Funny 'Knocked Up' also touching

It's not too much to assume that when news broke that writer/director Judd Apatow, responsible for "The 40-Year-Old Virgin," had a new film out, many were excited and prepared to see another excellent film. But I have to say I expected to laugh more at hilariously inappropriate jokes than to encounter a thoughtful and touching story line when I went to see "Knocked Up."

That is where the writer's story will surprise you. The movie begins by portraying the life of Alison Scott (Katherine Heigl) and polar opposite Ben Stone (Seth Rogen). Alison is a successful journalist for E! Entertainment Television and Ben spends his days getting high and working on a Web site that is borderline pornographic. Normally, the two would never cross paths.

The pair have a "fun" night, to say the least, and have to pick up the pieces of the drunken hookup. Before you start to think this is a soap opera gone bad, remember that it is also hilarious, and something that probably could not have been pulled off by any other writer.

There are a lot of familiar faces from "The 40-Year-Old Virgin," but with a new spin on real-life humor.

Alison's sister, Debbie, (Leslie Mann) and husband, Pete (Paul Rudd), offer an accurate portrayal of married couples and the dynamic of dysfunctional relationships everywhere.

There's no doubt you will see a little bit of everyone you know.

What makes the movie so captivating is the way the humor flows instead of being forced, as if it was a close-up view into the moments we wish we had on tape.

Don't get me wrong, there are definitely some lines where you will think to yourself, "Are they allowed to put this in movies?!"

Yet you will eventually be surprised by a touching moment that balances the shocking and embarrassing sex episodes.

It is that balance that makes the film work so well; instead of being just another crude movie, it turns out to be a truly touching story.

Another thing I liked about the movie is that even though the situation is one of those "I hope it doesn't ever happen to me," you can't help but root for everything to work out in the end.

I couldn't help but love the way the two main characters were horribly wrong for each other. Like one train wreck after another, the two seem to be hopeless, yet they are able to get back on track.

The movie accurately depicts the struggles and surprises that come with life, along with the hope to get through it all.

If there is one thing I can say about "Knocked Up," it's that it is definitely not what you expect.

The quirky one-liners and descriptions of the close-up birth don't even begin to define the film.

You will walk away from the theater with a dried (not fallen) tear in your eye and a pain from the side-splitting laughs; something you'd be lucky to get from two good movies.

Liz Blasi is a graduate of University High School in Greeley. She will attend the University of Northern Colorado this fall.