User Reviews

ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS: CHIPWRECKED - Rating: C+ I have been a chipmunk fan since before the Live Action films came out (I consider myself generation 2.5 being born in '95 and being a fan of both old and new). I loved the first two, Squeakuel being my favorite. But, I can't give this movie as good of a review as the other ones.

The singing seemed forced and not as free flowing as what it once was. They just wanted to cram as many songs into it as possible. I didn't care for the song selection other than "Vacation" and "Born this way/Ain't no Stoppin' us Now/Firework". And it's constant singing every 5 minutes. If you like the singing part, then this will be up your alley. But, I found it exhaustive. As for the plot, I get it. But, there was much to be desired. It's too short, and there's not a lot to it at all. It also seemed a LOT more serious than the other movies. It's supposed to be in the "CGI/Live Action Family Comedy" genre, but there's not a lot of real "funny" parts except a few attempts to throw in humor from other movies and videos (Even some from youtube)

********SPOILERS******** Alvin is being Alvin again in the beginning. But that's pretty much it. The plot was quite predictable. There was too much foreshadowing. If they wanted to improve the story, add some suspense and then we'll talk.

After the Chipmunks & Chipettes were stranded, things went for the worse. The way everyone's personality was changed wasn't the best idea for the plot, and it really changed the outlook on the movie. Because of the personality change, things became too obvious. After the cave was found and the volcano became active, the plot was laid down right in front of you and you knew instantly that there was going to be a race against time dealing with the treasure. It became obvious that Zoe instantly that Zoe was crazy looking for the treasure and that she would do something stupid to get it. Personally, I found her just to be another random person that they added just to stretch time.

I understand that the movie was made for a younger crowd, but I still am a true chipmunk fan. I just can't come to truly love the movie like the previous ones. My advice, if you didn't care for the previous movies, don't waste the money. If you are a die hard fan, then it may be worth renting for a day just to see it (Redbox is only 1.20 after all) It's not the worst, but it's a far cry from the best.

Based on the musical band and the children's cartoon, which I remember watching, the first film was terrible, the second film was only mildly watchable but still tedious, I think I knew what to expect with this third film, directed by Mike Mitchell (Surviving Christmas, Sky High). Basically David 'Dave' Seville (Jason Lee) with the Chipmunks: Alvin (Die Hard 4.0's Justin Long), Simon (Matthew Gray Gubler) and Theodore (Jesse McCartney) and the Chipettes: Brittany (Christina Applegate), Eleanor (Amy Poehler) and Jeanette (Anna Faris) are on a vacation on a cruise ship, but of course the furry cannot stay away from trouble for long. After messing about on the ship deck the Chipmunks and Chipettes end up accidentally thrown overboard, Dave chases after to rescue them, with his old boss Ian Hawke (David Cross) tagging along, the six friends end up marooned on a tropical paradise island, and some time after them, unseen, Dave and Ian are swept up on the island also. The island appears to be deserted at first, but then seemingly crazy castaway Zoe (Jenny Slate) shows up, with her various playing balls that she talks to, she claims she has been stranded for years waiting to be rescued, Dave and Ian search the island to find them. On the island Eleanor sprains her ankle, and Simon is bitten by a spider, with the side effects being that he changes personality, into French adventurer chipmunk Simone (Alan Tudyk), while the other Chipmunks and Chipettes try to make the most of the situation they are in "Simone" stumbles upon a piece of treasure Zoe has been looking for. Zoe suddenly turns nasty against her furry "friends" and demands to know where the hidden treasure she has been searching for is located, by this time Dave and Ian find them, it becomes a chase to rescue their friends and save themselves from the threat of the erupting volcano, of course in the end all of them get away from the island in time, and the Chipmunks and Chipettes make it in time to perform at the International Music Awards. The animated animals are relatively cute and funny in moments, while the live actors are rather cheesy, the choice of songs is varied, including "Trouble", "Party Rock Anthem", "Whip My Hair", "Kumbaya", "Survivor", "Bad Romance", "S.O.S." and "Firework", some are catchy, the problem of annoying squeaky voices and immature behaviour remains, and it is predictable, the kids may enjoy it, but this overall is a silly part-animated comedy adventure. Adequate!

Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked (2011): Dir: Mike Mitchell / Cast: Jason Lee, David Cross, Jenny Slate, Andy Buckley, Michael P. Northey: Third in this tiresome and annoying franchise. The subtitle physically refers to the fact that Dave and his fuzzy companions are stranded on an island, but it also symbolizes the behaviors of the chipmunk personalities. That is about the height of any intelligence coming out of this waterlogged screenplay. Dave and his singing chipmunks are on a cruise and one thing leads to another until they end up on an island. This is quite boring and Mike Mitchell does his best as director whose film is totally dependant on the chipmunk talking visuals. Mitchell previously made the underrated Surviving Christmas as well as the retread Shrek Forever After. Jason Lee is well cast as Dave, the chipmunks owner and manager but the role is routine and cardboard at this point. The same goes for David Cross as Ian the scheming villain who reemerges in a pelican mascot outfit on the cruise. Jenny Slate plays a total moron named Zooey whom the chipmunks and chipettes encounter on an island. The reference to Cast Away is one of the better jokes but this character is so brain dead that viewers will likely lose any sympathy for. Andy Buckley is flat as the annoyed cruise captain. Michael P. Northey is billed as the Hawaiian Shirt Guy, and that is about as creative as this junk gets. While Alvin, Simon and Theodore are visually amusing, watching the chipettes in bikini outfits dancing to techno music is enough to make a person toss this family oriented crap overboard. Score: 3 / 10

I'm not ashamed to admit that I enjoyed Alvin and The Chipmunks; I even enjoyed Alvin and The Chipmunks: The Squekquel, albeit a little bit less than the original. The two movies combined for a gross of over 400 million dollars. No, that's not a typo, I said 400 million dollars! It goes without saying that 20th Century Fox had a money maker on their hands, and was going to keep going to the well until it was emptied. Anyone who has seen Alvin and The Chipmunks: Chipwrecked should be able to tell you that the proverbial well is BONE DRY!

I wish I could tell you that Chipwrecked was just a tad beneath the quality of Squekquel. I wish I could tell you that the Chipmunks and the Chipettes were just as cute as you remember. Unfortunately, that's just not the case. The musical numbers were forced; the shenanigans were tired and old, and more important that anything, the chipmunks as a whole just weren't cute and funny. ******************************SPOILER ALERT******************************** David Cross, who can be quite funny, is relegated to spending the entire movie in a bird suit. Jason Lee, who must be getting an overwhelming payday to keep coming back, spends most of the time whining. The introduction of Zoe, played by Jenny Slate, was a cheap attempt to add a foil to the characters. Honestly though, she came across more as irrelevant. By no means was I looking for a movie written by Aaron Sorkin, Academy Award winning screenplay writer of The Social Network, but a little bit of an effort would have been nice. It seemed as the Writers were only worried about how many songs they could squeeze into the film and how many movies they could spoof off of, most notably Castaway, The Lord of the Rings, and James Bond; there's even a bit of The Jersey Shore thrown into the mix. Once you add it all up, it equates to nothing more than very lazy writing.

My wife and I took our 8 year old son and 5 year old daughter with us, and although the two of them were entertained, my wife and I were both extremely disappointed. If the intent is to move forward on additional films, then the writing is going to have to improve. I find it hard to believe that after 2 movies, the writers can't come up with any original ideas. If that's the case, then I think it's time to put the film franchise back in the vault and bring the Chipmunks to Saturday morning cartoons.

Grade: D

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You know, sometimes movies have to be super brutally and insanely awesome to surpass my expectations. But this deep bull-crap of a movie did not pass even the slightest of my hopes. The first was OK, the second one was boring and this one? Yeah, Chip-Wrecked plot, horrible dialog and nothing was funny.

I just thought it would be good, because it was in jungles and forests and there was volcano exploding...yeah, that was nice, but this? A psychopathically boring movie?! You know how many times I exited the room and used "Im going to the bathroom" as an excuse to not see it anymore? Minimumly, 4 times.

Seriously...AWFUL. The kids will enjoy it a lot, but teens like me? Hehe, I don't think so. This series just keep getting worse every time.

I grew up watching the Chipmunks on TV and I hoped that it would have made me feel a little nostalgic watching this film and I did. This is our third go around with those lovable little rodents and I enjoyed it. It warmed my heart that I saw so many parents and their kids watching at the movies today because there is an important message in the film for kids. Alvin causes all kinds of mischief at the beginning and when Simon gets bit by the spider and undergoes that drastic personality change, Alvin has to take charge and get them off the island. I think that is a great message for kids that parents should discuss after they watch the film. I wanted to take the filmmakers to task on one point for their lack of originality. That flaky girl on the island is an obvious rip off of Tom Hanks in Cast Away.

Alvin's shenanigans have gotten The Chipmunks into plenty of trouble before, but when Dave takes the 'Munks and their female counterparts The Chipettes on a cruise, Alvin's horseplay goes completely overboard - literally. Stranded on a remote island, stomachs growl and tensions flare as The Chipmunks and Chipettes struggle to adapt to life without their usual creature comforts.

