Meet the Parents (2000)

Director:

Jay Roach

Writers (WGA):

Greg Glienna (1992 screenplay) &
Mary Ruth Clarke (1992 screenplay) ...

Release Date:

6 October 2000 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

First comes love. Then comes the interrogation.

Plot:

Male nurse Greg Focker meets his girlfriend's parents before proposing, but her suspicious father is every date's worst nightmare.

Plot Keywords:

Male Nurse | Nurse | CIA | Cat | Wedding

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 7 wins & 14 nominations

Cast

Robert De Niro	...	Jack Byrnes
Ben Stiller	...	Gaylord 'Greg' Focker
Teri Polo	...	Pam Byrnes
Blythe Danner	...	Dina Byrnes
Nicole DeHuff	...	Deborah Byrnes
Jon Abrahams	...	Denny Byrnes
Owen Wilson	...	Kevin Rawley
James Rebhorn	...	Dr. Larry Banks
Thomas McCarthy	...	Dr. Bob Banks
Phyllis George	...	Linda Banks
Kali Rocha	...	Atlantic American Flight Attendant
Bernie Sheredy	...	Norm the Interrogator
Judah Friedlander	...	Pharmacy Clerk
Peter Bartlett	...	Animal Shelter Worker
John Elsen	...	Chicago Airport Security

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for sexual content, drug references and language.

Runtime:

108 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Thai | Spanish | Hebrew | French

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Denmark:A (DVD rating) | Iceland:L | Malaysia:U | South Korea:12 | Ireland:12 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Brazil:12 | Chile:TE | Denmark:7 | Finland:S | France:U | Germany:6 (w) | Hong Kong:IIA | Netherlands:AL | New Zealand:M | Norway:A | Peru:PT | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | Spain:T | Sweden:Btl | Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) | UK:12 | USA:PG-13 | Greece:K-13

Filming Locations:

Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

The scenes at the "Surf and Turf" restaurant were filmed at a Port Washington, NY restaurant called "Louie's". The car racing scenes between Ben Stiller and Robert De Niro were also filmed in downtown Port Washington. Also, the scene where Stiller and De Niro go shopping is in Port Washington at Salem Drugs.

Goofs:

Errors in geography: Pam and Greg board a flight to LaGuardia to meet her parents. The clip of their flight shows a 747 landing. 747s don't land at LaGuardia, and even if they did, they wouldn't be used on such short flights. The clip was shot at JFK.

Quotes:

Greg Focker: Oh, oh check my pulse on this one, Jack. Do I think you're a psycho? Yes.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "George Lopez: Meet the Cuban Parents (#2.11)" (2002)

Soundtrack:

A Fool in Love

Meet The Parents Or Not?

'Meet the Parents' is a comedy that's funny enough for an evening watch. The central characters Pam and Greg are very likable but the Pam's family are portrayed to be slightly a bit of a caricature. I find it a bit far-fetched that everyone hates Greg. Even Pam's mother reacts with indifference. I mean she does 'object' but it's as if she could care less. But then again, 'Meet the Parents' is about the tension between Greg and Jack and both De Niro and Stiller do well with their comic abilities. Even though De Niro's character is less likable, it is nice to see him in a comedic role for a change. Stiller is his usual goofy on screen persona (a part he's best at doing). However, due to the director's focus on this, the romantic angle between Polo's Pam and Stiller's Greg isn't well developed, but Teri Polo does a good job. Blythe Danner is adequate (though I don't know whether it was the director's intention to present her as being indifferent towards Jack's cruelty). The toilet and sex humour could have been toned down as it is the overload use that brings the entertainment factor down for me. Also the story follows the old formula of a guy trying to impress his girlfriend's parents, therefore the freshness is lacking. Even so, there are a lot of loose ends such as what happens to Jack's son and his pot. But, in spite of the flaws there are a few genuine funny moments and I liked the 'race' scene towards the end, Greg's problems with the flight attendant, and Greg's attempt to propose to Pam at the beginning of the movie. Roach's direction isn't of the remarkable sort and 'Meet the Parents' mostly works to an extent because of the actors. This could have been more of a fun ride had it not been too over-the-top but it's hell of a lot better than the sequel. There are a lot more other comedies I can recommend over this, but 'Meet the Parents' isn't so bad that you won't want to give it a chance either.