bring to their roles makes their coupling surprisingly real. Allison appears to have her life together, but scratch the surface and she’s a grown woman who relies heavily on her uptight older sister. By the time she moves from controlling to hormonally hysterical, it is hard not to sympathise with the socially pathetic Ben, who may have no idea about adult relationships, but he’s trying his best. We are never sure if Allison and Ben are going to make it as a couple, but we hope they do.

Knocked Up is an honest and at times hilarious look at the precarious world of marriage and babies. It will scare any male off who is not up for the challenge and it will warm the hearts of any man who is. Take a date, and do the longevity test. You’ll share some laughs, and it could even prove a revealing look into your future.


photo by PETER KORTE

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