I’ve been a Focker fan for a while now. I’ve seen Meet the Parents and Meet the Fockers many times, and they never get old. I have even been caught quoting the movies, much to my parents’ puzzlement. When I heard they were making a third, I couldn’t have been more excited. However six years after Meet the Fockers, the magic seems to have faded. Although funny in small segments, Little Fockers, in the end, just doesn’t add up too much.
The film, presumably taking place many years after Pam and Greg Focker’s wedding, begins with the planning of the Focker twins fifth birthday. Greg, now head of the surgery wing of Chicago Memorial Hospital, is a loving and doting dad. He gets offered a job promoting Sustengo, an erectile dysfunction medication, by a hot drug rep Andi Garcia played by Jessica Alba. Taking into account of the twins’ pricey school, called the Early Humans School, Greg takes the job for the extra cash. The school is one funny part of the movie with Laura Dern playing kooky headmistress Prudence. Too bad they didn’t put more attention on the school. Meanwhile ex CIA agent Jack Byrnes is in turmoil after learning his other son-in-law “Doctor Bob” has been cheating on his wife. With Jack’s health in question-he has a minor heart attack and then defibrillates himself-a spot for the Byrne’s patriarch has been opened. Greg is then offered a daunting task- to become the “Godfocker.” He must prove to Jack that he can carry the family torch, and so the craziness begins.
Besides the underlying challenge of Greg becoming the Godfocker, there really isn’t any storyline to Little Fockers. The whole Jack-Greg misunderstandings are back, but not nearly as funny. Jack fervently believes that Greg is having an affair with Andi, but his spying and plotting come off as trite in the third installment. To add insult to injury, Jack discovers Greg’s stash of Sustengo and takes some to unfavorable results. How many times does that have to come up in movies? The boner gags are getting old. It’s nice to see Barbara Streisand and Dustin Hoffman return, but their characters seem like afterthoughts. Roz Focker has her own talk show while Bernie is learning flamenco in Seville. Unfortunately the movie doesn’t develop their storylines enough, instead choosing to focus on Greg’s own troubles. Owen Wilson also reprises his role as Kevin, and he does add some laughs with his undying love for Pam. For the twins’ birthday party, Kevin creates a full carnival for the kids, in his usual flamboyant style all while still trying to get back Pam. One of the funniest parts of the movie however was in the credits, when Greg talks about Jack in promoting Sustengo. If only the movie could been as entertaining as that little snippet.
Little Fockers unfortunately comes up short in laughs, and to be honest, in everything. The hilarity, laugh-out-loud parts from before-remember the dinner in Meet the Parents where Greg topples Jack’s mother’s ashes?- is completely missing here. A birthday party? Not too enthralling. A cheating allegation? Been there done that. Little Fockers clearly ran out of steam. Guess I’ll have to rely on the first two films for my quotes.
An all around okay movie. Good if you want to escape the ‘rents and/or holiday hullabaloo: C
only thing that could make this day better would be a cold soda pop to go along a movie screening.