Cheaper by the Dozen 2 (Movie Review)

Steve Martin is back as the father of twelve troublemaking kids in the family comedy Cheaper by the Dozen 2. Martin is joined in the sequel by Bonnie Hunt, Carmen Electra, a scary looking Hilary Duff and Tom Welling (Superman on the TV show Smallville).

This time around Martin and the clan head up to Lake Winnetka for a fun filled family vacation. Once there, Martin runs into his long time arch nemesis, played by Eugene Levy (better known as the dad from American Pie). The summer is full of hijinks, water sports and the pains of blossoming young love (I typed that as sarcastically as possible). It is all topped off with an end-of-summer Battle Royal between the families staying at the lake, as they clash head-to-head in a variety of contests (such as a 3 legged race, log roll competition, volleyball, etc.).

Cheaper by the Dozen 2 is a simple, nice little family film. It has some funny parts…but not many. That said, I really enjoyed the movie…although I’m not exactly sure why.

The Good: Steve Martin is always entertaining and the kids are funny to watch.
The Bad: The acting; Eugene Levy is not funny…at all.
The Ugly: It hurts me to say it but…Hilary Duff. Come on Hilary, put some weight back on and take some makeup off. One more thing…crack is not an FDA accepted diet plan.

My Recommendation: If you have young kids, take them to see it. Otherwise, wait for it to come out on DVD or The Disney Channel.