Men In Black II (2002)
The Comedy: Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones are back in black as the alien-hunting agents, but they fail to capture the magic of the first film, bogged down in OTT CGI and a terrible villain (Lara Flynn Boyle aided by Johnny Knoxville).
Men In Black 3 was better, but only by a whisker.
Lowest Moment: “It rains because you're sad, baby.” We discover that Laura has some sort of telepathic link to the weather. Really, by this point we're beyond caring.
Cars 2 (2011)
The Comedy: A Bondian spy jape in which Lightning McQueen heads to the World Grand Prix with his bucktoothed bud Mater.
But it isn't long before Mater gets caught up in an espionage plot...
Lowest Moment: Lightning McQueen is relegated to a circus in order for Mater to take the spotlight – and repeat all of the first film's main gags.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3 (1993)
The Comedy: You know things are starting to get stale when a sequel relies on time travel, and that's definitely the case with this woeful third Turtles outing.
This time around, the Turtles are sent back to ancient Japan where they train to perfect the art of becoming 'one'. Where are the Spice Girls when you need 'em?
Lowest Moment: There's no Shredder. None. Zip. Zilch. Nada.
Rush Hour 3 (2007)
The Comedy: Chris Tucker and Jackie Chan aren't sick enough of each other yet, so they're back for another icky soup of slapstick humour, this time protecting a woman after the attempted assassination of an ambassador.
Lowest Moment: A daft sequence set in a Paris sewer.
Frankly, it stinks.
Beverly Hills Cop III (1994)
The Comedy: While investigating a car theft ring, Axel Foley (Eddie Murphy) stumbles onto the men who shot his boss – and it seems they're operating a money laundering scheme in an LA theme park.
Things are wearing pretty thin in this second sequel, but don't fret, another one's on the way next year...
Lowest Moment: All of the action scenes, which are so badly edited that they feel like they belong in a spoof. Which BHC3 is in danger of becoming.
Revenge Of The Nerds II: Nerds In Paradise (1987)
The Comedy: The nerds hit the road for a trip to Florida, but they find the welcome a little less than warm when they arrive at a fraternity that takes an instant dislike to them.
Lowest Moment: The nerds are weirdly un-nerd-like this time around – one of them even gets himself a girlfriend. Which just isn't right.
The Two Jakes (1990)
The Comedy: Chinatown was hardly a comedy, but this ill-advised sequel (directed by Jack Nicholson himself) certainly tries to shoulder in the laughs as Nicholson's Jake Gittes gets caught up in a case involving oil.
Yes, instead of water. Quite a stretch.
Lowest Moment: The part where you realise you have no idea what's going on. You need a map, a whistle and torch to navigate The Two Jakes – not things we generally take to the movies.
Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement (2004)
The Comedy: What's a girl to do? Julie Andrews turns up and tells you you're a princess, and now you're expected to get married to a rich Brit. Oh, and your diamond shoes are just too damned tight.
This schmaltzy bit of fluff thankfully heralded Anne Hathaway's departure from the kiddie market ( Hoodwinked notwithstanding), and thank goodness for that.
Lowest Moment: We don't remember much, but we know the mattress-surfing slumber party was pretty insufferable.
Evan Almighty (2007)
The Comedy: Bruce (Jim Carrey) is outta here, so now it's time for Evan (Steve Carell) to have a go at being God – which involves building an Ark to survive an impending flood.
On a side note: just how many lame comedy sequels has Jim Carrey cleverly dodged? There are at least four on this list alone. Keep an eye out for them...
Lowest Moment: Evan becomes ridiculously hairy. Because hair equals godliness?
Legally Blonde 2 (2003)
The Comedy: Elle Woods (Reese Witherspoon) is back breaking stereotypes as a blonde who – no, really! – actually has a brain. Except this sequel's unutterably brainless, recycling the first film's plot beats as Elle again tries to prove her worth – this time to an unimpressed Sally Field.
Yawwwwn.
Lowest Moment: “Your dogs are gay!” The insult to end all insults, as Elle's tiny chihuahua beds down with a Rottweiler. We still can't believe this actually happened.
