Monkey Review: Knocked Up

Phew! Thank God She's Not Ugly!

If you're expecting an uproarious laugh fest, this really isn't your movie. But if you want to see a warm, genuine and pretty funny look at how two young people would react to a very difficult situation, then Knocked Up fits the bill.


Knocked Up

Monkey Rating: 3 Opposable Thumbs Up (out of 5)

I always think it's great when a comedy relates to real issues and anxieties that moviegoers actually deal with in their lives. Real problems form a much stronger comedic foundation than fabricated issues; actions and reactions mean more because of the context.

That's what I like about Knocked Up, the most recent effort from Director Judd Apatow. If that name sounds familiar, it's because he was also behind the camera for 40 Year Old Virgin, another film that, although the notion of such an old virgin is a stretch, his fears rang quite true. Contrast that with movies like "Click" or "Christmas with the Kranks," which, because they're rooted in completely unbelievable premises, seem to ring hollow (of course, the overacting and terrible dialogue don't help).

Knocked Up tells the story of Ben Stone (Seth Rogen) and Alison Scott (Katherine Heigl), a couple of happy go lucky people who get drunk and have a one night stand which results in, you guessed it, Alison getting pregnant.

What ensues is not what you'd think. It would have been easy to turn this into a farce where Ben tries to get Alison to abort, or where Alison tries to manipulate Ben. But Apatow has drawn up real characters here who decide to take on the responsibility of having the baby.

The problem? Ben and Allison don't even know each other. So now their struggle is two-fold: deal with the impending birth of their child and try to establish a relationship at the same time. Though it's never happened to me personally, this strikes me as something to which a lot of people can relate.

The way Ben and Allison react to their situation seems entirely plausible. They're scared, confused and totally on their own, so you'd expect their emotions to get the best of them, which they do in a naturally funny way.

The supporting cast is also solid, anchored by the underrated Paul Rudd and a great Leslie Mann as Alison's sister and brother-in-law, respectively.

Still, the movie is not without its flaws, beginning with the fact that, while it's very believable and generally funny, there aren't ENOUGH laughs to really call this a great comedy. The gaps between laughter-inducing scenes are simply too long. I think it would have been possible to insert some more funny without compromising the organic integrity of the plot.

I've been known to nitpick some movies, but I can't let this one go: it helps that Alison is Katherine Heigl. Ben's decision to keep the baby is certainly made easier by the fact that Alison is a 5'10", blonde, busty bombshell. Ladies, you can deride men all you want for placing too much emphasis on a woman's appearance, but hey, it's important to us; we're hardwired that way. As long as the woman is not a complete psycho, it's hard to turn away someone who looks like Alison.

It's no different than a woman who wants a financially successful man. Do you think Julia Roberts would have run off with Richard Gere in Pretty Woman if he was a garbage man? No, we have to be realistic on this one. Think of it another way: if Ben had impregnated Ugly Betty, would he be jumping into parenthood with both feet? Unlikely.

So if you're expecting an uproarious laugh fest, this really isn't your movie. But if you want to see a warm, genuine and pretty funny look at how two young people would react to a very difficult situation, it's hard to think of a recent movie that fits the description more than Knocked Up.