Although you may not even recognize this man from his picture, you will undoubtedly know the hit movies he has produced and/or written, including “Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy,” “Knocked Up,” and “Super Bad.” As far as I am concerned, the man is a living legend. I love the sense of humor in his movies and his characters are always some of the most entertaining men and women in Hollywood.
Apatow’s movies tend to be provocative and sometimes outrageously dirty, featuring nothing but laugh-out-loud bathroom humor. However, in some cases, his films end leaving you with some sort of uplifting feeling, like in “Knocked Up,” where Seth Rogen actually begins to take on the responsibility of being a father to the baby he and Katherine Heigl accidentally created.
What is most amazing about Apatow’s work is that in the last ten years he has helped define the careers and successes of young stars like Rogen and Jason Segal as well as Steve Carell and Paul Rudd. He also uses very little budgets on his films and instead of expensive sets or special effects, he focuses in on the human interaction, the intensely funny conversations amongst his characters, many of whom are close friends of his.
Apatow is not afraid to hide his Jewish identity into his films, whether it is through a lead actor who is Jewish or through an almost unrecognizable plug of Judaism, like the boy with a kippah who blows a Shofar in his film, “Role Models.” I feel as though Apatow is proud of his religious identity and he is willing to express it, which is a great quality to have in a movie producer.
All of his movies stem from the little things in life that are funny, which is such a unique experience in Hollywood film. He has already directed many Box Office winners and a few busts, but I guarantee Apatow will be around for a long time to come and his movies will continue to make us all laugh.
