88 mins, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. Family/Comedy. Ice Cube, Nia Long, Aleisha Allen, Philip Daniel Bolden, John C. McGinley, Dan Joffre, Pedro Miguel Arce, Tahj Mowry.

IN the sequel to the vacuous family comedy Are We There Yet?, Nick Persons (Cube) is now happily married to Suzanne (Long), and stepfather to her precocious tykes, Lindsey (Allen) and Kevin (Bolden).

He has sold his stake in the sports memorabilia store so he can launch a sports magazine.

Money is tight and his bachelor pad even tighter, so the Persons reluctantly move to the countryside into a bigger house - five bedrooms, four bathrooms and spectacular views - where they can raise a family.

Alas, the new property comes with all kinds of renovation issues, which demand Nick's dubious DIY talents and the continual presence of local contractor, Chuck Mitchell Jr (McGinley), who just happens to be the real estate agent, building inspector and part-time midwife.

Are We Done Yet? is a cheap renovation of the 1948 Cary Grant comedy Mr Blandings Builds His Dream House. Screenwriter Hank Nelken strips out the laughter and tears, propelling Cube's hapless hero from one painful slapstick misadventure to the next (hitting his head, being showered in airborne fluids), without pause for character development or emotion.

There is no 'pretty' resolution to all of the DIY mishaps and familial disputes, just a lot of cloying sentiment and supposedly heartfelt apologies.

McGinley's wildly exaggerated supporting turn becomes increasingly endearing as we will Chuck to heap misery upon Nick and his brood and bring the film to a swift resolution.

To answer the question posed by the title of Carr's creatively bankrupt family comedy: we hope so.

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