We met them first as cartoons, but now Alvin, Simon and Theodore become real. Well, as real as singing, talking chipmunks can get.
In this 2007 movie “Alvin and the Chipmunks,” we meet Dave Seville, a man who’s in advertising but really wants to be a song writer. After suffering a humiliating defeat, he’s not quite prepared for what happens next, but it happens all the same. Three chipmunks ride home from work in his fruit basket. They came from the forest and were transported to the city in a Christmas tree, found themselves in unfamiliar territory and were lured into the basket by all the food. When they arrive at Dave’s house, they think they’ve hit the big time – a huge snack cupboard with all the cheese puffs they can eat! But when Dave discovers them, he’s a little freaked out and demands that they leave.
They serenade him on the window sill, and when he realizes they can sing, he lets them back in. This could be the ticket to success he’s been looking for. He writes them a Christmas song and they rehearse it all morning, but when they go in to perform it for music producer Ian, the Chipmunks get stage fright and can’t do it. Frustrated, Dave doesn’t know what to do. He can’t keep taking care of them and cleaning up after them his whole life, but now he cares too much about them to throw them out.
When the Chipmunks realize the position they’ve put Dave in, they go see Ian themselves and land a huge contract. The pressures of stardom compete with family life and soon the Chipmunks are living with Ian, getting everything they want but being worked into the ground. In the end, Dave and the Chipmunks are reunited, and form a family.
I was pleasantly surprised at how charming this film is. I watched the cartoon all the time when I was a little girl, and I wondered how it would translate into a live action film. It was funny, sensitive, and a whole lot of fun for the whole family.
The DVD also contains a special feature on how the Chipmunks came to be.
This film was rated PG.
Related Blogs: