Release Date: December, 14 2007 Studio: 20th Century Fox MPAA Rating: PG Genre: Comedy •
Family Director: Tim Hill Writers: Jon Vitti, Will McRobb, Chris Viscardi, Ross Bagdasarian Cast: Jason Lee, David Cross, Cameron Richardson, Justin Long, Matthew Gray Gubler, Jesse McCartney Synopsis: The life of songwriter David Seville is upset when he meets three lively singing chipmunks: the unchained leader Alvin, the genius Simon and the tender rotund Theodore. David will adopt the Chipmunks taking care of them as lovely father and manager of their famous rock band. The Review: Your Critics for the Evening: Michael & Henry Dayspring.
Here's one of those movies reviews that I'm pretty sure is going to damage any street cred I might have left...if I had any to begin with.
When Sanchez (Robert) called me after his viewing of the film I was expecting a quick "well that certainly sucked" sort of quick commentary. After all the trailers look pretty bad to anyone over the age of nine, which left me wondering if Jason Lee wasn't doing a paycheck flick to pay for a new half pipe in his backyard. To my shock Robert was pretty dang amused by the movie. Naturally I asked for a list of current prescriptions he might be on and headed over to WebMD to check for possible side effects....sadly I couldn't find any side effects from Flintstone chewable vitamins and valtrex. That said I walked into Alvin and The Chipmunks wondering if some sort of hypnosis was involved so just in case I wore my "They Live" official sunglasses and hoped for the best.
To my utter amazement I found myself enjoying the exploits of Alvin and his posse. It's not hysterically funny for adults but its not pandering or obnoxious with pop culture garbage either. Not bad for a movie not made for me and totally appreciated as a parent. David Cross is such a brilliant bit of casting; nobody can play a comedy sleaze quite like he can. Jason Lee is pitch perfect as David Seville a man at the end of too many of his own ropes. Of course the Chipmunks are adorable and giggly sweet all around but it's kept in balance by all the mischief and jacked up stuff they do in the name of fun.
Normally I'd chalk this up to just low expectations, but it's just not the case here. Believe me I expected to rip these rodents a new one not to walk out of the theater with a smile on my face. Maybe I'm not totally dead on the inside..who knew?
The Mini Film Geek (Henry) DUG this movie; he's been singing the songs and wearing the buttons (swag) on his jacket since then. I imagine we'll be picking up the soundtrack in the near future as well as the DVD.
Overall: File this under: Stranger Things Have Happened. Alvin and the Chipmunks are back and far more amusing then before.
