What The Critics Say

"At times funny, and even occasionally witty, Alvin and the Chipmunks is a lively, entertaining romp that will certainly bring smiles to the young ones this holiday season." Andrew Grant PREMIERE MAGAZINE "Young viewers will enjoy the slapstick, while parents will relate to Lee's amiable frustration as the trio's surrogate dad." John Monaghan DETROIT FREE PRESS "The movie manages to charm us, solely because of the inherent cuteness of its CGI stars, the famous singing chipmunks." Steve Rhodes INTERNET REVIEWS "A harmless and frequently humorous trifle." Joe Leydon VARIETY "It's all about good, clean fun, both for kids absorbed in the cuddly creatures (especially when they sing) and for their parents, unexpectedly hooked by the nostalgia they evoke." Sue Pierman MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL

"Dang it, the little animated rodents are cute. Not as cute as the über-rendered daemons of The Golden Compass, but they'll do." Michael Ordoña LOS ANGELES TIMES "It's a fine-enough kids movie. Cute. Nice lesson. And better than you'd think." Bill Goodykoontz ARIZONA REPUBLIC "Alvin And The Chipmunks moves, little children love it and it's not too painful for adults." Jim Slotek JAM! MOVIES "Tiny furry nut-gathering mammals trying to cheer you up via song turns out to be surprisingly merry." MaryAnn Johanson FLICK FILOSOPHER "It's not made for the pretentious New York film critic. Instead, it's a film filled with slapstick, silliness and its fair share of bathroom humor." Kevin Carr FILM THREAT

Who's Who?

Jason Lee David Cross Cameron Richardson Jane Lynch Justin Long Matthew Gray Gubler Jesse McCartney Veronica Alicino Beth Riesgraf Kevin Symons Greg Siebel Oliver Muirhead Jayden Lund Erin Chambers Jillian Barberie Chris Classic Eisaku Imura Adam Riancho Axel Alba

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Dave Ian Claire Gail Alvin (voice) Simon (voice) Theodore (voice) Amy Mother in Store Ted Photographer Butler Security Guard Press Coordinator Herself DJ Japanese Doll French Doll Spanish Doll

The Inside Story According to producer Ross Bagdasarian Jr, a big-studio "Alvin And The Chipmunks feature film has been a longtime goal. "Producer Janice Karman and I had been thinking about making a movie with the Chipmunks for over ten years, and one of the things really important to us was to make a film that could be enjoyed by the three generations of Chipmunks fans." He explains: "Whatever we do with The Chipmunks, we always try to keep it fresh. And we thought it would be fun to put the Chipmunks into a live-action world and then reinvent the look of the characters to make them believable in that environment." "We wanted to make sure the Chipmunks retained the essence of the characters that people grew up with," adds Karman ("A Chipmunk Christmas & "The Chipmunks: Rockin' Through the Decades"). "So you could look at Alvin and even though he’s three-dimensional now in CGI, the spirit of the original creation is still there." Under the watchful eyes of the two producers, the inner-'Munk' of these beloved figures; Alvin’s mischievous but well-intentioned nature, Simon’s brainy intellect and Theodore’s adorable charm; all remain intact. Karman elaborates: "Ross and I never treated The Chipmunks as a cartoon. They had real emotions. While Alvin was brash, it was important that he was also vulnerable. Simon is the oldest and because The Chipmunks don’t have parents, Simon is the adult who looks after the baby, Theodore, and tries to temper the rash Alvin." As director Tim Hill points out, the 'Munks' have undergone some important stylistic and attitudinal upgrades for their big-screen debut. "These aren’t your father’s Chipmunks," Hill laughs. "They have a contemporary edge and attitude, and they look and move a lot differently than previous versions of the characters. They’re feisty and funny, they sing and they dance. They’re pop superstars: with fur." Moreover, the filmmakers up the emotional stakes for Alvin, Simon, Theodore and Dave. "We wanted to tell a heartwarming story about the coming together of a new family," Hill explained. "Dave, despite his doubts about himself and his new charges, comes to love Alvin, Simon and Theodore." The producers and studio turned to screenwriter Jon Vitti to come up with the story for the latest chipmunk film. Bagdasarian ("The Chipmunk Adventure" & TV'S "Alvin & the Chipmunks") and Karman wanted the script to be really smart and being fans of Vitti’s work, waited eight months until Jon was available. Vitti, who had a lengthy stint as a writer-producer on "The Simpsons" and was one of the 'all-star' writers on the blockbuster "The Simpsons Movie" (US$525.8 million gross worldwide), relished the opportunity to help bring to life a new incarnation of the beloved characters. "I knew [writing the movie] would be a lot of fun, and that the movie’s potential appeal could spread to all ages," Vitti notes. "It’s a timeless, albeit crazy premise with a lot of heart: a father figure with three talking and singing chipmunks who effectively become his kids." Vitti took note of the reactions of those who learned he was writing the story and co-writing the script to a new, big-screen iteration of "Alvin & the Chipmunks". "It was really fun to see how excited people would get at even the idea of a new Chipmunks film. The characters are fondly remembered and people love the songs." The screenwriting team of Will McRobb & Chris Viscardi also made important contributions to the final screenplay, including a big third-act concert sequence where the Chipmunks perform on stage in front of thousands of fans, while Dave seeks to extricate them from the clutches of ruthless music producer Ian. "It’s a big scene, the film’s climax, and it was a lot of fun to write," notes McRobb ("Snow Day"). "But it really didn’t completely fall into place until the location was set." That location would be one of the Los Angeles most venerable landmarks, the Orpheum Theatre. "Pretty much everyone on the planet knows The Chipmunk Song," says CableACE Award winner Viscardi ("Snow Day"). "The characters and their music are sacred parts of our pop culture, and we wanted to be very careful how we dealt with that." The old show business adage that goes, "Never work with children or animals" took on a new meaning to the film’s cast. They got to work with animals (the Chipmunks) who are children! Happily for all concerned, the film’s two-legged cast got on swimmingly with their four-legged (CG) counterparts. The casting process wasn’t an easy one. Director Tim Hill notes that the character of Dave Seville requires a rare combination of comedic skills, charisma and sympathy, "all of which Jason Lee brought to the project." Bagdasarian added, "It was important to find an actor who had the kind of appeal that when he shouted [Dave’s signature exhortation] 'Alvin!!!' you would still root for him. We were lucky to get Jason because he has that kind of charm and appeal. It takes more than a correct eye line to make you believe Alvin, Simon and Theodore are there with Jason; what makes it real are his actions and focus." Hill agress: "Jason seemed unusually comfortable acting opposite nothing. And David Cross had a fantastic sense of being able to roll with one take after another." Lee recalls, "Having to remember where the 'Munks' are hopping and in what order was the biggest challenge." David Cross, who plays the sneaky record company head adds, "Acting opposite nothing is sometimes difficult because of the inherent technicalities. Sometimes even just a speck of dust will get my eyes all a twitter, and I’d have to do another take." As if Dave doesn't have enough on his plate, compounding his 'Munk' woes is that he's trying to get back with ex-girlfriend, Claire. "Dave has a comically difficult history with women; it’s another aspect of his inability to keep his life in order," says Cameron Richardson. "I think their relationship gives the story added appeal to adults. Dave has to learn how to grow up, and his dealings with Claire are part of that process." Three of today’s hottest young actors: Justin Long ("Dodgeball"), Matthew Gray Gubler (TV'S "Criminal Minds" and Teen Choice Award winner Jesse McCartney ("Pizza") joined the project in post-production to voice, respectively, Alvin, Simon and Theodore. Bagdasarian Jr and Karman were delighted with the work of all three performers. No small thing given that Bagdasarian’s father, Ross Snr voiced all three roles before his untimely passing, with Bagdasarian and Karman performing the voices the past thirty years. "Justin, Matthew and Jesse were all funny and smart, while conveying the critical heart of the characters," Bagdasarian says . For their twenty first century debut, the 'boys' were completely re-imagined a digital age. A successful fusion of the real world and state of the art digital animation was necessary to make the Chipmunks convincing in a live-action movie. "The challenge was to make them believable in a live action environment, while still being recognizable as the Chipmunks we know and love," says Karman. The new look comes many years after Alvin, Simon and Theodore made their public debut on "The Ed Sullivan Show", as puppets performing with Bagdasarian Snr's Dave Seville. In the beginning, the Chipmunks looked very much like chipmunks. They were not photo-realistic, but based more on the animal than on a plushy derivative. Their animated series "The Alvin Show" debuted on television in the fall of 1961 and with it, a new look for Alvin, Simon and Theodore. The Chipmunks’ sharp lines and feral look was replaced by a friendlier, colorfully vibrant trio. Although Karman herself supervised another redesign for the second cartoon series launched in 1983, it has remained essentially the look of the Chipmunks. Until now. The Chipmunks’ digital makeover was a long, complicated process that stretched well into production and even post-production. Bagdasarian and Karman worked with some of the industry’s top character designers including H B "Buck" Lewis ("Ratatouille" & "Ice Age) and, Chris Consani ('Night at the Museum" & "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe"). As the characters were being finalized, animation supervisor Chris Bailey and his team at visual effects house Rhythm & Hues Studios ("Night at the Museum", "Happy Feet" & "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe") began to work their magic in animating and virtually creating the performances of Alvin, Simon and Theodore. Taking classic characters beloved by generations of fans around the world and changing their look altogether while retaining a sense of familiarity posed quite a challenge, but one for which Bailey was up to the task. Bagdasarian and Karman were impressed with the animator's work. "The Chipmunks are only as smart and interesting as the animators move them to be," Bagdasarian points out. "The animation team really makes you feel for the Chipmunks; they make them relatable. Chris Bailey and Rhythm & Hues provided these critical character dimensions." Synopsis

