Jay Roach has taken his Austin Powers cartoonism too far.

Rating: 2/10 (15 January 2005)

This is one of those films that was advertised so heavily, I felt like I'd seen it before I actually saw it. They used all the best gags in the ads (which isn't saying much) and the presence of De Niro dominated. Maybe it's just me, for I know this was a big hit, but I couldn't stand seeing a highly regarded actor like Robert De Niro mugging his way through this lowbrow flick like it were a 108-minute Saturday Night Live sketch--which is what it should have been. It is staggeringly annoying watching Ben Stiller endure thinly veiled threat after threat, and it's not even rewarding when he finally stands up for himself.
Judging by this films box-office take, I guess I'm not in the majority when I say I am sick of the whole "you're not good enough for my daughter" schtick in movies and TV (the dreck known as "8 Simple Rules" is another example). However, I would like to thank IMDb for this website which allows me to vent my extreme displeasure at this totally unoriginal and irritating trend. I found this "comedy" utterly awful.
P.S. If you agree with me, you might want to check out the Roach's previous film, Mystery Alaska. I wish it had been a hit, and Roach were making more subtle comedies like it today rather than succumbing to using easy gags and pandering to mainstream taste.