After shocking the world in both 2007 and 2009, Alvin and company are returning to the big screen for an adventure unlike any other.
The film takes off with the entire group heading out into the wide open sea as they board a luxury cruise liner for a nice, relaxing vacation. But things turn chaotic quickly as Alvin can't resist wrecking havoc. Before they realize it the singing sensations find themselves marooned on a deserted island ... or so they think.
Now I'll be the first to admit that the second Alvin and the Chipmunks film was a devilish disappointment. Sure the songs were great, but there was just something missing. And while Chipwrecked is far from perfect, it is a solid move in the right direction for the classic franchise.
Jason Lee returns as the chipmunks fatherly figure Dave, and the film caters to him more here than it ever has before. While the core of the film has the signing rodents fighting for their life on a deserted island, the moral lesson revolves around behaving and respecting one's parent. Thankfully the lesson isn't preached from start to finish, but the underlying motive did create some overly-cheesy moments - and that is really saying something when you are talking about the Chipmunks.
The storywriters need to write out David Cross' Ian, and I mean stat. He has lost all of his appeal as his inclusion comes across as forced.and entirely unneeded. They did attempt to neutralize the matter with Zoe, a new character that represents a harsh rip-off of Tim Hanks' lead in Castaway - as expected it didn't work quite as well this time around.
The songs, as usual, were the bread and butter of the film. Destiny's Child 'Survivor' was the highlight of the soundtrack for me as the guys and gals react to their first night of sleeping in the outdoors! Mix that with a salsa dance-off and a few pop classics and the songs are literally worth the price of admission.
But don't be fooled. Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked is nothing different from what we have seen before. It is a great family adventure that bears no deep plot points. It is a family film and to interpret it any differently would be a huge misunderstanding.
