Studio execs in Hollywood are apparently looking for more original blockbusters and less sequels. A good move, if true. In Robert Rodriguez's Spy Kids 3 the Cortez family are back, espionage specialists attempting dangerous global missions to thwart evil megalomaniacs.

Here, youngest Juni (Subara) disillusioned with the way the Corporation works has forged out on his own, but is persuaded to help them again when he learns that his sister Carmen (Vega) has entered an addictive and potentially evil virtual reality game and is stuck in limbo within it on level 4 (there are five levels). The creator (Stallone) is out to take over the minds of kids by hooking them within the game. Juni must get through the game to destroy it, aided by his disabled Grandpa.

Spy Kids 3, complete with free 3D glasses being given with your cinema ticket, takes you back to 'House of Wax' days and early 3-D - as a gimmick it's very funny at first, projectiles hurtle past, and characters within the film make it very clear whether you should have your glasses on or off. The 3-D effects do become wearing though after a while - there's even an apology given at the beginning if you do get tired and the suggestion that you should go and buy popcorn if you get a headache!

Daryl Subara does his best in what is effectively a lead role, Alexa Vega is largely underused since you have to wait for her brother to reach her before she can play a more prominent role, Stallone meanwhile is overused since he plays not only the creator but also three cloned characters who generally add little.

A host of stars who enlivened the first two films, such as Antonio Banderas, Steve Buscemi, Bill Paxton, Tony Shalhoub, Alan Cumming and George Clooney get cameos in the last five minutes, begging the question why this Tron-like story could not have made greater use of them in the other 80, although an impression Clooney does of Stallone is very funny and the final credits also contain some really good moments with the now traditional helping of outtakes.

Game over? It certainly looks that way for the Spy Kids franchise since Rodriguez continually has had to come up with new tricks to pep up the proceedings. The 3-D approach was a reasonable idea given that much of the audience coming to see a film like this, would not have been exposed to 3-D before, but the story might have made better use of some of the adult characters rather than leaving them just to liven up the ending.