FUCK YOU MEET THE PARENTS
As of today, there are officially two movies on my FUCK YOU AND GO DIE IN A HOLE list. Meet the Parents is SO BAD that I am ACTUALLY CRYING right now. Almost entirely because of the utter antagonism and humiliation that is being the audience of Meet the Parents.
This movie is atrocious. To enjoy this movie, you have to be a sadist. If you liked this movie, you might want to skip the next paragraph, because I am going to vent my wrath by insulting you and speculating about your character flaws at some length.
You are a sadist who likes kicking puppies. Puppies that all look like Ben Stiller. A sadist who probably beat up other kids and made them eat poop before going home to a fulfilling evening of kicking puppies and making your mom feel bad about whatever she made you for dinner. Your mom worked really hard for you and your family, didn't often have time to create a real home-cooked meal for you, but tonight she wanted to do something special. She had a little taste of whatever it was before serving it to you, and was really pleased with what she made. She was so excited to give you good food, and was really looking forward to hearing you say you liked it. She was going to be so proud! But instead, you wanted whatever you saw on tv right before dinner, and fully expected her to make that. Because you are a little bitch. So you dump her food on the floor, tell her she is a terrible mother and a crappy cook, and laugh when she cries. And then the dog eats it and burps, and you laugh more. Because you are a bad person. You are one of the inlaws. They would totally dig this movie.
Perhaps I am being a bit harsh. But consider two things:
1. I am incredibly biased! So... don't take my criticisms and speculations to heart. This movie revels in embarrasment and the potential for (and subsequent) public humiliation. It is a "comedy of really awkward errors." And I absolutely hate those. In fact, one of my more memorable fights with an ex-boyfriend was because he wouldn't tell me, while we were watching, if the main characters of wedding crashers were actually going to get caught each time they pulled a hijink. Action-suspense is fine, but public-humiliation-suspense... gyerrggkkkkk, twitch. I actually enjoy wedding crashers, now that I know when the surprises are. But that kind of suspense kills the humor for me, so I can't enjoy that kind of movie without a cheat sheet, or a lot of alcohol.
2. There was really nothing redeeming about the ending of this movie. Seriously, NOTHING. Ben Stiller is humiliated by everyone in the family and soon-to-be-extended family. They make no effort to welcome him, they mock his career, emasculate him, trip him up at every turn, and basically make him out to be a complete loser. They mock things he can't control, like his name. They give him too little information, and deride him when he understandably makes a mistake, like the toilet thing (and really, who gives you a bedroom, says "and you have your own bathroom!" then tells you not to flush the toiiet very often without explaining????) They jump to conclusions and judge him without letting him speak for himself. The girl he loves doesn't even support him. She acts as though there is nothing wrong, even though she witnesses most of the incredibly awful things that happen - she is just apparently a retarded bimbo and doesn't get the problem, because she is a daddy's girl to a sickening degree. Even her sweaters are idiotic. Why the fuck is he even with this girl? She doesn't have his back, she doesn't appreciate his humor, she doesn't support him, she doesn't respect him, and she is immature and unobservant. Seriously, why would you want to marry someone like that? She is pathetic!
So: if we put aside our loathing of the girlfriend, we at least expect a satisfying revenge and a comeback!! We sympathize with the main character, feel frustrated, emasculated, and embarrased by proxy, and expect to regain that somehow in the movie.
BUT WE DON'T. We instead get a touching scene where Ben Stiller is further treated like an incompetent child. Sure, the father sees Ben Stiller in a new light, but only because his wife pussywhipped (sorry) him into it. Ben Stiller had nothing to do with it! He wasn't remotely responsible for his comeback. And not only that, but his victory speech was pretty sad. Afraid to be the son in law!? What the fuck?? I wouldn't be afraid, at that point I would be just fucking pissed! I wouldn't put up with that, and its pathetic to see a main character you're identifying with be such a pathetic loser. He never gets an opportunity to defend his profession, so we are left still feeling uncomfortable that he is a male nurse and everyone else is a full doctor. We never see any acknowledgement that he could have been a doctor but made a choice; as far as we know, the rest of the family still thinks he's a loser. His girlfriend never really takes her family to task, she just calls her daddy a jerk and pouts in her room. The father never apologizes or admits that he had it in for him, and never treats him with any kind of respect.
At the end of the day, we as the audience are left feeling that we are a bewildered, bumbling fool who is awkward and ruined a wedding (he did basically ruin that wedding), the inlaws are right to criticize our given name, our chosen profession, and our success.
The movie gives us two options: either we identify with Ben Stiller's character and are left feeling judged and pathetic, or we side with the family (who are basically bullies) and look down on the main character for his obvious loserhood and pathetitude. I don't come away from that feeling good. I don't like laughing at the suffering of others - sorry. That's not for me. And its true, Ben Stiller is pretty pathetic, but I don't like being set up as an audience to identfy with a character who is just completely castrated and never redeemed.