Alvin, Simon and Theodore, watch helplessly as their home is chopped down by a Christmas tree company. Still inside, the tree is shipped off to the lobby of Jett Records, helmed by Ian Hawk. Ian is a former college roommate of Dave Seville, a down on his luck musician and songwriter who has never given up hope for making a successful career out of his quirky musical sensibilities. When Dave goes to Jett Records to pitch Ian a new song, he is rudely booted out of the offices. Taking a basket of muffins as consolation, he wanders past the Christmas tree being installed in the lobby. The Chipmunks, smelling the tasty muffins, jump in the basket and hey presto, they are soon in their new home. Despite his misgivings about his new tenants, Dave seizes the opportunity to put together his songwriting skills with the 'Munks' unique talents. Their first collaboration, "The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don’t Be Late)" becomes an overnight sensation, propelling the Chipmunks to superstardom. But at what price?

The Verdict "Those iconic Chipmunks who first wowed television audiences in the nineteen sixties are revived in this 21st century, bigscreen adventure. Cute as ever, Alvin, Theodore and Simon are set to capture the hearts of a new generation of fans, while reviving fond memories in those who qualify as 'baby boomers'. Film critic Kevin Carr summed it up perfectly when he wrote: "It's not made for the pretentious New York film critic." Those words echoed my own thoughts. My advice is to forget the useless comparison with older versions that date back four decades, the helium jibes and the cruel barbs fired off regarding the CG imaged Chipmunks because there's plenty in "Alvin And The Chipmunks" for both youngsters and parents alike. A modern take that works well. Recommended. 3 1/2 STARS" Cast & Crew Bytes "ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS" stars .......
Justin Long ["Waiting", "Herbie Fully Loaded" and "Die Hard 4.0 "]; Matthew Gray Gubler ["The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou" and "RV"]; Jesse McCartney ["Keith" and TV'S "Summerland"]; David Cross ["Ghost World", "Men in Black II" and "She's the Man"], Cameron Richardson ["National Lampoon's Dorm Daze", "Supercross" and "Rise"] and Jason Lee ["The Incredibles", "Jack-Jack Attack", "Monster House" and "Underdog"] as Dave.
"ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS" was .......
directed by Tim Hill ["Muppets From Space", "Max Keeble's Big Move" and "Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties"]; story by Jon Vitti ["Cock-a-Doodle-Duel" and "The Simpsons Movie"]; cinematography by Peter Lyons Collister ["Mr Deeds", "The Amityville Horror" and "Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties"]; original music by Christopher Lennertz ["Dr Dolittle 3", "Jet Stream" and "The perfect Holiday"] edited by Peter E Berger ["Monsignor", "Star Trek V: The Final Frontier", "Dead Again" and "Star Trek: Insurrection"]; production design by Richard Holland ["The Dark Crystal", "Superman III" and "Who Framed Roger Rabbit"]; costume design by Alexandra Welker ["American Pie 2", "Just Friends" and "John Tucker Must Die"]. Run Time 91 minutes Rated G [AUST] Copyright ©2008 - 20th Century Fox - All Rights Reserved ENDURING© - The Movie Pages & Impact Internet Services - All Rights Reserved - Protected by Australian & International Copyright. Trademark Laws Apply.