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"ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS"
(2007) (Jason Lee, David Cross) (PG)

Alcohol/
Drugs
Blood/Gore Disrespectful/
Bad Attitude
Frightening/
Tense Scenes
Guns/
Weapons
Mild Minor Moderate Minor None
Imitative
Behavior
Jump
Scenes
Music
(Scary/Tense)
Music
(Inappropriate)
Profanity
Moderate None Mild Mild Minor
Sex/
Nudity
Smoking Tense Family
Scenes
Topics To
Talk About
Violence
Mild None Minor Mild Mild


QUICK TAKE:
Comedy: A struggling songwriter thinks he's hit pay dirt when he finds himself in the company of three chipmunks who can not only talk, but also sing in perfect, if high-pitched harmony.
PLOT:
Dave Seville (JASON LEE) is a marketing man who dreams of being a songwriter. Accordingly, he's always approaching his college friend, Ian Hawke (DAVID CROSS) of Jett Records, with his latest work, but none of that ever flies. Throw in a failed romance with ex-girlfriend Claire (CAMERON RICHARDSON), and things couldn't seem to get any worse for the young man.

Yet, he seems to think they have when he suddenly finds himself in the company of three chipmunks that have suddenly inhabited his house, making a mess of the place. Much to his surprise, however, Alvin (voice of JUSTIN LONG), Simon (voice of MATTHEW GRAY GUBLER) and younger sibling Theodore (JESSE McCARTNEY) not only can talk, but they can also sing in perfect, albeit high-pitched harmony.

It's not long before the chipmunks are belting out the songs Dave is writing for them, and they're soon a big hit on Ian's label. Despite not being the sort one would deem a family man, Dave tries to care for his young charges, but hampers their fun in the process. Sensing his opportunity to pounce, Ian makes Dave out to be the bad guy and convinces the chipmunks to come and live with him.

As he puts his marketing efforts into hyper drive and pushes the talented rodents toward exhaustion, however, they and Dave wonder if the wrong decisions were made and whether they'll make wonderful music together ever again.

WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT?
Younger ones probably will.
WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG
For some mild rude humor.
CAST AS ROLE MODELS:
  • JASON LEE plays an aspiring songwriter who's ready to give up on that when the singing chipmunks enter his life. Not exactly a family man, he tries to care for them, all while having to put up with their shenanigans, as well as Ian trying to steal them away from him.
  • DAVID CROSS plays his college friend, now a record label executive who sees the chipmunks as a gold mine and thus pushes them to the point of exhaustion.
  • CAMERON RICHARDSON plays Dave's ex-girlfriend, a photographer who starts dating him again, although she questions his odd behavior (stemming from having the chipmunks in his home and life).
  • ALVIN is a rambunctious and playful chipmunk who can talk and sing, and makes a mess of Dave's place.
  • SIMON is his more intellectual brother who sings and performs with his siblings.
  • THEODORE their younger and thus more immature brother who occasionally has nightmares and thus seeks the company of others to comfort him.
  • CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO

    HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE


    Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit?
    Then read OUR TAKE of this film.


    (Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below).


    OUR WORD TO PARENTS:
    Here's a brief summary of the content found in this PG-rated comedy. Some colorful phrases as well as non-explicit, but sexually related lyrics are present, as is a brief view of women sunbathing in bikinis.

    Slapstick style material is present, as is other potentially imitative behavior, while some bad attitudes are on display. Crude humor occurs, and alcohol is present in several scenes.

    If you're still concerned about the film and its appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home who may be interested in seeing it, we suggest that you take a closer look at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content.


    ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE
  • Dave and Claire have wine with dinner.
  • Champagne and wine are present at a presentation/dinner.
  • Ian mentions chipmunk wine coolers as potential tie-in merchandise.
  • Miscellaneous people have drinks at a concert.
  • Champagne is opened and the cork flies off and breaks some glass in a cabinet, while the liquid inside spills out of the bottle.
  • BLOOD/GORE
  • When Dave catches one of the chipmunks in a cap, the critter farts.
  • One of the chipmunks jokes that Dave likes to wear dirty underwear.
  • We see a cartoon sketch representation of a chipmunk holding underwear with stink lines drawn emanating up from it, indicating how much Alvin's underwear stinks.
  • A pellet drops down from Theodore and Dave reprimands him for that, but Simon says it's just a raisin. Dave tells him to prove it, so Simon pops it in his mouth. Satisfied, Dave walks away, and Simon then spits it out, telling Theodore he owes him for that.
  • Alvin tells Claire that family talk gives Dave gas, "Like clear the room gas."
  • DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE
  • Once it's learned that Dave's audition failed, various workers at Jett Records are suddenly rude to him, including keeping treats away from him. Accordingly, he races back and snags one such basket for himself.
  • The chipmunks trash Dave's place, mainly by being rowdy, etc.
  • Ian talks badly about Dave to the chipmunks (in order to manipulate them further down the road).
  • Ian works and drives the chipmunks to the point of exhaustion. When they can't sing anymore, he suggests that they lip-synch during their next performance.
  • Ian lies about Dave to the chipmunks, saying their former manager and friend turned down tickets to their next performance. He then orders his security personnel to keep Dave away from his stars.
  • FRIGHTENING SCENES
  • The chipmunks are nearly stepped on and run over by various things in a lobby (played lightly and for comedy).
  • GUNS/WEAPONS
  • None.
  • IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR
  • Phrases: "Loser," "Give me a break," "Hey, back off, man," "Song sucks," "Move your butt," "Last one to the door is road kill," "Will you jump already?" "C'mon baby, come to poppa," "Hello, gorgeous," "We've hit the mother lode," "Cannonball," "Hang on, Sherlock," "Oh, this is trippy," "Watch it, genius," "So, how's that working for you?" "Dave likes to wear, dirty underwear," "It's creepy," "My bad," "Killjoy," "Alvin!" (yelled out by Dave in an exaggerated fashion), "We're not performing monkeys," "You owe me big time," "Clam it, sudsy," "Better bust a move," "We call it scenting the area," "Hold the phone," "Jeez," "They're not even sniffing each other," "That's how I roll," "Cool," "Up and at 'em," "You can sleep when you're dead," "Peace, we out," "You're hot," "It gives him gas, like clear the room gas," "Dude, you're a rock star," "You turn like my grandmother," "Winter's for losers," "Oh yeah, daddy's home," "Awesome," "For crying out loud," "This is absurd," "I feel like P-Diddy with fur," "What's with the long, furry faces?" "Wake up and smell the coffee," "Kiss my furry cheeks," what sounded like "Yippee-ki-yah, mamacita" and "Holy nuts."
  • Some kids may be inspired to inhale helium to give them chipmunk type voices.
  • We see three cartoon sketches of the chipmunks' butts, drawn on one of Dave's presentation charts (with one indicating the size of Alvin's butt).
  • We see a cartoon sketch representation of a chipmunk holding underwear with stink lines drawn emanating up from it, indicating how much Alvin's underwear stinks.
  • When Dave reacts to the strong smell of cologne in his place, one of the chipmunks says they call it "scenting the area" (meaning they sprayed a lot of it in the room -- not seen).
  • Dave sees that the chipmunks cleaned his place by stuffing everything into the fridge (meaning non-food items).
  • A chipmunk accidentally sprays breath freshener into Dave's eyes while aiming for his mouth.
  • The chipmunks accidentally spill tobacco sauce into Dave's coffee, prompting him to do a spit-take with it when he takes a sip.
  • We see that the chipmunks have painted the letter "A" onto Dave's forehead while he slept.
  • Some female performers at a presentation exhibit bare midriffs.
