The jumbo-sized Baker family are back in this sequel to the 2003 box-office hit Cheaper by the Dozen. College football coach Tom Baker (Steve Martin) and his wife, author Kate Baker (Bonnie Hunt), have decided its time they took their sizable brood of 12 children on a summer vacation, and so they pack up the cars and take the kids to Lake Winnetka for some camping. Not all the kids are happy about this, but the one who is really annoyed turns out to be Tom, who discovers his old rival Jimmy
Murtaugh (Eugene Levy) is also staying near the lake. Jimmy and his trophy wife, Sarina (Carmen Electra), also have a large family of eight children, and Jimmy and Tom seem intent upon one-upping each other at every opportunity. As the tensions mount, the Baker family and the Murtaugh clan face off in a not-so-good-natured series of family games to determine which of the parents have the greater bragging rights. In addition to Steve Martin and Bonnie Hunt, the actors playing the 12 Baker children from the 2003 film return for Cheaper by the Dozen 2, including Hilary Duff, Piper Perabo, Tom Welling, and Kevin Schmidt. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
There's a discernible lack of enthusiasm from almost everyone involved, and Duff, who's gone from wholesome to haggard in two short years, is flat-out scary.
There's something pernicious about a toxic mix of sitcom and snickering sex jokes getting packaged and effectively sold as wholesome fun for the family.
I wonder how many meetings they had before they came up with that title. And didn't we just see this movie a couple of weeks ago, and wasn't it called Yours, Mine and Ours?
It aims to be pleasant and good-natured, which it is. There are enough laughs scattered throughout to keep everything moderately amusing, and the cast is likeable.
Cheaper by the Dozen 2 is so incredibly bland and by the numbers it's painful to watch ... it's just a collection of unfunny moments that are both uninteresting and annoying.
Its heart is in the right place, but a reliance on gimmicks and sentiment undermines the story. In the end, both the laughs and the tears here come just a little too cheap.
All I wanted to do was rent Ron Howard's Parenthood again just to remind myself that Steve Martin once made a film about families that was both honest and funny.
I think the first one was better. This one looked just lame. And what happened to the first son's girlfriend? They looked so lovey dovey in the first movie. And what happened to Hilary? I mean she looked so old over here.
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