This should be sent to the same movie pound as the recent Garfield pictures. Another misguided mixture of live action and computer animation, Alvin is family entertainment at its dreariest. The chipmunks’ voices have always hurt my brain, yet the movie makes things even worse by “modernizing” them with speed-metal versions of their trademark songs. It’s all part of a convoluted plot involving a nefarious record producer (David Cross, losing much of his hipster cachet) who is trying to turn the chipmunks into pop stars. Cross’ character is supposed to be the bad guy, but I think we all know the movie is on his side. How else are they going to sell those brain-grating soundtracks? With Jason Lee (no doubt longing for the relative anonymity of Underdog).
