Pure entertainment - what movies are made for

Rating: 8/10 (12 July 2005)

(very, very minor spoilers)
I am usually the type who doesn't enjoy "this sort" of comedy. Name my least favorite movies and at least three of them include Ben Stiller. I've never been a huge fan of Ben Stiller for some reason. It wasn't that he was a bad actor, it was just his choices in roles. I just wasn't a fan of his. Period. But I do like Robert De Niro. I think he's a spectacular actor. One day Meet the Parents popped up on television and I decided to watch it. To much of my surprise, this film was really good.
Ben Stiller stars as Greg Focker (Ben Stiller), a male nurse. Before he asks Pam (Teri Polo) to marry him, he would ask for her father's approval. The father, Jack (Robert De Niro) is sort of this suspicious and overprotective father that just wants "the best" for his daughter. He would give disapproving glances at Greg, which causes Greg to have numbers of flops and seem to be nervous ... all the time, which causes Jack to hate Greg more and more. We then find out Jack is a former CIA agent that has been to different countries and has a lie detector in his "private office" downstairs.
Comedies are pretty predictable. Especially recent ones. We know about 100% that Greg and Jack are going to be happy in the end, approve of each other, and not try to kill each other. And that is what happens. What I liked about this movie is that it's not predictable-predictable, it's more like - you just enjoy it. You have a mindless head on top of you and you just want pure entertainment. Not some serious dialogue with Oscar-worthy performances, but just have a good time like what movies are made for. There are a few hilarious scenes between Stiller and De Niro. They just seem to be having fun, which is a good thing because it's always nice to watch actors have fun on screen. Stiller seems happy that he gets to work with De Niro and De Niro seems happy that he is in a light comedy and doesn't really need to put a single effort in it because he is almost considered "legendary" in modern Hollywood.
So, it's worth your time. I saw this film two times and I won't be afraid to make it three. It's totally harmless. You're not going to really think about this movie after you seen it, but you're satisfied because you like it. It has very, very funny dialogue between characters and nice physical comedy. Ben Stiller is probably not a bad actor after all - just needs some motivation. And Robert De Niro steals almost every single scene in the movie. They're a good duo. Very, very enjoyable to watch. Watch this film when you just need a light-hearted comedy that doesn't require great use of intelligence.