Film

Are We Done Yet?

Name: Are We Done Yet?
Genre: Family, Comedy
Released: 2007
Cast: Ice Cube, Nia Long, John C. McGinley, Aleisha Allen, Philip Bolden

Comedy
Light-hearted

A family comedy about newlyweds moving to the suburbs and renovating their dream house, only to clash with an eccentric contractor who makes everything worse. It's broad, slapstick-heavy, and designed for kids and parents who don't mind chaos. Warmth underneath the noise; Ice Cube leans into the everyman-pushed-past-limits angle.

TMDb rating

2.9

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you enjoy broad, sitcom-style family slapstick where a decent couple's patience gets tested by one escalating, cartoonish disaster, and you don't need the jokes to be sharp.

Skip it if you want sharp, grown-up comedy, since the humour leans on big, obvious gags built around one oddball contractor rather than wit.

What it asks of you: It runs about ninety minutes and asks little beyond a light, easy attention; the story moves briskly and never pauses for mood.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

National Lampoon's Vacation1983

The prototype for this entire formula: family trip, escalating disasters, chaos that somehow bonds everyone closer. Clark Griswold's desperation is real, and the movie never punches down.

But 1980s comedy pacing feels slow now, and some jokes haven't aged well. The car itself is the star, not sentiment.

Cheaper by the Dozen2003

Steve Martin as a harried dad in a house bursting at the seams. Genuinely funny ensemble cast, real warmth between the chaos, and it actually respects its child characters' jokes.

But Heavily reliant on physical comedy and kids running around yelling. If broad comedy makes you wince, this won't convert you.

The Santa Clause1994

Tim Allen at his best—bewildered, reactive, learning to be present for his son. The premise is silly but the emotional core is solid. Funny without being mean.

But It's unabashedly sentimental, and if you're allergic to Christmas schmaltz it'll feel cloying fast.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Are We Done Yet?

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Uncle Buck1989

Both films center on an outsider (contractor, wayward relative) whose chaos forces a family to choose between perfection and connection.

John Candy as a chaotic uncle who moves in and upends a uptight suburban family. It's messier and more melancholy than Are We Done Yet?, but hits the same note of disorder teaching people how to love.

But Darker than you'd expect—there's real family dysfunction underneath the laughs. Candy's character is genuinely inappropriate in ways that complicate things.

Home Alone1990

Peak Macaulay Culkin, inventive slapstick, and a genuine fantasy (left behind, you win). The criminals are cartoonish enough that the violence is fun rather than mean.

But Relies heavily on child-on-adult violence played for laughs. Pacing drags in the middle hour.

Malibu's Most Wanted2003

Jamie Kennedy commits fully to a ridiculous premise; the fish-out-of-water energy is infectious. Shia LaBeouf is charming, and it's genuinely weird in ways that work.

But The jokes are spotty and it's built on parody that requires patience. Doesn't take itself seriously enough to land emotional beats.

Big Daddy1999

Adam Sandler subdued and actually sweet. The kid is natural, the premise gives real stakes, and it balances goofiness with actual fatherhood stuff.

But Sandler's sentimentality can feel maudlin. The plot contrivances pile up and strain credibility in the final act.

Elf2003

Will Ferrell's earnest optimism as a human raised by elves. New York comedy, warm family reconciliation, and it's genuinely clever underneath the silly premise.

But If you find Ferrell's shouting exhausting, there's a lot of it. The Christmas setting limits rewatchability.

Tropic Thunder2008

Robert Downey Jr. in blackface—wait, no, playing a method actor in blackface, which is the joke. Wildly smart satire of action movies and ego, with real laughs underneath the provocation.

But The racial humor is intentionally uncomfortable even when it's clever. Relies on understanding film in-jokes. Some will find it tries too hard.

Grown Ups2010

Adam Sandler and his actual friend group playing characters who grew up together. Low stakes, gently nostalgic, genuinely fond of its own people.

But Premise is thin; it's basically a vacation video of famous people. Humor is dad-joke level and jokes sometimes go nowhere.

The Great Outdoors1988

Structure-for-structure match: family outing, escalating property disasters, and the realization that togetherness matters more than the dream.

John Candy and Dan Aykroyd on a family camping trip where everything that can go wrong does, catastrophically. Warmer and less cynical than most comedies; the mess is the point.

But Heavily dependent on 1980s comedy sensibility and very long stretches of just watching people suffer minor disasters. Not much plot.

Sometimes a Great Notion1971

Both use home renovation/family business as the pressure point where you see what people are actually made of.

Paul Newman and Henry Fonda in a logging family drama set against their Oregon home and business. Operatic Americana, real stakes, multiple generations clashing—genre completely different but thematically about what a house and a family business do to people.

But Three hours, serious, heavy with masculine pride and failure. No broad comedy, all earned emotion. Will feel like a slog if you wanted laughs.