Yesterday, I attended the press screening of "Alvin and The Chipmunks 3: Chipwrecked" at Glorietta Cinema 3 for Official PEx Movie Reviews. Thank you once again to Pinoyexchange
The Alvin and the Chipmunks movie franchise had been very successful in the box office but is not well-received by the critics. Alvin and the Chipmunks 3: Chipwrecked does nothing new to elevate the material and continues to deliver more of the same. But it was a formula that was supported in droves by the audience, so people who enjoyed the first two movies will like this one and while giving those didn't like it from the very start no reason to give this franchise another look.
The Chipmunks Alvin (Justin Long), Simon (Matthew Gray Gubler), Theodore (Jesse McCartney) and the Chipettes Brittany (Christina Applegate), Jeanette (Anna Faris) and Eleanor (Amy Poehler) goes on a cruise with their surrogate father/manager Dave (Jason Lee) but due to Alvin's mischief they find themselves stranded on a mysterious island and meets Zoe (Jenny Slate), the island's castaway for almost a decade. While Dave and a reluctant Ian (David Cross) searches for them, the chipmunks must find a way to survive.
Chipwrecked follows the template of the past movies: The playful Alvin, the uptight Simon and the adorable Theodore goes on an adventure while they perform pop songs from time to time. It goes the same to the Chippettes who all basically mirrors the personalities of their male counterparts. The movie did somehow shake things up with Alvin learning about responsibility and Simon loosening up (albeit beyond his control). But in the end, the story does not offer that much excitement or insight despite the premise as the movie just coasts along until we reach the conclusion.
But on the “cute” aspect, Chipwrecked certainly delivered from the showstopping number of Katy Perry and Lady GaGa hits to the various shenanigans by the chipmunks in the cruise ship and the island. Regardless of your overall view of the movies, only those with a heart of stone will not fall for Theodore's cuteness. Lee and Cross are good actors and while they are still not used to their fullest potential, they do deliver good enough performances as opposed to Slate who played Zoe terribly. To be fair, Zoe is a weakly-developed foil and was totally unnecessary to the story.
Alvin and The Chipmunks 3: Chipwrecked is basically just fluff but it's all pretty harmless. I don't think one has to be ostracized for liking this movie, it has its fun moments and it's very kid-friendly. The movie sticks to the formula that worked well for its predecessors and while it's understandable to not mess with something that keeps the cash register ticking, there will come a point that the novelty will soon wear off if the lack of ambition goes on. 6/10
1 comment:
Personally, I'd listen to the music, but the movies themselves...well, the first was good, but you know that thing about sequels being worse than the originals?
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