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#1 ·


The Review at a Glance: (max score: 5 )

Film:


Extras:


Audio/Video total rating:

( Max score: 100 )

83






Studio and Year: Universal - 2010
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Feature running time: 98 minutes
Genre: Comedy

Disc Format: BD-50
Encoding: VC-1
Video Aspect: 1.85:1
Resolution: 1080p/24


Audio Format(s): English DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio, French/Spanish DTS 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish
Starring: Robert De Niro, Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, Teri Polo, Blythe Danner, Jessica Alba, Laura Dern, Harvey Keitel, Barbara Streisand, Dustin Hoffman
Directed by: Paul Weitz
Music by: Stephen Trask
Written by: John Hamburg & Larry Stuckey
Region Code: A,B,C

Blu-ray Disc release Date: April 5, 2011







"Kids bring everyone closer, right? "



Film Synopsis:


Greg Focker (Ben Stiller) has finally begun to earn the respect of his ex-CIA father-in-law, Jack Byrnes (Academy Award® winner Robert De Niro) but one important test still lies ahead: can Greg prove that he has what it takes to be the family's next Godfocker?' The sequel to the comedy blockbusters Meet the Parents and Meet the Fockers, Little Fockers reunites De Niro (Everybody's Fine) and Stiller (Night at the Museum franchise) with Oscar® winners Dustin Hoffman (Kung Fu Panda) and Barbra Streisand (The Prince of Tides), Blythe Danner (Paul), Teri Polo (Beyond Borders) and Owen Wilson (How Do You Know). Jessica Alba (Machete), Laura Dern (Jurassic Park) and Harvey Keitel (The Piano) also join the cast in the funniest Focker family story yet.



My Take:


I am a fan of Meet the parents. I love the slightly over the top but genuine portrayal of the awkwardness that life can sometimes be especially when trying to gain acceptance by the family of a significant other. Gaylord Focker's well intentioned but misguided eagerness to fit in and or please girlfriend Pam's parents, especially her father Jack is the catalyst that makes for the best moments. Everything from the seemingly normal situations that quickly descend to the abnormal to the inanity is pitch perfect. This is owed to a solid script/screenplay, capable direction, and the excellent chemistry between De Niro and Stiller. Meet the Fockers didn't quite live up to the original. I found it somewhat lacking the same freshness and situational humor and seemed more like a series of superfluous, repetitious and artificial gags. The addition of Barbara Streisand and Dustin Hoffman bolstered the cast and the contrast of their characters to the Byrnes' provided some entertaining moments that made it more enjoyable. Little Fockers follows a similar formula and doesn't introduce any enriching characters or well timed laughs.

The bland script offers another round of rehashed comedic misunderstandings involving Jack and Greg and brings back Kevin (Wilson) who is annoyingly still stuck on Pam while Jack sings his praises which of course only serves to irritate Greg. It doesn't go unnoticed that Streisand and Hoffman phoned in their cameos of Bernie and Roz. New faces come in the form of Prudence (Dern) who runs a local elementary school for gifted children, Randy (Keitel) the slow moving plumber, and Andi (Alba), the sexy pharmaceutical rep who would like personal face time with Greg. None of them brings anything of value to the proceedings. As a matter of fact the character of Andi, played by Jessica Alba, doesn't gel and leads to more of the tomfoolery that highlights the poorly conceived and predictable script. I couldn't understand why it was called Little Fockers since the story minimally involves the children. The primary focus is of course on Jack and Greg's antics which culminate in a ridiculous bout of fisticuffs in the finale. Spanning ten years the Focker/Byrne union has seen three film releases. Unfortunately each of the sequels has been worse than its predecessor with Little Fockers being the biggest disappointment. My favorite continues to be Meet the parents which even after ten years never seems to get old.



Parental Guide:


The rating is for mature sexual humor throughout, language and some drug content.





AUDIO/VIDEO - By The Numbers:
REFERENCE = 92-100 / EXCELLENT = 83-91 / GOOD = 74-82 / AVERAGE = 65-73 / BELOW AVERAGE = under 65

**My audio/video ratings are based upon a comparative made against other high definition media/blu-ray disc.**


(Each rating is worth 4 points with a max of 5 per category)


Audio: 80


  • Dynamics:

  • Low frequency extension:

  • Surround Sound presentation:

  • Clarity/Detail:

  • Dialogue Reproduction:





Video: 86


(Each rating is worth 4 points with a max of 5 per category)

  • Resolution/Clarity:

  • Black level/Shadow detail:

  • Color reproduction:

  • Fleshtones:

  • Compression:

Little Fockers comes to Blu-ray Disc from Universal Studios HE featuring 1080p VC-1 encoded video that has an average bitrate of 30 Mbps and lossless DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio sound that has an average bitrate of 3 Mbps.

