Meet the Parents is one of those Ben Stiller vehicles that's so slapstick in its hilarity that it can actually make you feel uncomfortable. It's funny, but it's almost disturbingly funny, such that if you make the mistake of imagining yourself in Greg "Gaylord" Focker's (Ben Stiller) shoes, you want to hide under your seat.
Meet the Fockers takes the conceit of the original movie one step further. Greg's already met his fiancée's (Pam Byrnes, played by Teri Polo) family, including Pam's pleasant mother Dina (Blythe Danner), her nephew Jack (Spencer and Bradley Pickren), and her domineering father Jack (Robert De Niro). It's now time for that momentous meeting that all engaged couples dread: the family meeting. It's time, finally, to meet the parents who named their son Gaylord Focker.
Thus begins a road trip down to Florida to meet Greg's parents, played hippie pitch-perfect by Barbara Streisand as Rozalin (a special kind of therapist for older couples who want to be more intimate) and Dustin Hoffman as Bernie, the over-supportive, super-pal of a dad. Mix the Byrnes with the Fockers and stir.
The additional twist is Little Jack, representing a flashpoint of parenting debate. Jack's childrearing is strict and disciplinarian one hand (the Byrnes hand, if you couldn't guess) and the free-love, do-it-if-it-feels-good empowerment of the Fockers.
Streisand and Hoffman are the real treat here. Their parental struggles and angst, or lack thereof, are what make the film. If you're a fan of either, you won't be disappointed.
If you are recently married or have a kid, the movie's struggle over childrearing is a very funny debate indeed. If you don't, then Meet the Fockers is probably only mildly amusing. Since my son was born the same month I saw his movie, it had particular comedic resonance, and my parents (who are definitely Focker-types) and my wife laughed all the way through.
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