Ill-Informed Gadfly

Judd Apatow is currently writing and directing a vehicle for Seth Rogen, who plays Steve Carell’s tattooed, amiably depraved co-worker in Apatow’s “The 40-Year-Old Virgin.” This is perhaps the best news for movie comedy since Jim Carrey jumped from “In Living Color” to make “Ace Ventura: Pet Detective.” Rogen is a star in the making. He lights up the screen. If by some misfortune you are forced to see “You, Me and Dupree,” watch how much Rogen is able to do with the underwritten, underthought part of a pussy-whipped buddy to the two leads. He’s the funniest thing in the movie — or, more accurately, the only funny thing in the movie. Too bad he’s barely in it.

Rogen, a Vancouver native, is only 24. He and Apatow go way back. At 19, Rogen was writing and starring in episodes of Apatow’s brilliant-but-canceled “Undeclared.” He did a stint as a writer for “Da Ali G Show,” and has co-written the screenplay for a movie that will tentatively star Owen Wilson, the lead in “Dupree.” I’m glad Rogen is exercising his many talents, but I’d rather see him in front of the camera. His energy and versatility are way out of Wilson’s league. So far, he’s crafted a persona that suggests an intelligent stoner, a good-natured, generous hedonist. His bulky body and soft eyes make him unthreatening, and there’s nothing mean-spirited about his comedy. He’s honest and unguarded; he makes you laugh the way a friend would — except more consistently.