SECRET agents inhabit either a glamorous world of spying or a murky world of espionage, depending on your point of view.

Debunking the myth that sequels are never as good as the original, Spy Kids 2 (U) is just as exhilarating, comical and outrageously overblown as the first adventure.

The gadgets are funkier, and the special effects and stunts more elaborate.

All is well for pint-sized agents Alexa Vega and Daryl Sabara. Reunited with their doting parents Antonio Banderas and Carla Gugino, the youngsters are the best operatives in the Spy Kids organisation.

Trouble looms large when arch-rivals Matthew O'Leary and Emily Osment steal a top assignment.

They are bent on retrieving the mysterious transmooker device from an island overrun by strange and wondrous creatures, manufactured by shady scientist Steve Buscemi.

The youngsters give chase, and soon the four pint-sized agents discover they will have to work together to survive the island unscathed.

Writer-director Robert Rodriguez invests Spy Kids 2 with the same high-octane blend of action and comedy.

The rapport between Vega and Sabara is as spiky as ever, incessantly bickering and only pausing for breath to save each other from disaster.

The plot is plainly ridiculous but the cast's enthusiasm is infectious.