The experience of watching "Meet the Parents" is actually very similar to watching "The Hangover." Greg Focker visits his fiancee's family and a whole bunch of shenanigans take place. The film unfolds in such a manner that it's constantly surprising and enjoyable the first time around. While you pretty much know what to expect with repeated viewings, you can still appreciate it and have a good time. The end of the film has one of the more perfect sequel suggestions that I can think of, actually. Exhausted by the whole experience of meeting his daughter's fiance, Jack Byrne (Robert Deniro) suddenly realizes that they now have to meet Greg's family. That's a great example of being able to hint at a sequel while allowing the first film to work completely on its own. Moreover, it was fun to imagine what meeting the Fockers would be like, much more fun than what we got with the second movie. It really makes you wonder how they managed to screw it up so badly, but the answer is pretty much the same as with the others: they essentially rehashed the same Focking plot of the first. See what really ticks me off about "Meet the Fockers" is that the casting of Greg's parents is actually a stroke of genius. Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand? Perfect! Knowing Barbra Streisand would appear in the film was the only time I ever got excited about anything related to her, but it made so much sense that she would play his mother. The comic possibilities seemed endless. Unfortunately, they only barely scratched the surface with his parents and primarily focused the film on Jack being suspicious of Greg the entire time. It was funny the first time because Greg actually had something to lose, but now that he's accepted Greg into his family, it made no sense to keep playing the Jack vs. Greg angle, especially when you have Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand at your disposal. The sequel is so bad that it actually makes the first one seem weaker in retrospect and that's the biggest potential problem with all comedy sequels. It's important to have these characters be put in new situations where they're met with different challenges and it reveals more funny aspects of their character. Or, at the very least, it gives the character more ways to be funny. That's what you look for in a comedy sequel. Overall, the world of these characters should grow and expand well beyond what was introduced in the first film. Each of the first three "Vacation" movies, for example, feel like different experiences with the same characters. While the films still heavily rely on slapstick humor, you're still watching the Griswolds being put in situations that reveal more about their character. With "Home Alone 2", "The Hangover Part II", or "Meet the Fockers"---nothing happens in those movies that make those characters seem fuller or richer, and therefore, funnier. The film's writers rely on the same exact situations and jokes instead. The reason why the first films are funny in the first place is because they constantly play with our expectations and surprise us. When you take that away, you lose what makes those films special. What's your favorite comedy sequel? Least favorite? Leave your thoughts below.
