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After seeing Funny People and now This Is 40, I’m starting to think Judd Apatow needs to take some anti-depressants, because he obviously has a cutting problem. What’s frustrating isn’t that he doesn’t know what to cut out, it’s that he could otherwise have great movies.

Walking out of This Is 40, it became abundantly clear that Apatow works best working within mainstream comedy. His first two movies were fantastic despite being somewhat familiar. People praised Apatow for infusing heart into crass, and then he began to overdo it. Instead of working inside boundaries, Apatow tried to push himself and make his films just as much dramas as they are comedy. While that’s admirable, it’s obvious that he doesn’t have a firm grasp on the “James L. Brooks”-type of filmmaking he’s shooting for.

Sadly, Apatow can do drama very well, and there are many moments in This Is 40 completely devoid of comedy that work wonderfully. Two or three of the endless arguments are brutally honest, but the other five play like firsts drafts of what came before. An argument could be made that the frustration from all the arguing could be intentional to get into the headspace of the characters, and I could even defend that, but not to the point it is pushed here. Especially when near the end of the film there is a deeply uncomfortable argument at a table where the whole film comes to a head, and then directly afterwards there is a pointless argument that rehashes what was literally just said. Then, in order to get to the admittedly great ending, Apatow blatantly copies from the climax of The 40 Year Old Virgin.

Even when the script comes short, the actors still deliver. Like any Apatow film, there are plenty of supporting characters. Apatow regulars like Charlene Yi, Jason Segel, and Chris O’Dowd get the biggest laughs of the film and are used just the right amount. Apatow also enrolls new blood in Albert Brooks and John Lithgow as Rudd and Mann’s parents, and both do great comedic and dramatic work. Megan Fox even surprises basically playing herself. As the leads, Paul Rudd and Leslie Mann anchor the film, believably playing a couple at their best, and mostly, worst. Mann sadly gets stuck doing a lot of nagging, but she’s thankfully given enough to counteract it so she ends up having the audience’s side as much as Rudd. Rudd gets to try something new and play an occasionally very unlikable person, which he is very good at.

I hope Apatow makes a normal comedy for his next film, because the straight comedy moments of this film work the best. Apatow needs to stop trying to become a James L. Brooks, and instead be content that he’s Judd Apatow. When he began directing he found a format that worked, then hasn’t found success when he’s strayed from it. He doesn’t have to completely give up drama- there are plenty of great dramatic moments in his first two films – but it would be best if he kept doing what he does best and make people laugh.

As for This Is 40, there enough laughs to call it a good comedy, but too many problems to call it a good movie. Still, it’s worth seeing for the comedy and the dramatic parts that work, maybe not in theaters, but definitely once you can spend a dollar and watch it in your house. I admire what Judd Apatow is trying to do and wouldn’t say he entirely failed, just that he may want to start leaving early like a gentleman instead of late like a bore.

-Jeremy