  • When he sees a sexy-looking, human housecleaner and reported masseuse, Simon lets out a playful growl and does some rolling of his fingers in her direction.
  • Ian shakes his clothed butt to try to get one chipmunk to do the same.
  • Ian uses an air horn to wake up some dozy chipmunks.
  • JUMP SCENES
  • None.
  • MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE)
  • A mild amount of playfully suspenseful and brief, heavily dramatic music occurs in the film.
  • MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE)
  • Dave catches Alvin bathing or showering in the dishwasher (no explicit chipmunk nudity) singing the lyrics, "Don't you wish your girlfriend was hot like me? Don't you wish your girlfriend was a freak like me?"
  • The chipmunks try to make the mood more romantic for Dave and Claire, so they do various things (starting a fire in the fireplace, etc.) including playing a song that has a man saying, "Oh, baby" and then the woman replying, "I want to do something freaky with you," followed by "I'm gonna slip slide on down for you" (or something along those lines).
  • A song has lyrics about "shake your body."
  • PROFANITY
  • At least 2 uses of "Oh my God" and 1 use of "Madre de Dios" (mother of God).
  • SEX/NUDITY
  • We see miscellaneous cleavage.
  • Dave catches Alvin bathing or showering in the dishwasher (no explicit chipmunk nudity) singing the lyrics, "Don't you wish your girlfriend was hot like me? Don't you wish your girlfriend was a freak like me?"
  • The chipmunks spy on Dave and Claire having dinner, with one saying the date is going terrible since they haven't sniffed each other yet. They try to make the mood more romantic, so they do various things (starting a fire in the fireplace, etc.) including playing a song that has a man saying, "Oh, baby" and then the woman replying, "I want to do something freaky with you," followed by "I'm gonna slip slide on down for you" (or something along those lines). Afterwards, one of them tells Dave he should have kissed her since "she wanted you."
  • Claire shows a little cleavage.
  • We see some miscellaneous cleavage.
  • When he sees a sexy-looking, human housecleaner and reported masseuse, Simon lets out a playful growl and does some rolling of his fingers in her direction.
  • We briefly see some women in bikinis poolside.
  • SMOKING
  • None.
  • TENSE FAMILY SCENES
  • The chipmunks state that their parents left when the babies were just one week old (but act as if that's natural behavior for their kind and thus aren't upset about it).
  • TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT
  • Some kids may be inspired to inhale helium to give them chipmunk type voices.
  • The music industry.
  • Ian works and drives the chipmunks to the point of exhaustion. When they can't sing anymore, he suggests that they lip-synch during their next performance.
  • VIOLENCE
  • All of the following is played for comedy.
  • Nuts hit one chipmunk on the head, while two chipmunks accidentally land on the third.
  • The tree the chipmunks are in is sawed down and crashes to the ground, but the critters are okay.
  • Upset about failing with his music, Dave throws his instruments and other gear outside, and we hear a cat screech with one such toss (but don't ever see the animal).
  • Not initially knowing what they are or that they have personalities, Dave tries to whack the chipmunks in his cupboards with a spatula. He catches one in a cap, but is then knocked out when a large glass jar falls out and hits him on the head.
  • A chipmunk accidentally sprays breath freshener into Dave's eyes while aiming for his mouth.
  • To try to stop the chipmunks from interfering with his date, Dave throws a roll at one. Moments later, it's thrown back and hits Dave in the face.
  • Ian throws a chipmunk doll aside and it inadvertently hits a woman on the head, causing her to splash whatever she's drinking all over her face.
  • We see stuff broken and overturned, etc. inside a house, the result of the chipmunks' unseen rowdy behavior.
  • Ian throws Theodore out of his room and the little chipmunk hits and slides across the floor.
  • Various guards try to catch the chipmunks (played for comedy and adventure), while a sandbag falls and hits one guard on the head.
  • Champagne is opened and the cork flies off and breaks some glass in a cabinet.



  • Reviewed December 8, 2007 / Posted December 14, 2007

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