Well, it was certainly worth the wait. We had to wait until
the end of the year to see a comedy that is so refreshingly funny that it will have you
smiling long after you leave the cinema. Meet the Parents is so good that it will
probably have most people seeing it more than once so that they can relive what is the
most enjoyable film experience of the year.
Many critics have dismissed the Meet the Parents as a "one joke
movie" but after seeing the film it is hard to see where they are coming from.
The jokes come continuously throughout the film and you will more than likely miss
some of the jokes because you will still be laughing at the previous scene.
Why is the film so funny? Probably because it so real.
Nearly everyone can remember the anxiety that comes when you have to meet your
partner's parents for the first time and this film is just an overblown vision of the
nightmare that that first meeting often becomes.
More important to the film's appeal, however, are the first-rate
performances from its cast.
Robert De Niro again shows that he is just as effective in a comedic
role as he is in the tough guy roles that made him a star. In fact, De Niro is more
intimidating as Jack Byrnes, the loving father who makes life hell for his
daughter's new boyfriend, than he ever was playing the countless villain/mobster/tough guy
roles that became his trademark; now that's saying something.
His biggest success may be that he manages not to
"overplay" the role, something he was guilty of doing in the disappointing Analyse
This. De Niro is genuinely funny in this film and hopefully it will pave the
way for him to make more comedies in the future. He certainly excels in this role.
But De Niro's performance would be useless if not for the
equally impressive performance from the underrated Ben Stiller as the boyfriend who must
endure the overprotective ways of his girlfriend's father. Stiller has already shown
that he has a talent for comedy with his stand-out role in There's Something
About Mary and this role will definitely lift his ranking among the best
talent in Hollywood.
Both De Niro and Stiller could, make that should, earn
Oscar nominations for their roles and they most defiantly deserve it.
Make no mistake about it, Meet the Parents is one of the
funniest films of the past few decades and with a little bit of luck, it could very well
earn an Oscar nomination for Best Picture.
It is an old-fashioned comedy that showcases just how
wonderfully enjoyable a movie can be. There should be more films like it.
- Adam Matthews
