Review - Little Fockers

Greg Focker (Ben Stiller) and his over protective father-in-law Jack (Robert De Niro) butt heads again in this sequel to Meet The Parents and Meet The Fockers. All is going well between Greg and Jack until Greg’s inherent misfortune and clumsiness rile Jack. It’s not long before there is all out war between the two… Again.

When watching Little Fockers it is had not to think of some of the great movies of the 20^th century. Dustin Hoffman’s performance as Ratso in Midnight Cowboy was truly a star turn. The same goes for Robert De Niro in Taxi Driver. So what happened that they turn up in this dismal final installment in the Meet The Parents franchise? Well, that’s simple. A pay cheque.

The franchise began well enough, and yes, the introduction of Greg’s parents Bernie and Roz Focker in Meet The Fockers made sense, even if the film was not as funny as the first, but this new installment is simply not needed. The film is an excuse for Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson to play the kind of roles that they have become famous for; clumsy but well meaning and… well… Hansel from Zoolander, respectively.

The title of the film is completely misleading – the kids hardly feature at all, unless they are projectile vomiting or asking wholly inappropriate questions at the dinner table. Ben Stiller is on supremely annoying form and his character simply cannot see that the situations he gets himself into are not going to end well. De Niro reprises the role as Jack Byrnes – Greg’s father-in-law – and he does his best with the part, but there is nothing in the role to challenge him, and the character appears unable to learn from his mistakes in the first two films. Streisand and Hoffman are entirely underused and unnecessary in this movie that, again, centres on the acrimony between Greg and Jack.

As for Jessica Alba, she appears as a character called Andi Garcia and yes, far too much is made of the fact that she has a silly name. Andi is a flighty and over zealous drug rep who is pushing an erectile dysfunction drug called Sustengo. Sustengo gives Andi a reason to be in Greg’s life – other than her over the top perusal of him – and Sustengo gives the movie it’s cringey set piece when Jack needs quick relief from the drug’s effects.

Hopefully Little Fockers completes this trilogy and we will never be subjected to the cringe worthy, obvious and laboured jokes as well as the stereotypical characters of this franchise again. Stiller needs to find a new trick, other than the well meaning, bumbling fool, and De Niro and Hoffman need to remind us why they are stars. Avoid Little Fockers and dig out Midnight Cowboy and Taxi Driver, or if it is comedy you are after, try Tootsie and Stardust – at least those are funny.