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Knocked Up poster

Knocked Up

year 2007decade 00sdirector Judd Apatowgenre Comedy

129 minutes

Cast

Selected cast credits · Film reference

Knocked Up | The Rewatchables

host Bill Simmonshost Juliet Litmanhost Craig Horlbeckproducer Craig Horlbeck
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The Stephen A. Smith Hottest Take Award

Heigl/Lohan lost superstardom; Flesh of the Stars beats Mr.Skin; Alison should choose abortion

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 00:24:59Read transcript
  • Heigl and Lohan are proposed as unrealized major stars; Heigl’s broken relationships with the Apatow group and Shonda Rhimes are presented as particularly difficult to recover from.
  • Flesh of the Stars is preferred as a business name to the creepy-sounding Mr.Skin.
  • Abortion is proposed as the sensible decision for the characters given Ben’s unemployment and immaturity, with the joke that the movie would end after 28 minutes.

Most Rewatchable Scene

Nightclub hangout; breakfast with the children

In the discussion (11)
Approx. transcript time · 00:32:26Read transcript
  • The running jokes about Martin’s beard and Dirty Man competition are celebrated as endlessly funny male-friend banter, with Lennon, Scorsese, Cat Stevens, Richard Reid and Robin Williams-knuckle comparisons.
  • Wiig’s euphemistic weight-loss meeting is praised as an early display of her screen persona and perhaps her second-best movie work.
  • The nightclub’s beer-buying, teasing and dice-dance routine are a personal favorite; Mann and Heigl also excel and the bouncer setup pays off later.
  • Segel flirting with Mann is admired as an underrated supporting turn; supporting players can stay weird without the lead’s growth arc.
  • The obscene background gestures during Alison’s phone call and the sex-offender website argument are additional comic highlights.
  • The double date’s time-machine exchange showcases Rogen and Rudd’s chemistry and greater affection for each other than their partners.
  • The Vegas mushroom trip and intercut nightclub rejection by Robinson form a favored eight-minute stretch.
  • The fantasy baseball draft reveal feels painfully plausible, with the Matsui announcement especially funny.
  • Alison’s first visit to the messy house and Hill awkwardly watching Wild Things effectively show the gulf between young men’s and women’s maturity.
  • The breakfast conversation with Maude is explicitly chosen, with the meal setting laying out the film’s concerns.
  • Two closing preferences favor the nightclub after the breakfast choice.

The Dion Waiters Award for Best Heat Check Performance

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 00:34:21Read transcript
  • The two weight-loss scenes make Wiig an early contender for the short-screen-time performance award.
  • Six nominees are Seacrest, Wiig, Hader, Iris Apatow, Stormy Daniels and Robinson; Jeong is explicitly excluded just beforehand.
  • Wiig wins two preferences over one for Seacrest, with praise for elevating both of her scenes.

What’s Aged the Best?

Hill; Apatow children; sister bond; ensemble; gas mask; Brentwood; Rogen; Segel; ping-pong referee; Fox dig; Seacrest

In the discussion (7)
Approx. transcript time · 00:40:29Read transcript
  • Hill’s explosive yelling and late hospital-wheelchair antics rescue stretches of the movie; the Apatow children and affectionate sister relationship are also praised.
  • The failed Mr.Skin imitation is a funny premise, though younger viewers may miss the reference and the friends should already know the original site.
  • The supporting cast’s future prominence stands out: Hader, Robinson, Jeong, Franco, Carell, Scott and Novak; Ramis’s father cameo and Hader’s Dom DeLuise insult also delight.
  • The smoking gas mask now evokes Laremy Tunsil and is credited with inspiring inventive ways to smoke.
  • This Is 40’s later existence is an interesting bookend; Debbie and Pete’s Brentwood house and coastal interiors still look desirable, and Rogen’s sweetness impresses.
  • Segel’s casual nudity, a referee for ping-pong and the Matthew Fox insult are additional picks.
  • The mid-2000 s E! celebrity machine and Seacrest’s unexpected self-mocking rant are praised, including the Jessica Simpson joke.

The Butch’s Girlfriend Award for the Weakest Link in the Film

Fantasy-baseball cheating subplot

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 00:48:04Read transcript
  • The draft reveal is funny in isolation, but the nine-minute cheating detour distracts from the central pregnancy and offers little payoff; lying about an annual draft seems less credible than seeking solitary movie time.

