This Is Forty: Judd Apatow's Circle of Life

Judd Apatow is a funny man. One needs only to look at the vast list of films he has produced and/or directed in the past decade to be convinced. He€™s produced hits such as Bridesmaids and Superbad. He€™s also proved himself a capable filmmaker, donning the director€™s chair three times so far giving us a trilogy of hilarious films. The 40 Year Old Virgin, Knocked Up, and Funny People. The success of Apatow€™s films can be attributed to the level of heart in the characters and stories he tells as well as the genuinely comedic moments he captures. With his fourth directorial effort coming out later this year, a sort-of sequel to Knocked Up, This is Forty appears to be continuing right where Apatow left off in Funny People. What happens when life goes on past middle age? It seems that all of Apatow€™s films correspond to the circle of life, with each film depicting a certain stage of life we all go through. The loss of virginity culminating in marriage. The start of a family. And the inevitable certainty of death and how we deal with it. Sex. Birth. Death. And the fourth appears to continue somewhere in between Knocked Up and Funny People. Life as an adult, the other side of forty. How middle aged people transition to old people, watching one€™s children become adults. As in his previous two films, he€™s cast his two daughters, Maude and Iris, his talented wife, Mrs. Leslie Mann and the mansome Paul Rudd, who are all reprising their Knocked Up roles. Don€™t accuse the man of nepotism, call him brave. He€™s putting it all out there. He€™s showing life as he sees it with his family under the microscope. Mr. Judd Apatow is showing us the circle of life and while it can be serious and daunting, one thing is for sure: life is funny.
Contributor
Contributor

I'm a thinker/fantasizer who writes down his thoughts and fantasies hoping it makes sense to everyone else. Also I'm an aspiring screenwriter, but if I can work in film at all, I'd be happy. One day you may hear the name Ryan Kim and associate it with "Academy Award winning writer" or with "where's that guy with my coffee." If the latter comes true, please let it be Paul Thomas Anderson's coffee I'm getting.