At times unrealistic, , but overall, a very good film

Rating: 9/10 (23 December 2004)

I saw "Meet the Fockers" last night and was pleasantly surprised. I went into the movie with low expectations, but left the theater more than satisfied.
The plot is at times somewhat unrealistic. Hoffman's and Streisand's characters can be a little over the top and there are a few plot strands that seem rather contrived. However, the great acting and the hilarious script made me more than willing to suspend disbelief and just go with story.
Beyond its comic value, in a sense, this film taps into the current cultural divide in America, with the liberal, free-spirited, and open-minded mindset represented by the Fockers, and the traditional, conservative mindset represented by Jack Byrnes (DeNero's character). Streisand and Hoffman play a sex therapist and former attorney turned stay-at-home dad, respectively, while, of course, DeNero plays a former CIA agent. The tension between the two poles allows for some great scenes.
And, of course, Stiller's character is stuck in between, trying to negotiate his way through the tension and keep things running smoothly. He makes repeated attempts at pleasing Jack, but such efforts are largely futile. For most of the film, he suppresses his own instinctual impulses to try to do things Jack's way. Of course, doing things "Jack's way" does not work for Greg, and he ends up apologizing for his inability to succeed using the Jack method. But as the story progresses, he becomes less apologetic, and by the end of the film, he takes an affirmative leap and transforms as a character, rejecting his former submissive and Jack-pleasing self, and adopting a more take-charge attitude. Only by being himself does Greg gain the respect of his new father-in-law (Jack), even if that true self subscribes to a very different ideology than does Jack.
It is very rare for me to leave a movie theater fully satisfied, but "Meet the Fockers" was definitely worth every penny that I paid for the ticket. Not surprisingly, it wasn't quite as good as the original, but, comparatively, was a much better sequel than most. 9/10.