Alvin and The Chipmunks - The Squeakquel
Rating: 5/10
Cast: Alvin, Simon, Theodore, Zachary Levi, Jason Lee, David Cross, Wendie Malick
Director: Betty Thomas
Alvin and the gang are back in this hideously titled follow up to Alvin and the Chipmunks.
This time, Alvin, Theodore and Simon are facing a life away from their pal Dave (Jason Lee - who's reduced to a mere cameo in this sequel) after an accident at a concert lands him in hospital.
Dave dispatches the helium voice
d trio to live with his nephew Toby (Zachary Levi) - and as an added bonus, Dave decides it's time for them to go to school.Advertisement
As if the peer pressure of fitting in at an American high school wasn't bad enough, the Chipmunks face a new threat - a female equivalent trio, the Chipettes, who are being masterminded by former manager Ian Hawke (David Cross) who's determined to get back into the big time and rain on Alvin's parade.
Can the Chipmunks beat their toughest ever threats and triumph?
So it's summer and the movies are all really about entertainment at the moment particularly with the school holidays now in full force.
Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel isn't bad entertainment - it just unfortunately fails to bridge the all ages gap. There'll be some younger movie goers who'll love the fart gags and the continuing pratfalls of the main cast - and that's perfectly fine.
But for the older portion of the audience (ie the mums and dads who are dragged along by their brood), it may be a little more of a struggle to get through. The human actors - David Cross and Zachary Levi (of TV2 fame as Chuck) acquit themselves well - Levi continues to get by on his lovable goofiness and slacker charm whereas Cross proves why he's such a comic genius by steering his Ian Hawke away from stereotyped bad guy into idiotic despot territory.
The Chipmunks themselves are all fine - at times, they sparked off memories of the Gremlins because of their continuing buffoonery.
However, there's some morals on display here too - Alvin has to learn some harsh lessons about never abandoning family as well as peer pressure and that pride comes before a fall; Brittany, Eleanor and Jeanette, the new Chipettes provide the requisite romantic spark but all in all Alvin and The Chipmunks - The Squeakquel is a fairly light piece of unsubstantial holiday entertainment.
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