Add me to the circle of trust? - Meet the Fockers Reviews

As I have mentioned in several of my other reviews, I have never been a big Ben Stiller fan. I have always found his humor similar to the recess-style humor of the Wayans brothers or Adam Sandler. However, Meet the Parents was an exception for me as I found his interaction with Robert Deniro absolutely hilarious. Meet the Parents had several laugh out loud moments, and I am pleased to say that Meet the Fockers picks up nicely where the first film left off, successfully continuing the Focker story. In part two we find that a year has passed and Greg Focker (Ben Stiller) and Pam Byrnes (Teri Polo) still are not married because their parents have not yet had a chance to meet. Early in the film we find that Pam?s parents, Jack (Deniro) and Dina (Blythe Danner) are packing their Winnebago, and they along with Pam and Greg are heading to Florida to finally meet Greg?s quirky parents, the Fockers. Greg?s eccentric and hippie-esque parents are played to over-the-top perfection by Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand. The ultra-conservative Byrnes family meets with the ultra-liberal Focker family and the fun begins as Greg must convince Jack that he and his family are good enough for his daughter. The storyline is pretty good fun and the interaction between the families offers some truly funny moments. I was concerned about the casting of Hoffman and Streisand, but truthfully they don?t hurt the film, and their characters are actually quite likeable. I can?t imagine anyone who liked the first film not enjoying this one. Most of the jokes and gags are on a similar level and the main focus of the film still involves the great interaction between Stiller and Deniro. The chemistry between them is undeniable and it?s more than enough to make this film worth a look if you liked the first film. As in the first film, I felt there was a mix of genuinely hilarious moments along with a few groan-inducing scenes which for me went a little too far. In my opinion, the formula for a successful comedy comes down to whether or not the genuine laughs outweigh the always present recess-style humor in most comedies today. Meet the Fockers does enough to be a success. Overall, this is one of the better comedies of 2004 although I am not sure how much further they can go with these characters. An additional sequel may become repetitive and the characters would be in jeopardy of becoming stale. At this point I hope they let the series end on this high note and move on to other projects unless they can come up with a script that is truly innovative. Regardless of the future of these characters, the bottom line is that if you liked the first film, the second one will be just as satisfying so check it out.