This Day in Theaters: Oct. 6, 2000

Meet the Parents (2000)

We've all had that awkward situation in which we must meet our significant-other's parents. You strive to do the best you can to impress them while not completely making a fool of yourself. But imagine of the father you are meeting is ex-CIA with a potty trained cat who just adores your girlfriend's previous partner. To top it all off the whole reason for the coming together is your there for his other daughter's wedding that this man has been planning for years. This exactly the premise behind "Meet the Parents", starring Ben Stiller as the boyfriend and Robert DiNero as the father, and we delight in laughing at Stiller's effort to impress this man so much you don't know whether to feel bad for him or thank him for bringing us 100 minutes of good comedy.

Rogert Ebert found this one quite appealing:

"[The] movie is funnier because it never tries too hard; De Niro, in particular, gets laughs by leaning back and waiting for them to come to him. And Stiller is like the target in a dunk-the-clown game, smiling while the world falls out from under him."

James Berardinelli didn't find this one up his alley:

"Meet the Parents is put together like a TV sit-com. Director Jay Roach, the man behind the camera for the two Austin Powers spoofs (as well as Mystery, Alaska), strings together a series of hit-and-miss lowbrow gags with little care for whether any of the connecting material is coherent, interesting, or enjoyable (in most cases, it's none of those three). When it's funny, Meet the Parents can be very funny; however, there are often long stretches of filler in between the laughs. How well the film works for each individual will depend on his or her tolerance for this sort of marginal approach."

 

DeNiro asking Stiller if he regrets the movie Envy

DeNiro hits it out the park with another one of his signature comedy performances playing on his reputation he's built as a tough guy since the 70s. Stiller is more than adept at playing opposite him bringing the same A-game he exhibited in "There's Something About Mary". We get some great performances from the supporting characters like Teri Polo, the girlfriend, and a pre-bankable-star Own Wilson as her ex. The writers concoct a series of uncomfortable situations after another, all at Stiller's expense, which supply more than enough laughs for an enjoyable time. In the end though we see both of the main characters go through a bit of a transformation with Stiller becoming more confident in himself and DeNiro becoming more trusting and accepting which means the previous 90 minutes were not for nothing. I highly recommend this film to lovers of comedy as well as those of DeNiro; who seems like he is more known for comedy nowadays than being Jake Lamotta. Go out an rent this one today if you are in the mood for a good laugh.

IMDb Score: 7.0

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 84%