"Forgetting Sarah Marshall"
Directed by: Nicholas Stoller

Starring: Jason Segel, Kristen Bell, Mila Kunis, Russell Brand, Bill Hader

MPAA rating: R (for graphic nudity, sexual content, adult language and situations)

Running time: 112 minutes

Best suited for: Apatow acolytes

Least suited for: avoiders of graphic sexual frankness and/or body parts

Seems that writer/director/producer Judd Apatow has quickly become the John Hughes of the new millennium. Having connected with certain demographics as the exec producer of TVs "Freaks and Geeks" (the "My So-Called Life" of nerdom), he's since written and produced for Will Ferrell and Jim Carrey- and started hitting a string of home runs, writing, directing and/or producing "The 40 Year Old Virgin" in 2005 and "Knocked Up" and "Superbad" last year.

Apatow's "Step Brothers" (Will Ferrell, John C. Reilly) and "The Pineapple Express" (Seth Rogen, James Franco) are due out this summer- more farcical, yet superbly scripted, fun with losers, loners and stoners. Apparently there is sufficient appetite for such fare, as the non-Apatow-related "Baby Mama" and the "Harold and Kumar" sequel are currently in theaters and doing well, both starring unconventional characters in quirky situations.

Hollywood's more nefarious performances may be winning Oscars, but it's our laid-back, goofy attempts to find love and selfacceptance that are cleaning up at the box office.

Meanwhile, producer Apatow and director Nicholas Stoller have ventured further into the soul of 20something American angst with the laugh-aloud funny "Forgetting Sarah Marshall."

Peter (Jason Segel) and Sarah (Kristen Bell) have been a Hollywood couple for five years. Peter composes musical scores and Sarah's a primetime delight, soaking up the limelight and hoping to launch a film career. But while she's heating up the fast-track, Peter's something of a couch potato, living in sweatpants and Tshirts, hating his work and writing a vampire opera for puppets on the side.

Sarah finally leaves Peter (standing in a puddle of water, as it turns out), having found new love in the guise of British pop star Aldus Snow, a spacey, yet also refreshingly endearing, Russell Brand. Peter's devastated, adrift in a sea of self-pity. His brother begs him to get out of town awhile, take a vacation and shake off the sting of his loss.

Peter takes the advice and flies to Hawaii- one of his exgirlfriend's favorite getaway spots- hoping to forget Sarah Marshall.

But of course, Sarah happens to arrive at the same location with her boyfriend in tow. Peter's devastated, but not cowardly enough to find another resort (and thus, of course, ending the movie). So for the next week Peter and Sarah are thrust upon one another at every turn.

That's pretty much the setup- admittedly, on the surface it sounds like standard TV sitcom fare. But I suppose that's the simple beauty of the Apatow-influenced rom-com farce. Take a few ordinary people in slightly uncomfortable or embarrassing situations, splice in an hour or so of extraordinarily astute dialogue- and the formula can work wonders.

"Sarah Marshall" star Jason Segel wrote the script, by the way. If you recognize him, it's from TV's "How I Met Your Mother."

They say everything's already been done in Hollywood. No new plots, no new twists, no new ideas- which leaves only rich characterization and profound dialogue. "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" fills the screen with plenty of both, raising this film far above the norm.

One might even understand why Hollywood's writers felt a little underappreciated last year and why Hollywood eventually capitulated. Special effects and razzle-dazzle can only take a film so far. But in film, every story is the dialogue. Without the wit and wisdom of the Great American Underdog, I suspect that filmdom in general would be far less rewarding.

One note about "Sarah Marshall": The film uses its "R" rating to the max. This isn't a date movie for preteens; it's an adult comedy that uses some biting sexual content to make its point. Expect nudity (albeit brief), sexual jousting and plenty of innuendo. Yes, it's funny, but only for those tastes that can handle a graphic and forthright portrayal.

For those who aren't easily offended, who loved to laugh at "The 40 Year Old Virgin" and "Knocked Up," "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" continues to put Apatow and Co. in a rom-com league of their own.