Excellent comic performances

Rating: 8/10 (24 December 2004)

What sets "Meet the Fockers" above the level of standard comic shtick is the wonderful original performances of Hoffman, Streisand, and De Niro (and De Niro's wife as well, her name escapes me). Hoffman and Streisand completely sell the role of Gaylord Focker's parents. Hoffman in particular is brilliant. He brilliantly conveys the sensitivity, quirkiness and eccentricity that must be inherent in two people who would bestow the moniker "Gaylord Focker" upon their son.
Possible spoilers...
Hoffman's ex-attorney turned stay-at-home father completely fits his comic persona, while Streisand is hilarious as a sex-therapist without going completely over the edge. "Meet the Fockers" is, as its name implies, mostly centered on Gaylord's parents, but Robert De Niro delivers one of the best comic performances of his career as the deadpan, overly serious, control-freak father of Gaylord's fiancé. Suffice it to say, the story itself is not all that spectacular, but the director wisely allows the characters to dictate the comic element of the movie. Good job. I was laughing at every word that came out of Hoffman's mouth.