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Meet the Parents

Meet the Parents

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Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Had Potential
Review: Meet The Parents really had potential, but, it fell flat. De Niro's and Stiller's talents were wasted. The story had good ideas, but, timing and direction killed them. There was too much time watching and waiting for things to happen. Apparently, the director was assuming that the audience had little or no imagination. I laughed at a few things, but, I felt this movie was a waste of my time, money, and gas to pick it up at the video store. I was constantly feeling uncomfortable for Ben Stiller, yet, thinking how stupid he was for his lies. I did like how he ruined the wedding plans for De Niro's other daughter, but, that was a long drawn out breath. If the young people today consider this funny, they need to gain a little more depth to them. This movie appears to be a rough draft instead of a finished product. I didn't like it.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Mediocre Movie plus Massive Marketing equals...
Review: ...Monstrous Money Maker, it's just a Shame that Nothing on the Screen is Deserving of the Praise that Critics and Audiences greeted "Meet the Parents" with. Without Robert De Niro's Involvement, the film would Never have even hit the big-screen; it would have been sent to Video Hell where it Belongs.

Ben Stiller stars as Greg "Gaylord" Focker (a joke which is funny once or twice, but used over and over until it becomes plain stupid, and there are Rumour's that they are basing the Sequel around this one joke, lets hope that it Is just a rumour), he has Popped the Question to his Girlfriend Pam (Teri Polo), who is a Little Hesitant as he still hasn't... Met her Parents. If you Can't predict the rest of the film, then I Don't see you having a future as a Clairvoyant. Predictability is the Name of the Game in this film, it all feels as Stale as a 2 week old piece of Toast. Freshness is out the window and Familiarity is in, and Obviously, there is Profit to be had in Predictability.

This films Success Boggles the Mind; it is Totally Devoid of Anything New (while Riskier and Better comedies like "Little Nicky" and "Lucky Numbers" opened alongside it and Flopped as their Marketing Campaigns weren't as huge. Marketing seems to be were all the Effort went in this film). We've seen it all before in Countless Steve Martin films, It has an Annoying central performance by Ben Stiller and Irritating Supporting characters (including Polo, Blyth Danner as Dina, De Niro's wife, Jon Abrahams as Denny, De Niro's son and Owen Wilson as Kevin Rawley, a friend of the family). Only De Niro shines... Which was always going to happen. He seems to Know that the film is nothing special and he's just there for some Fun, or a Fat Pay Check, if so, he made a clever move, if he Actually attempted to make a Quality Film, he failed. He is a Consummate Professional who Always Rises to the Occasion. This film is No Different, it's a Shame this Trait couldn't rub off on his Co-stars.

"Meet the Parents" has Flat Spots at every corner, the Occasional moment of Hilarity (especially towards the end, the Airport scene had more Originality then every other scene combined), Tired Directing by the Usually Energetic Jay Roach and a Screenplay that could Very well have been an Unproduced screenplay from the Silent era, as most of the Chuckles come from De Niro's Facial Expressions. The word Overrated fits the film like a Glove, it's strange how such an Underplayed, Underacted, Underwritten, Under directed, Underdone film could end up Overrated.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Funny, but not Ha Ha Funny
Review: I think the marketing of this movie cost it in that its a funny movie, but its not the side-splitting followup to "Something About Mary" that it was at times billed as.

It's average for this genre, which, if you enjoy it, makes it worth watching, but likely not worth owning.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: I died laughing!
Review: Anyone who doesn't like this movie just don't have a sense of humor. My jaw hurt from laughing after I watched it. It's simple buy very funny. Anyone with a sense of humor needs to watch this.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Passes the time.
Review: I'm not as hard on fluff as some of my artsy-fartsy friends. As long as I know it's fluff going in (and anyone who'd be expecting more than "fluff" from Meet the Parents is beyond help), I tend to be fairly easily amused, one way or the other.

And Meet the Parents is just that -- amusing. A chucklesome diversion. It has a few decent laughs, but I entirely concede with any reviewer declaring that the movie is unoriginal, off the mark, and that the performances are nothing to write home about.

I think a lot of people were disappointed because -- formulaic and trite as the concept of the film may be -- De Niro as the gruff, humorless future father-in-law, and Stiller as the hapless young son-in-law to be, for whom nothing will go right -- seemed like promising casting with real comedic potential. And in the end, it's not that the movie is altogether unfunny -- it's just that it's not, you know, THAT funny. You may smile, or chuckle, or even laugh out loud a few times, but you're not going to be rolling around on the floor. And towards the end, the film becomes oddly serious -- almost a tad depressing. Which rubs people the wrong way when they are ... well ... expecting pure, light-hearted fluff.

