Tagline: New House. New Family. What could possibly go wrong?
In this sequel to the 2005 hit comedy “Are We There Yet?”, Nick Persons (Ice Cube), his girlfriend (Nia Long) and her two kids leave the city for the suburbs, but the dream home they plan to fix-up soon turns into a nightmare.
“Are We Done Yet?” is a follow-up to Revolution Studios’ hilarious 2005 family comedy “Are We There Yet?” and picks up where the last story left off. Now married to Suzanne (Nia Long), Nick Persons (Ice Cube) has bought a quiet suburban house to escape the rat race of the big city and to provide more space for his new wife and kids Lindsey and Kevin (Aleisha Allen and Philip Daniel Bolden). But when his new home quickly becomes a costly “fixer upper” and he finds himself at the mercy of an eccentric contractor (John C. McGinley), Nick’s suburban dream soon becomes a riotous nightmare.
About the Story
Nick Persons’ (Ice Cube) style is a little cramped these days, along with his rented condo. With new wife, Suzanne (Nia Long), her two growing children, eight-year-old Kevin (Philip Daniel Bolden) and 13-year-old Lindsey (Aleisha Allen), and the family dog, Coco, taking up every last inch of what used to be Nick’s bachelor pad, finding space to think and write up the cover story for the first edition of his new venture, Sports Page magazine, is proving an exercise in futility. Still, Nick is trying his best-to write and to adapt.
The situation goes from cramped to critical when Suzanne announces she’s pregnant – with twins! There’s no option left but to move. As Nick quickly – too quickly? – falls in love with a magnificent home in need of some TLC, the charismatic local realtor, Chuck Mitchell, Jr. (John C. McGinley), sells them on the house’s finer attributes… and before she knows it, Suzanne is giving in to Nick’s ridiculous vision of fixing up the house himself and creating the perfect environment for their expanding family.
When Nick nearly electrocutes himself on his first do-it-yourself project – after a chandelier falls from the ceiling! – Nick gives in, calls the contractor, and… Chuck shows up? It appears that, in addition to being the local realtor, Chuck is also the resident contractor. Nick is furious… and then, when the babies start kicking and only Chuck can calm them down, it’s more than Nick can bear.
His pride hurt, Nick becomes even more determined not to hire Chuck and instead hires a local cowboy builder. The choice proves first dangerous and then expensive as the local inspector – you guessed it, Chuck again – arrives to shut down the illegal wiring. A thousand-dollar fine later, Nick is forced to accept defeat.
Now Chuck can get right to work. Yet even with Chuck on the job – or perhaps because he’s on the job – things quickly go from bad to worse. The problems mount – dry rot, corroded plumbing, animal infestation! – and soon, Chuck has moved into an airstream trailer in the Persons’ yard. As Chuck continually says, “It’s gonna get ugly before it gets pretty.”
As the interior of the house is rapidly torn apart, tensions increase and Nick finds his relationships deteriorating at the same rapid pace – and wherever Nick fails, his nemesis succeeds. Chuck bonds with Kevin, who abandons his emulation of Nick to mimic Chuck’s dress and mannerisms. Chuck even manages to connect with Lindsey, encouraging her to pursue a relationship with Danny, the cute 15-year-old dry rot specialist she has developed a crush on. Things come to a head when Nick discovers Lindsey has sneaked out to a luau at Danny’s house; Nick crashes the party and, despite Chuck’s attempts to get Nick to lighten up on the teen, marches a humiliated Lindsey home.
Worst of all, even Suzanne has fallen under Chuck’s spell: she starts natural childbirth classes with Chuck as her partner. Already annoyed, Nick is sent over the edge when Chuck cheerfully announces the house needs a new roof. Nick goes ballistic, wreaking vengeance with a piece of mahogany trim as Chuck ducks and darts to avoid Nick’s wrath. Chuck survives the attempt on his life but his job is gone. It proves a costly move to Nick: he is quickly abandoned by the other tradespeople, their loyalty firmly with Chuck.
Suzanne – angered by Nick’s temper tantrum – decides that the best thing to do is to give her husband some distance. She and the kids move out, but not far, taking up residence in their lakeside cottage. At first, Nick’s wounded pride prevents him from giving in, then it motivates him to prove everyone wrong. It’s up to Nick to repair not only his home, but also his relationships with his family and with Chuck as he begins his new life as a husband and father.
Are We Done Yet? (2007)
Directed by: Steve Carr
Starring: Ice Cube, Nia Long, John C. McGinley, Aleisha Allen, Philip Daniel Boldenş, Linda Kash. Jonathan Katz, Alexander Kalugin, Dan Joffre, Tahj Mowry, Brenda Prieur
Screenplay by: Hank Nelson
Production Design by: Nina Ruscio
Cinematography by: Jack N. Green
Film Editing by: Craig Herring
Costume Design by: Jori Woodman
Set Decoration by: Peter Lando
Art Direction by: Kelvin Humenny
Music by: Teddy Castellucci
MPAA Rating: PG for some innuendos and brief language.
Distributed by: Revolution Films
Release Date: April 4, 2007
Views: 140
