Knocked Up (2007)

Cast includes:
CHARACTER	ACTOR/ACTRESS	RATING
Ben Stone	Seth Rogen
Alison Scott	Katherine Heigl
Pete	Paul Rudd
Debbie	Leslie Mann
Jason	Jason Segel	½
Jay	Jay Baruchel	½
Jonah	Jonah Hill	½
Martin	Martin Starr	½
Jodi	Charlyne Yi
Alison's Mom	Joanna Kerns
Ben's Dad	Harold Ramis
Jack	Alan Tudyk
Jill	Kristen Wiig
Brent	Bill Hader
Dr. Howard	Loudon Wainwright
Himself	James Franco

Review

Knocked Up proves that it actually is possible to combine the goofball, pot-smoking youth culture humour of the 2000s with a real, sensitive and heartfelt portrayal of the whole process of contemporary human reproduction - from one-night-stand through unlikely pregnancy to the wonders of birth. The man who did the job (read: the film) is Judd Apatow, and his film is a deferential document of the time and culture in question, getting authentic people and, not least, authentic hardships incorporated into a plot which in other hands easily could have developed into your run-of-the-mill youth/sex-comedy.

What sets Knocked Up apart, in addition to the well-dosed and rather tasty comedy and some fine layered characterizations, is that it pins down the indistinct male role of today. This role is confusing for many young men, and it leads to situations similar to those Apatow captures with Knocked Off: guys sharing flats with their pals into their late 20s, living rather apathetic, isolated lives with virtuality as their number one emotional stimuli. Luckily, like all sharp-eyed sociologists, Apatow passes no judgement; he embraces the situation and the opportunities which lie ahead for this incredibly enlightened, but rather indifferent generation. These guys, like Juno a year later, know that everything is going to turn out fine in the end. Unlike previous generations, these guys have got a lot of time - probably, as Apatow suggests, far more than their gender counterparts who, understandably, are a little more hurried. Knocked Up is a revealing and perceptive film, probably beyond its own ambitions. And it is downright entertaining as well.