Meet the Parents
Universal Pictures | Release Date: October 6, 2000 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
73
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 33 Critic Reviews
Positive:
30
Mixed:
3
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
90
VarietyTodd McCarthy
A flat-out hilarious mainstream comedy. Read full review
90
Los Angeles TimesKenneth Turan
This buoyant, giddy comedy of catastrophe is the funniest film of the year so far, possibly the most amusing mainstream live-action comedy since "There's Something About Mary."
88
Baltimore SunChris Kaltenbach
De Niro and Stiller combine to bring on laughs you don't have to feel guilty about. Read full review
88
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
Many belly laughs. Read full review
83
Mr. ShowbizCody Clark
It's funny. Really funny. Read full review
83
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
It's a bouncy, loose limbed, ''families do the darnedest things'' sitcom that elicits ungrudging laughs. Read full review
80
SalonStephanie Zacharek
De Niro's performance works because it isn't exactly likable -- he's totally at ease with his own jokes, but he's not out to make us feel relaxed. Read full review
80
SlateDavid Edelstein
Has a soft windup, but along the way are some of the best-constructed slapstick sequences since "There's Something About Mary." Read full review
80
Washington PostDesson Thomson
Roach knows to play to the movie's twin strengths: Stiller and De Niro. Throw these guys together, turn up the intensity. Read full review
80
Rolling StonePeter Travers
A hilarious hodgepodge, in which De Niro gives his best comic performance to date.
75
Chicago TribuneMichael Wilmington
These two actors have a kind of genius for dark comedy: Stiller for suffering through crises and De Niro for creating them. Read full review
75
New York PostJonathan Foreman
Part sitcom, part comedy of manners - but it lacks the courage to deal honestly with class and ethnicity. Read full review
75
Seattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam Arnold
Stiller is enjoyably long-suffering, and De Niro convinces us that Attila the Hun would make a preferable father-in-law. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Directed by Jay Roach, who made the "Austin Powers" movies and here shows he can dial down from farce into a comedy of (bad) manners. His movie is funnier because it never tries too hard. Read full review
75
USA TodaySusan Wloszczyna
With near-Swiss precision, director/producer Jay Roach and his writers make sure familiarity breeds hilarity. Read full review
75
New York Daily NewsJami Bernard
What makes it work so well is superb chemistry and a light touch. The spray-painted cat scene doesn't hurt, either. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleBob Graham
It's a kind of "sex, lies and videotape'' in suburbia. Read full review
75
Miami HeraldRene Rodriguez
Calling a comedy old-fashioned nowadays might seem like a backhanded compliment, but that's precisely what this genial, funny movie is. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeJay Carr
Distress of Parents is a real pleasure. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerDesmond Ryan
Blithely funny and on-the-money movie. Read full review
70
The New York TimesA.O. Scott
This is a high-concept comedy, and none of the jokes are forced, which makes Meet the Parents a singular achievement. Read full review
70
Film.comRobert Horton
While this movie is no great advance in cinema comedy, it is rewardingly silly. Read full review
70
L.A. WeeklyPaul Malcolm
While Stiller and De Niro can play hilariously off one another, the film -- despite its happy ending -- feels unresolved. Read full review
70
Chicago ReaderLisa Alspector
Scenes that should have been uproarious are weaker than many of the movie's smaller moments. Read full review
70
Film.comSean Means
Delivers its humor with clockwork reliability. Read full review
70
Dallas ObserverRobert Wilonsky
It has just enough "comedy" to qualify as crowd-pleaser. Read full review
70
NewsweekDavid Ansen
Director Jay Roach ("Austin Powers") has a keen sense of comic timing, and the script keeps finding clever new ways to mortify our poor hero. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleMarjorie Baumgarten
Ultimately passable movie entertainment, but like most future in-laws leaves a feeling of something still desired. Read full review
67
Portland OregonianKim Morgan
A funny and sometimes substantial movie that in real life would never have a happy ending. Read full review
63
San Francisco ExaminerWesley Morris
What begins as unassumingly dull wanders into disarming chaos. Read full review
60
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
The gross-out factor is surprisingly low, and the combination of Stiller and De Niro is inspired. Read full review
50
Village VoiceJessica Winter
Watching Ben get the girl or be seriously injured trying always has its dry, keening pleasures. Read full review
40
TNT RoughCutSusannah Breslin
Never before have two such skilled actors been so monstrously squandered in a movie so replete with failed gags and pathetic gaffs. Read full review
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