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Bookmark this pageMeet the Fockers (2004)
Director: Jay Roach
Movie review
From Time Out London
This sequel’s title indicates the content: smutty, silly and liable to make you smirk despite yourself. As in ‘Meet The Parents’, it’s a comedy of awkward introductions: here between the respective parents of Greg Focker (Ben Stiller) and Pam Byrnes (Teri Polo) in preparation for their nuptials. Hapless Greg, of course, is wedged in the middle, poised for humiliation.The Fockers (snigger) are just the kind of loved-up liberals Jack Byrnes (Robert De Niro) despises. In an inspired move, they’re played by Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand: he’s the tactile, chatty, stay-at-home dad, she’s the lusty, hippy sex therapist. Both imbue their characters with warmth and credibility as well as humour, though the last remains formulaic. As in ‘American Pie’, comic set-pieces begin with small mishaps and build into deeply embarrassing scenarios: a dog flushed down a toilet or mother Focker ‘riding’ uptight Jack during over-enthusiastic massage.
The message, naturally, is that Jack needs to loosen up, but while his wife’s emotional journey is plausible, his is not. Though a necessary comic foil, he’s the least convincing character: at best a stereotype, at worst a vehicle for visual gags that don’t fit (would the macho Jack of the first film really don fake breasts to feed milk to his grandson?). Most jokes, however, are as funny as they’re squirmily predictable, making the film reliable genre fare. While it doesn’t stretch itself, the familiar humour and likeable performances should have fans, at least, welcoming the Fockers with open arms.
Author: AS
Time Out London Issue 1797: January 26-February 2 2005
User reviews of this film
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- david said...
- Posted on Aug 31 2009 20:37 - might have been funny in 1974 ... go on, be honest with yerself, is there a single joke/set piece that you can't predict coming?
- Report as inappropriate
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- Dan said...
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Posted on Aug 29 2009 21:04
The cotmment you type in this box will appear on the site
This is grimly unfunny- avoid like the plague! - Report as inappropriate
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- eihnuzm rlxvfibk said...
- Posted on Jun 05 2008 18:45 msjcquy xyfgkuph murgcnzf hgizjsut cgsvp mlrpqxucf vsxhm
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- Kathy said...
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Posted on Oct 27 2007 09:46
Very funny, loved this film as well as Meet the Parents
A must-see - Report as inappropriate
Cast & crew
Director: Jay Roach
Producer: Jane Rosenthal
Cast: Robert De Niro, Ben Stiller, Dustin Hoffman, Blythe Danner, Barbra Streisand, Teri Polo full cast
Genre(s): Comedy
Rated: 12A
Duration: 115 mins
UK Release: Jan 28 2005
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