Review: Little Fockers (2010) TH

The third phase

This newest installment in the Focker series is launching to the next level with blossoming kids, tempting infidelity and making consideration for carrying on the proud lineage of the family legacy. Despite the title, the main players are Ben Stiller and Robert De Niro, with the other characters showing up on the wayside to inject little subplots to accelerate the two mentioned--sometimes fitting in, sometimes forced to fit.

This has gags like the other films and the roster is full of eccentric characters to create more situational comedy. There are goofs galore, sex taboos out the wazoo and loads of misunderstandings to unfold. I congratulate them for not reducing themselves to nothing but one liners and one-off quips. This instead attempts to build up in-jokes and layered scenarios, though the problem is you can see them in a slow march a mile away. It retreads similar ground, such as the play on the Focker name, male nurse jabs, gay scenarios, bodily noise and fluid jokes, someone walking in at the wrong time. Ben Stiller is hamming it up on the whole social etiquette bit: the nice guy who doesn't want to offend anyone so he takes the long route to fix it. Though his character is slightly evolving towards building up courage when confrontation arises. Robert De Niro's character's days of mean are slowly loosening up and coming to terms, as he's finding out all that stubbornness is too aggressive and there's a chance he might get pushed away from treating others like pawns.

There's a noticeable formula with "Little Fockers." As a movie to stretch your feet and relax to without much complication it's sufficient to just meeting the grade with a little bit of easy fun, though having high hopes and wanting to relive the experience is another set of issues. A decade ago this might have been fresh but a share of the jokes feel derivative and predictable, such as something always going wrong in a completely awkward and embarrassing way, but if you can count on it each time in advance then there's no real surprise. There are some sentimental messages slipped in without getting too sappy, like "the going is tough but we're in it together," or "living your life the best way you can even if it's flawed in other's views." However, there's not much to linger with a viewer that tops the other films in the series, or even other situational comedies that have pushed the envelope in the last decade further or just had more charm, fluidly or pizazz to give sparks to a roaring fire of laughter.

Director: Paul Weitz (American Pie, About a Boy)
Starring: Ben Stiller, Robert De Niro, Jessica Alba, Dustin Hoffman, Barbra Streisand, Teri Polo, Owen Wilson
Website: IMDB

Review: Meet the Fockers (2004) TH

When opposite personalities collide

The second Focker film takes the growing relationships further by introducing Greg's parents to the Byrnes' mother and father. Things don't go off without a hitch or ten as both parties take a different approach to lifestyles and parenting: one free-spirited, the other planned.

The name "Greg Focker" should be synonymous with disaster. Everywhere he goes and every situation he finds himself in causes more accidents to take place than student drivers on road tests. You can expect almost everything to go wrong and trying to figure out where it's coming from involves some obvious setups but also a number of curve balls to throw the viewer off. This is also filled with one-off zingers that you might not expect, though they pass through with cartoonish shock instead of a rewarding layered buildup.

Jack Byrnes is a three-step ahead guy at his core, down to the blueprints of his armored RV to get to the tropical Focker residence with Greg's parents awaiting with open arms and liberal views. Barbra Streisand, playing Rozalin Focker, injects the first strong female personality that doesn't act like a wallflower with her open advice as a sexual therapist. Greg soon becomes a referee to separate the tension and anxiety with both parties attempting to either humble themselves to accommodate or change the other person to their own way. One can relate to him as embarrassing moments are brought up, such as a wall of "accomplishments," a detailed scrap book and even revealing his first time. New characters are introduced, including the little grandson of Greg's girlfriend's sister who's training for brilliance, as well as the seductive nanny with spiced up accent and a questionable son.

The characters often play their roles deadpan with chaos going on around them. This takes serious subjects about relationships and puts an over-the-top spin on them. Compared to "Meet the Parents," it's much more outlandish, though with more scenarios that ring with Saturday morning cartoon flavor than what could really happen. This slips in some messages without getting too serious or sentimental that deal with compromising your differences to get along with others and splitting away from the life your parents preplanned for you. The second film was somewhat entertaining and came with some memorable scenes, though it doesn't hold the freshness and power of the first film even with some of the same jokes retreaded.

Starring: Ben Stiller, Robert De Niro, Dustin Hoffman, Barbra Streisand, Owen Wilson, Teri Polo
Website: IMDB

Review: Meet the Parents (2000) TH

A laugh out loud comedy, but the ultimate test of resolution

This is a film that takes misunderstandings and awkwardness to new levels with a Jewish male nurse named Greg Focker (Stiller) visiting his girlfriend's parents' house during a wedding about to take place for her sister. He attempts to fit in to the social circle of this traditional family, who has their own set of rules and specific ways of living that keeps him thinking on his toes and attempting to fake it till he makes it.

Greg tries to make an impression with the overly protective father, Jack Byrnes, played by Robert De Niro, who has a clandestine past and is growing suspicious due to mix-ups that put Greg in a negative light for being the right man for his prized daughter. He has to drop a few habits and pick up new ones to keep up. If it could get any more worse the ex, Kevin, played by Owen Wilson, is on top of everything without evening trying, not to mention close to the father and on good terms with Greg's girlfriend. You could say he's got a lot on his plate, as he's the extreme of polite and can't say what's really on his mind out loud in order to save face in front of others.

"Meet the Parents" was fresh for its time and still holds up as a situational comedy with some relating points about meeting others for the first time or just trying to be one of the gang. It can make you cringe for the main character as he fumbles to do things right by these new people with hilarious trial and error. Just in time, some of the zany pile ups begin to get far-fetched but is saved by seeing Greg in the cross between imploding and running away from everything going wrong by his own hands. This is a Hollywood film, so some sentiment and resolution is going to be offered in order to give it that finishing touch. This was a well-done film as it steadily paced the timing of its jokes instead of trying too hard to completely shock the audience. That's what gives it its replay value as the scenarios are memorable, not to mention identifiable if still exaggerated for comic relief.

Director: Jay Roach (Austin Powers)
Starring: Ben Stiller, Robert De Niro, Owen Wilson, Teri Polo
Website: IMDB