The high definition video quality was on par with other new release films of its type and generally looked great. Colors were overstated with a pleasing palette that didn't stray into unnatural territory. Flesh tones varied with some appearing lifelike and others having a bronze/golden finish that made them look sun soaked and fake. Contrast was on the dynamic side which occasionally washed out bright scenes but added punch to primary colors. Images were well detailed and crisp, with sharp lines and excellent dimension. Blacks were respectable with noticeable gradations and detail in dark low level sequences had estimable visibility and depth in backgrounds. The video was cleanly rendered and didn't show any signs of compression related anomalies or distracting artifacts. The lossless DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio soundtrack readily handled the elements contained in the recording. The presentation retained a front loaded perspective with well defined and articulated dialogue that extended well into the room. Sounds were dynamically supported while exhibiting good clarity and discernible fine detail. Surround activity was limited to rear channel spatial cues and occasional directional sounds. As a whole the presentation was a fine match with the source material and made for a satisfying viewing experience.



Bonus Features:

  • (HD) Alternate opening: Wedding dream & morning wakeup

  • (HD) Alternate ending: Tree house

  • (HD) 10 deleted scenes

  • (HD) Gag reel - 2 minutes

  • (HD) The making of the Godfocker: Behind the scenes of Little Fockers - 15 minute featurette

  • (HD) Blu-ray Exclusive: Bob & Ben - 4 minute featurette

  • (HD) Blu-ray Exclusive: Ben & Owen - 5 minute featurette

  • (HD) Bout time - A behind-the-scenes look at the climatic fight scene where Greg and Jack finally throw down the gloves 4 minutes

  • (HD) The Focker Foot Locker - A string of clips from the three films that cover every time someone utters a version of Focker.

  • pocket BLU

  • My Scenes

  • My Movies - Consumers can instantly stream a free bonus movie either Junior or Sgt. Bilko to their TV and smart phone or choose to rent a variety of Universal favorites including Meet the Parents, Fast and Furious, Mamma Mia! and Coraline.

  • BD-Live

  • Bonus DVD of Little Fockers

  • Digital Copy



Final Thoughts:


As someone who loves Meet the parents and doesn't mind Meet the Fockers I found Little Fockers to be disappointing. The banality of the rehashed situational comedy coupled along with superfluous innuendo and bland direction make for a pallid comedy that wastes an excellent cast. It arrives on Blu-ray from Universal Studios Home Entertainment featuring appreciably good high definition audio/video quality and an unremarkable but adequate bonus supplement offering. If you're already a fan of Little Fockers this is worth considering otherwise I would pass.















Ralph Potts
AVS Forum Blu-ray Reviews





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#2 ·
Saw this in the theater. I'd agree with almost everything you've said except for one small detail. There's one other reason to see this movie............Jessica Alba almost completely naked.


Otherwise, yeah, it wasn't very good.
 
#3 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by Crash11 /forum/post/20204809


Saw this in the theater. I'd agree with almost everything you've said except for one small detail. There's one other reason to see this movie............Jessica Alba almost completely naked.


Otherwise, yeah, it wasn't very good.

Greetings,


If that's what you're interested in there are better examples ie; Into the blue and Machete..



Regards,
 
#8 ·
Watched it last night and laughed in a lot of scenes, but I agree that the screenplay isn't very coherent. Frankly, the funniest part is during the credits when they finally show Greg's speech at the "boner convention."


Great review Ralph!
 
#9 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by Dave Vaughn /forum/post/20205922


Watched it last night and laughed in a lot of scenes, but I agree that the screenplay isn't very coherent. Frankly, the funniest part is during the credits when they finally show Greg's speech at the "boner convention."


Great review Ralph!

Greetings,


I agree Dave. Thanks!



Regards,
 
#11 ·
Such a bad, bad movie. Loved the first one, 2nd was ok and this one resorting to potty humor. Terrible.
 
#13 ·
Just finished watching this one a few hours ago. It's definitely not as good as the first two, but I still enjoyed it well enough. I'm sort of biased, though, because Gaylord "Greg" Focker is a hero of mine. Reason being, I'm an R.N. and this franchise has allowed me to have a LOT of fun at his expense, as well as my own. He wears the "nurse Focker" badge with pride, and I have to say I will always love him for that
 
#14 ·
I took a while to get around this based on the less stellar reviews. I'm glad I saw it if for no other reason that is the last (hopefully) of the trilogy. I don't think I heard my wife laugh once but I did catch her grinning in the dark a few times. The series is so well established it feels comfortable making fun of itself with awful slapstick comedy like the accidental dump truck scene and the fight scene that invoked the Jaws theme. I always enjoy seeing DeNiro and Keitel working together although their brief scene in the movie was a waste of their talent. However I found myself flashing back to Mean Streets and Taxi Driver while they argued with one another and later learned that this is their sixth movie working together.
 
#17 ·
We rented this with zero expectations - luckily.



I will say the scene with the needle really cracked up my wife and I. At one point my five year old walked into the theater for a little bit. The next day she kept saying godFOCKER, I am sure at the urging of her older sister. Has taken a few days to get it out of her vocabulary...
 
#19 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by Franin /forum/post/20684266


Lol I know its wrong but hearing it from the young ones at times can make you laugh.

Yeah, we try really hard not to laugh and reinforce her saying it. It is hard not to though.
 
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