Chipwrecked begins abruptly. There's no semblance of a back story or attempt at character introduction. Critics may see this as a cinematic faux pas, but these are established characters and if you can't deduce that they must board a ship in order to eventually be "Chipwrecked", maybe something a little less plot-centric would be a better choice for you. A Chipette rendition of the Go-Go's "Vacation" sets the scene and is the first of a fast and furious onslaught of songs. Musical numbers are better integrated in Chipwrecked than its predecessor The Squeakuel. Chipwrecked spares us from characters bursting into song or brief snippets of tracks squeezed in merely to secure a place on the movie's soundtrack.

The story moves quickly. After their unintentional departure from the ship, the result of one of Alvin's hair-brained schemes, we begin to see different sides of the Chipmunks' personalities as their relationships are put to the test. Alvin emerges as an unlikely worry-wart, taking on the task of keeping morale up and organizing the group's efforts to stay fed and sheltered. Simon undergoes a Peter Parker-like transformation when he suffers a venomous spider bite and transmogrifies into a free- spirited playboy with a French accent. His charms coax Jeanette out of her shell, leaving Brittany incensed that her sister is getting so much attention. The usually bashful Theodore is also encouraged by Simon (who now refers to himself as "Simone") to try bungee jumping and later invite Eleanor to dance. The previously ignorable Eleanor spends much of Chipwrecked on the sidelines, having suffered a sprained ankle, until she emerges as a heroine at the film's climax, leading the group to Jeanette, who has been 'munk-napped by Zoe.

Ahh, yes. Zoe. The real wild card of the movie is the new human character whose origin is somewhat mysterious. She claims to have been stranded when her UPS cargo plane crashed (a spoof of the Tom Hanks film Castaway) but emerges as a potential villain when it is revealed she came to the island seeking a lost treasure. She is neither a help nor a hindrance for much of the story but makes for better laughs than the bumbling Toby in Squeakuel. As original characters go, she's probably the best yet, aside perhaps from Claire Wilson in 2007's Alvin and the Chipmunks.

Critics have raked Chipwrecked over the coals while fans graded it an A- on the site Yahoo! Movies. It still holds the #3 spot at the box office and has grossed almost $100 million. I think the question to ask yourself before seeing this movie is "am I a fan or am I a critic?"

Chipwrecked is funny. Most of its laughs are references to pop-culture, including viral internet videos, one-liners from other movies (Castaway, James Bond), and even a Sarah Palin joke. The Chipmunks ARE a pop- culture reference and always have been. But the characters play on each other as well, and the scenarios themselves are funny on their own. One of my favorite laughs is when, after starting a fire, The Chipmunks wonder what to do next. Alvin shrugs and proceeds to lead the gang in a round of "Kumbaya". The 2007 Chipmunk movie was full or subtle humor and a little of that has been revived in Chipwrecked.

The entire pace of the movie feels just a little too fast. Songs, although well integrated, do come quickly at first. There are no less than three full-blown musical numbers in the first ten minutes, plus another song from the soundtrack playing as background music. Character development feels rushed at times too, such as when Simon is compelled to rescue Jeanette but simply declares he "can't do it". Moments later he swings to the rescue on a vine. Ian Hawke's redemption of sorts is also awkward and somewhat inexplicable after being a villain for so long, and Zoe is quickly forgiven for 'munk-napping Jeanette. Chipwrecked squeezes a lot of story and action in to 87 minutes and it's definitely a tight fit.

I found two other things strange about the movie. One is that there is almost no implication of peril at being dumped into the middle of the ocean. I also found the movie somewhat insensitive to heavyset people. At one point, Alvin trades a plateful of donuts to a husky boy in exchange for his toy. Ian also refers to Theodore and Eleanor as the "chubby one" and "girl chubby one" and implies that they are uninteresting.

Chipwrecked works because it doesn't try to be a bigger movie than it is. It's a "threequel", and a kid's movie. It manages to be endearing without being sickly-sweet. The animation looks great. At times I thought the Chipmunks' movements were a little too jerky and quick, but it still looks better than the first two films. The characters are expressive and interact seamlessly with their environment. There are plenty of laughs. More sophisticated humor wouldn't appeal to the younger crowd, and would probably seem out of place to the adults in the room. The Chipmunks are a pop-culture litmus but are hardly one trick ponies. Each has their own identity and their antics supply plenty of unique humor on their own. Chipwrecked may be the movie critics love to hate, but the rest of us could do a lot worse.