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Two out of Five stars
Running time: 78 mins

Disappointing sequel which lacks the charm, the originality and the gag rate of the first film, although Murray is still on top form.

What's it all about?
When Garfield's owner Jon (Breckin Meyer) decides to travel to London to propose to his girlfriend Liz (Jennifer Love Hewitt), Garfield (voiced by Bill Murray) and canine sidekick Odie decide to stow away and come along for the ride. However, on arrival in London, Garfield accidentally swaps places with pampered British cat Prince (voiced by Tim Curry).

While Prince deals with an extremely confused Jon, Garfield has far more pressing problems to contend with. It turns out that Prince has just inherited a castle estate and the dastardly Lord Dargis (Billy Connolly) is trying to bump him off because he's next in line.

The Good
At least the suits seem to have dropped the appallingly pun-laden Tale of Two Kitties and The Prince and the Paw-purr subtitles. It's also a relief that Bill Murray is still on board as Garfield, as his world-weary, deadpan delivery is the most enjoyable thing in the film.

The animation has improved considerably since the first movie and the animators do a terrific job of blending Garfield in with his real-life surroundings. They also have a host of other animals to play around with, in the shape of Prince's barnyard subjects (voiced by the likes of Jane Horrocks and Richard E Grant), although they're never really given anything interesting to do.

The Bad
Unfortunately, the film-makers fail to exploit the potential of the plot, opting for a series of lame jokes instead of creating any actual tension or suspense. The script does throw up the occasional one-liner as well as a couple of over-the-heads-of-children jokes for adults, but that's small consolation and there are very few laughs overall.

Worth seeing?
Garfield 2 is a lazily plotted, disappointing sequel with very few laughs but Murray's comic performance ensures that it's just about watchable.