In conclusion: Meet the Parents is condemned to swirl in a sea of bile, accompanied only by The Breakfast Club, half-chewed gum, and the occasional floating poo.
This movie is atrocious. To enjoy this movie, you have to be a sadist. If you liked this movie, you might want to skip the next paragraph, because I am going to vent my wrath by insulting you and speculating about your character flaws at some length.
You are a sadist who likes kicking puppies. Puppies that all look like Ben Stiller. A sadist who probably beat up other kids and made them eat poop before going home to a fulfilling evening of kicking puppies and making your mom feel bad about whatever she made you for dinner. Your mom worked really hard for you and your family, didn't often have time to create a real home-cooked meal for you, but tonight she wanted to do something special. She had a little taste of whatever it was before serving it to you, and was really pleased with what she made. She was so excited to give you good food, and was really looking forward to hearing you say you liked it. She was going to be so proud! But instead, you wanted whatever you saw on tv right before dinner, and fully expected her to make that. Because you are a little bitch. So you dump her food on the floor, tell her she is a terrible mother and a crappy cook, and laugh when she cries. And then the dog eats it and burps, and you laugh more. Because you are a bad person. You are one of the inlaws. They would totally dig this movie.
Perhaps I am being a bit harsh. But consider two things:
1. I am incredibly biased! So... don't take my criticisms and speculations to heart. This movie revels in embarrasment and the potential for (and subsequent) public humiliation. It is a "comedy of really awkward errors." And I absolutely hate those. In fact, one of my more memorable fights with an ex-boyfriend was because he wouldn't tell me, while we were watching, if the main characters of wedding crashers were actually going to get caught each time they pulled a hijink. Action-suspense is fine, but public-humiliation-suspense... gyerrggkkkkk, twitch. I actually enjoy wedding crashers, now that I know when the surprises are. But that kind of suspense kills the humor for me, so I can't enjoy that kind of movie without a cheat sheet, or a lot of alcohol.
2. There was really nothing redeeming about the ending of this movie. Seriously, NOTHING. Ben Stiller is humiliated by everyone in the family and soon-to-be-extended family. They make no effort to welcome him, they mock his career, emasculate him, trip him up at every turn, and basically make him out to be a complete loser. They mock things he can't control, like his name. They give him too little information, and deride him when he understandably makes a mistake, like the toilet thing (and really, who gives you a bedroom, says "and you have your own bathroom!" then tells you not to flush the toiiet very often without explaining????) They jump to conclusions and judge him without letting him speak for himself. The girl he loves doesn't even support him. She acts as though there is nothing wrong, even though she witnesses most of the incredibly awful things that happen - she is just apparently a retarded bimbo and doesn't get the problem, because she is a daddy's girl to a sickening degree. Even her sweaters are idiotic. Why the fuck is he even with this girl? She doesn't have his back, she doesn't appreciate his humor, she doesn't support him, she doesn't respect him, and she is immature and unobservant. Seriously, why would you want to marry someone like that? She is pathetic!
So: if we put aside our loathing of the girlfriend, we at least expect a satisfying revenge and a comeback!! We sympathize with the main character, feel frustrated, emasculated, and embarrased by proxy, and expect to regain that somehow in the movie.
BUT WE DON'T. We instead get a touching scene where Ben Stiller is further treated like an incompetent child. Sure, the father sees Ben Stiller in a new light, but only because his wife pussywhipped (sorry) him into it. Ben Stiller had nothing to do with it! He wasn't remotely responsible for his comeback. And not only that, but his victory speech was pretty sad. Afraid to be the son in law!? What the fuck?? I wouldn't be afraid, at that point I would be just fucking pissed! I wouldn't put up with that, and its pathetic to see a main character you're identifying with be such a pathetic loser. He never gets an opportunity to defend his profession, so we are left still feeling uncomfortable that he is a male nurse and everyone else is a full doctor. We never see any acknowledgement that he could have been a doctor but made a choice; as far as we know, the rest of the family still thinks he's a loser. His girlfriend never really takes her family to task, she just calls her daddy a jerk and pouts in her room. The father never apologizes or admits that he had it in for him, and never treats him with any kind of respect.
At the end of the day, we as the audience are left feeling that we are a bewildered, bumbling fool who is awkward and ruined a wedding (he did basically ruin that wedding), the inlaws are right to criticize our given name, our chosen profession, and our success.
The movie gives us two options: either we identify with Ben Stiller's character and are left feeling judged and pathetic, or we side with the family (who are basically bullies) and look down on the main character for his obvious loserhood and pathetitude. I don't come away from that feeling good. I don't like laughing at the suffering of others - sorry. That's not for me. And its true, Ben Stiller is pretty pathetic, but I don't like being set up as an audience to identfy with a character who is just completely castrated and never redeemed.
In conclusion: Meet the Parents is condemned to swirl in a sea of bile, accompanied only by The Breakfast Club, half-chewed gum, and the occasional floating poo.