Meet the Parents

And some of the humor is over-extended. But, above all else, it's the delivery that makes it count, and DeNiro and Stiller both play their parts tremendously. In fact, the two are so funny that they often eclipse the movie's other characters. Sure, some of the gags — stupid animal tricks, excretion jokes and, well, near-vulgar last names — are cheap. That plan becomes somewhat complex once Focker realizes Pam relishes the tradition of pre-proposal fatherly acceptance.

As Focker, Stiller has perfected that "grown-to- be-handsome, yet insecure" quality that gets audiences laughing at a man's major mishaps, even while grimacing at the horror of it all. DeNiro, who seems to be ditching the 'weighty-only' character clause with "Meet the Parents", merely has to raise an eyebrow to elicit laughter. Besides, no one is good enough for Jack's Pam, and the more desperate Greg becomes to prove otherwise, the more his misfortunes pile. Blythe Danner's motherly portrayal nicely peppers her suburban couture, while Polo's Pam is overly charming and somewhat void of personality. Played by a perfectly askance "do- I-have- something-in-my- teeth" Ben Stiller, Focker hopes to make Byrnes' eldest

daughter, Pam (Teri Polo) his wife. As a male nurse and a city boy, though, Focker already has strikes against him before his poor mouth even opens. But that's ok — she's merely a vehicle to move the story along, which ends with lies being dispelled, truths being told, and suburbia opening its elite circle to include a nice-fitting male nurse. And that's crucial in this film, because the horror and the humor are one and the same.