Posted: 12/24/2004

Meet the Fockers

(2004)

by Clint Fletcher

In the openings of all my reviews this year, I typically talk about how the 2004 movie season is going. Although, I never thought that I would refer to the year 2004 as the Twilight Zone of sequels. Why Twilight Zone? During a routine year in America, the way that scheduling for movies works is that all the crappy or so-so sequels get released during the Summer, and all the good sequels get released during Christmas time (Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, etc.). But this year, this situation is reversed. After weeks of sub-par (or downright unnecessary) sequels such as Ocean’s 12, Bridget Jones and Blade:Trinity, the list continues on.

Add Meet the Fockers to the so-so list.

At this point I would describe the plot, but since everyone on God’s Green Earth has seen Meet the Parents (and the title says it all), I’ll move right on to the criticism. Now, I must start off by saying that I’m a huge fan of the original, and I spit on the graves of the people that claim its an overrated film. With that in mind, I ended up enjoying Fockers by the time the end-credits rolled around. Let’s just cut right to the chase. Does it live up to its predecessor? Hell no. Is it any good? It’s alright, I guess. Is it funny? Not really.

After all of that, you may be asking yourself why I enjoyed this movie then if its not funny? It’s a bit confusing, really. Even though almost every joke in the story fell flat, the writers did a pretty good job at keeping us engaged in the emotional struggles of the characters. This aspect was what made the original so much more than a screwball comedy. I really did feel the pain and embarrassment of ”s character numerous times while dealing with his nutty parents. I really did feel the emotion when old-fashioned Jack (DeNiro) finally realizes he’s gone overboard with his criticism toward the Focker Family. And I really did feel the love when those two crazy kids finally tie the knot in the end and the parents were forced to let go. But maybe I felt so emotionally attached not because I grew on these characters during the original, but that this movie just wasn’t funny, and the situations seemed a bit more serious as a result of lack of comedy.

I will say this, though. The casting of Dustin Hoffman and Barbara “out-of-retirement” Streisand was simply PERFECT. Sure, they may be the token Jewish stars of Hollywood (along with Stiller), but damn-it if they both aren’t tremendous in their roles. The few times that I did laugh were because of some very nonchalant, improvisational one-liners by these two masters of their craft. Too bad they weren’t tapped by Stiller to work on a better script than this. Fockers suffers from way too many gags that have been so recycled at this point by other films that they just make you grit your teeth instead of laugh. Such antics include a dog getting flushed down the toilet and a baby cursing. And other jokes were just poorly written, relying on sheer toilet humor that comes off as just plain disgusting… such as Stiller’s saved foreskin (from baby circumcision) making its way to the dinner table or Streisand giving DeNiro a wild back massage. Some jokes worked though and reached a peak of downright hilarity, such as Stiller getting drugged by truth serum just before his engagement speech, and Hoffman taking a crap while DeNiro is in the shower right next to him.

When coming out of the theater and listening to the sold-out crowd, I realized that I had the same reaction as everyone else. “It was funny. Nowhere near as good as the first, but cute.” I heard this quote from a lady telling others waiting in line about it. I can’t think of a better quote to sum it up myself. If you’re a big fan of the original and you absolutely must see how these characters turn out, then go for it… you probably won’t be disappointed. Then for those of you who don’t give a rat’s ass, wait for the video. Oh how I hate so-so movies. So-so movies = so-so reviews. Hairy Christmas and a Nappy Jew Beard!

Clint Fletcher is a reviewer and filmmaker who is signing Rosario Dawson to star in his next film.

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