What’s Aged the Worst?

Phone; UFC poster; length; real-name characters; clothes; prosthetic bump; anti-vax stance; webpage terminology; hostile doctor

In the discussion (8)
Approx. transcript time · 00:49:17Read transcript
  • The Sprint Treo close-up and Liddell/Couture poster date the film;132 minutes is too long, with excess Rudd/Mann material and drawn-out improvised scenes.
  • More montages could clarify relationships and compress repetitive scenes, beyond Ben’s eventual growing-up montage.
  • Using the actors’ real first names now intrudes as those performers became famous; Charlyne Yi and Rogen are inconsistent exceptions.
  • Heigl’s flowing tops and low wide jeans, along with the men’s oversized shirts and backward caps, are unflattering period fashion.
  • The fake pregnancy bump and Debbie’s anti-vaccination position age badly.
  • Repeatedly calling their project a webpage rather than a website sounds implausibly unfamiliar with 2007 internet usage.
  • Jeong’s hostile doctor is belatedly added as making the experience of giving birth look particularly unpleasant.
  • An ideal 100-to 105-minute cut would shorten labor and remove the draft detour; cutting the earthquake is proposed but resisted because Segel’s cigarette-and-nudity gag is too funny.

The Ruffalo / Hanna / Rubinek / Partridge Overacting Award

Charlyne Yi; Ken Jeong

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 00:57:11Read transcript
  • Yi’s stoned improvisations are considered excessive and unfunny, though giving another female character no dialogue would create a different problem; more development was needed.
  • Jeong’s aggressive doctor is also considered overacted and an unpleasant presence.

Apex Mountain

Heigl; Apatow, qualified; Matsui and movie fantasy-sports moments, possible; unplanned-pregnancy movies

In the discussion (6)
Approx. transcript time · 01:04:55Read transcript
  • Heigl is an emphatic yes, compared with Vincent Chase’s Aquaman peak; naming the category after that fictional example is floated for future workshopping.
  • Rogen is rejected because his career continued rising, though carrying this unconventional leading role, producing with Goldberg and releasing Superbad made 2007 remarkable.
  • Apatow is a strong qualified yes for his leverage across Knocked Up and Superbad’s nearby release.
  • Segel, Hill, Rudd and Baruchel are rejected; Mann prompts admiration but This Is 40 is preferred for leading a major movie.
  • Matsui is an arguable yes and fantasy sports in movies may peak here; The League is television, while baseball’s historical primacy is debated against football’s mid-2000 s rise.
  • Unplanned-pregnancy movies receive an affirmative belated nomination, with She’s Having a Baby considered and Juno dismissed as a personal dislike.

Sequel, Prequel, Limited Series, or All-Black Remake

Eight-episode comedy series; possible all-Black cast

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:15:50Read transcript
  • An all-Black version appeals, but an eight-episode series could explore the secondary family; Catastrophe is a comparison. Concerns about losing humor are countered with The Sex Lives of College Girls’ tone, and a possible This Is 50 is mentioned.

Is This Movie Better With…?

Kathryn Hahn as Alison’s friend, sister or doctor

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:16:49Read transcript
  • Hahn could fill the missing friend role, play Debbie or replace the hostile doctor; she is considered useful in many parts.

Just One Oscar

Screenplay; Jonah Hill supporting actor

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:17:19Read transcript
  • Screenplay is the most plausible award, with Hill’s scene-by-scene excellence offered as a supporting-actor alternative.

The Coach Finstock Award for Best Life Lesson

Avoid the unemployed stoner with the imitation website

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:19:45Read transcript
  • Alison is advised to choose a different partner; the abortion take returns, followed by a joke repeating the movie’s unsupported pregnancy-position claim.

Who Won the Movie?

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:22:08Read transcript
  • Apatow receives one opening choice, but two favor Rogen: proving he could lead this hit opened future starring opportunities, amplified by Superbad’s writing success.
  • His off-camera partnership with his off-camera best friend adds to the sense that he was doing more than the visible ensemble.
Podcast choices
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Judd Apatow
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Seth Rogen
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Seth Rogen