Lacking in the hilarity department, it would help a great deal if Meet the Parents had some of the other qualities which I have already pointed out are missing -- originality, stellar performances, a witty and/or multilayered script. But these elements are nowhere to be seen. The "cute pet Ben Stiller hates and doesn't get along with" was already done in Something About Mary. The "intimidating, protective, grumpy father" schtick has been milked for all it was worth and more in movies like Father of the Bride. And the "what ELSE could go wrong? -- OH, THAT! HA HA!" style of humor, at this point in the development of mainstream comedy, is getting really, really tiresome. If you're going to do it, you need to do it well, and Meet the Parents only does it so-so.

Ben Stiller, though not unsympathetic, gets pretty annoying after a while. I was only half-heartedly pulling for him. I'm not a big Stiller fan though. His whiney method of delivery rakes on my nerves. De Niro can of course hold his own, but his dialogue is fairly stilted, and the whole bit about him being a CIA agent -- aggh. Over-the-top, stupid, and not half as funny as it'd like to be. He has a good line here or there ("I have nipples. Could you milk me?"), but, fluff or no, I was expecting a little more.

De Niro's wife -- oof -- bad move. She isn't funny at all. She comes off as really patheticly submissive and mindless, although I think they were TRYING for super-sweet and well-intended. I couldn't stand her. She reminded me of Ricky Fitts' mom in American Beauty. And those who have seen the movie recognize that that's more depressing than funny.

So what it boils down to is that even for fluff, this one falls a bit short. But it passes the time, and has amusing moments here and there.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Not a grammy winner, but good enough!
Review: When I first saw this movie, I almost died laughing. I know that almost every teenager I've talked to loves this movie--so if you are a teen and haven't seen it yet, go and rent it because we are all too cheap to buy the movie. For the adults, you probably will have to see this yourself. Different reviews give make most of us hesitant, but I can assure you one thing, and that is: you'll be satisfied and it will be a dollar well spent. If not, you can always resell it on eBay.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The Greatest!!
Review: Meet The Parents is one of the best movies I have ever seen! It's about Greg Focker, a male nurse, and his girlfriend Pam. He is about to propose to her when she recieves a call from her sister, announcing her engagement. Greg overhears that her fiancee asked her father for permission to marry his daughter. Greg and Pam go to meet Pam's parents, and Greg feels right away that they do not like him. Greg messes up a lot, and finds out that Jack, Pam's father, is a CIA agent and is still active, though claiming retirement. That's all I'll say, and if you want to know the end, see the movie!!

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Doesn't Quite Meet Expectations
Review: Based on the previews, I thought "Meet The Parents" would be a really funny movie. Well, it's a funny movie (in my opinion, at least -- the reviews here run the gamut), but not REALLY funny. Too bad. As Leonard Maltin's review says, it has a lot going for it. The situation has lots of potential, and the cast is good. Somehow, though, it just doesn't quite click. I chuckled at times, but it just never totally cracked me up. Some of the gags are a little too obvious, perhaps. Also, the father is sooo uptight that you sympathize with Greg, the boyfriend, for just trying to do whatever it takes to get through the weekend despite the always disastrous consequences. Clearly, from the wide range of opinions expressed about this film, this is one you have to judge for yourself -- a classic "rent before you buy" proposition. As my three-star rating indicates, I'm neutral on this flick. I wanted to see it and it was OK, but it's not one I will watch again-and-again. Caveat emptor.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A+ for a comedic interpretation of a classic situation!
Review: This movie dealt with a very common situation a lot of people face - bringing the love of your life home to "meet the parents.." the anxiety and unease created from such a situation was creatively humorized by the distinctive talents of such characters portrayed by ben stiller and robert deniro, to name a few.. greg falker's fear was so palpable that instantly i felt the deepest remorse for him while at the same time couldn't stop laughing.. albeit, some of the scenes were a bit far fetched, they were still presented with raw comedic talent to carry the movie along and add to it.. this movie is for those who love ben stiller and enjoy laughing..!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The Whole Family Loved It!
Review: If you are going into this movie expecting a serious film with major plot structure, you will probably be very disappointed. This is a "sit back, relax and just enjoy the simple humor of life" film. The plot is simple. Guy goes to meet the parents of the girl that he wants to marry and everything that can goes wrong does go wrong.

The characters were easy to relate to (honestly, how many of us have been terrified to meet the "future-in-laws") and the over-the-top nature of the events in the movie only added to the hilarity of the comedy. Stiller and De Niro work well together. I was laughing out loud throughout this movie and it has become one of my current favorites.


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