Meet The Parents (IIA)

Quite simply a comic classic. Ben Stiller is the unfortunately named Greg Fokker, male nurse and newly minted fiance of Pam (Teri Polo, below with Stiller). Which is all very nice, until it comes time to go to Long Island and 'meet the parents'. Pam's mother (Blythe Danner) is sweet enough, but Robert De Niro as prospective father-in-law Jack is a hellish incarnation (and a former CIA operative). Nervous Greg tells social lies which end up with him claiming to have milked a cat, but cats play a large part in this, especially Jack's beloved pet who is toilet trained but ominously has no outdoor survival skills. There's a fire, a septic tank flooding, a cranky airline stewardess, but to give any more away is unfair. Meet The Parents is a seriously funny comedy, De Niro and (especially) Stiller are excellent and Austin Powers' Jay Loach directs with an admirably sure hand. Don't miss it.

UA cinemas, Broadway circuit and AMC Festival Walk