Try as you might, you just cannot paint Ice Cube into a corner. Just check the man’s resume, he started out as a hugely popular platinum rap star, he has since successfully transitioned into an extremely popular film star. He has starred in films as different as the dramatic Boys In the Hood and Three Kings to the comedic Friday and Barbershop films.
Now Cube is taking his shot at something new with the family comedy Are We There Yet?, but can Cube’s golden touch transfer to yet another genre?
In Are We There Yet?, Nick (Cube) is a smooth bachelor who is trying to land a date with sexy divorce, Suzanne (Nia Long). The problem is Suzanne has two obnoxious kids who will do whatever they can to stop their mother’s potential suitors from being successful.
Trying to get into Suzanne’s good books, Nick agrees to drive the kids from Portland, Oregon to Vancouver, B.C. Can Nick tame the two wild kids, or will the kids tame him?
Well, with Are We There Yet?, Cube’s golden touch may have finally worn off. The film is pretty much a cookie cutter mainstream family comedy with the one big change, which is Cube as the leading man.
Cube does have a great every-man quality and is very willing to laugh at himself, as well as be funny. So, I cannot put the blame on him for this film not reaching its potential.
The problem is its loosely strung together nature, the scenes seem thrown together and it causes the film to feel very disjointed. It never hits its stride, or finds its rhythm, and in the end only turns out to be a series of a few but far between funny and sometimes warm moments.
The other problem I had came at times when it is too adult for younger audiences, kids below 10 may be too young for some of the jokes and situations.
If your kids are the right age maybe 10 to 12, they may enjoy it, but Are We There Yet? is close to being good, but doesn’t quite make the cut.
