Alvin and the Chipmunks (film)
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''Alvin and the Chipmunks'' is a 2007 American
live-action Live action (or live-action) is a form of cinematography or videography that uses photography instead of animation. Some works combine live-action with animation to create a live-action animated film. Live-action is used to define film, video ...
/ computer-animated musical
comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...
directed by Tim Hill. Based on the characters of the same name created by
Ross Bagdasarian Sr. Ross S. Bagdasarian (; January 27, 1919 – January 16, 1972), known professionally by his stage name David Seville, was an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor, best known for creating the virtual band, cartoon band Alvin an ...
, the film stars Jason Lee, David Cross and Cameron Richardson, while
Justin Long Justin Jacob Long (born June 2, 1978) is an American actor, comedian, director and screenwriter. Long is known for his film roles, notably appearing in '' Jeepers Creepers'' (2001), ''Dodgeball'' (2004), '' Accepted'' (2006), ''Idiocracy'' (2 ...
, Matthew Gray Gubler and
Jesse McCartney Jesse McCartney (born April 9, 1987) is an American actor and singer. He achieved fame in the late 1990s on the daytime drama ''All My Children'' as JR Chandler. He later joined boy band Dream Street, and eventually branched out into a solo m ...
play the self-titled Chipmunks. It was released worldwide on December 14, and it was produced by
Fox 2000 Pictures Fox 2000 Pictures was an American film production company within The Walt Disney Studios. It was a sister studio of the larger film studio 20th Century Fox and Fox Searchlight Pictures specializing in producing independent films in mid-range re ...
,
Regency Enterprises Regency Enterprises (commonly referred to as Regency onscreen and copyrighting as Regency Entertainment (USA), Inc. in the U.S. and Monarchy Enterprises S.á.r.l. overseas) is an American entertainment company formed by Arnon Milchan. It was foun ...
and Bagdasarian Productions. It received generally negative reviews from critics. The
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
consensus criticizes the film's humor and "rehashed kids' movie formula". ''Alvin and the Chipmunks'' grossed $361 million worldwide on a budget of $60 million and was the seventh-best-selling DVD of 2008. ''Alvin and the Chipmunks'' is the first live-action/animated film starring Alvin and the Chipmunks since ''Little Alvin and the Mini-Munks'' was released in 2003, as that film features puppetry used for the Chipmunks and this film features computer animation used for them. The film was followed by three sequels: '' Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel'' (2009), '' Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked'' (2011), and '' Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip'' (2015).


Plot

A fir tree housing talking chipmunk brothers Alvin, Simon, and Theodore is cut down and driven to
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after JETT Records purchases it as a Christmas tree. Struggling songwriter and composer
David Seville David "Dave" Seville is a fictional character, the producer and manager of the fictional singing group ''Alvin and the Chipmunks''. The character was created by Ross Bagdasarian Sr., who had used the name "David Seville" as his stage name prior ...
has his latest demo rejected by their chief executive, Ian Hawke, his college roommate, who suggests that Dave give up writing songs. The Chipmunks hop into a
basket A basket is a container that is traditionally constructed from stiff fibers and can be made from a range of materials, including wood splints, runners, and cane. While most baskets are made from plant materials, other materials such as horsehai ...
of
muffins A muffin is an individually portioned baked product, however the term can refer to one of two distinct items: a part-raised flatbread (like a crumpet) that is baked and then cooked on a griddle (typically unsweetened), or an (often sweetened) ...
that Dave stole from one of Ian's coworkers and follow Dave home. Once there, Dave discovers the Chipmunks and kicks them out of the house, only to hear them sing "
Only You (And You Alone) "Only You (And You Alone)" (often shortened to "Only You") is a pop song composed by Buck Ram. It was originally recorded by The Platters with lead vocals by Tony Williams in 1955. The Platters versions The Platters first recorded the song for ...
" and "
Funkytown "Funkytown" is a song by the American disco/funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music gen ...
." Dave then makes a deal with the Chipmunks to sing songs he writes in exchange for shelter. Later, when Dave tries to present the Chipmunks to Ian, they fail to sing because of
stage fright Stage fright or performance anxiety is the anxiety, fear, or persistent phobia which may be aroused in an individual by the requirement to perform in front of an audience, real or imagined, whether actually or potentially (for example, when perf ...
. The day worsens as Dave is dismissed from his advertising job due to the Chipmunks having unknowingly ruined his presentation boards by drawing and writing on them. While hosting dinner with former girlfriend Claire, Dave struggles to hide the Chipmunks after Alvin attempts to create a romantic atmosphere, making Claire uncomfortable and causing her to leave. To make it up to him, the Chipmunks go to Ian's lavish mansion, where they sing Dave's song to him, prompting Ian to sign a record deal. The Chipmunks quickly become an international success. When Dave, concerned for their well-being, insists that the Chipmunks are too young to handle fame, Ian convinces them that Dave is holding them back. After a misunderstanding, the Chipmunks choose to live with Ian, whose only interest is profiting off the Chipmunks’ success as they set off on a nationwide coast-to-coast tour, where Ian exploits their
naïveté Naivety (also spelled naïvety), naiveness, or naïveté is the state of being naive. It refers to an apparent or actual lack of experience and sophistication, often describing a neglect of pragmatism in favor of moral idealism. A ''naïve'' may ...
by overworking them constantly. When Ian's plan is revealed on the news, Dave decides to infiltrate their concert at the Orpheum Theatre to take them back. Before their tour can begin, a veterinarian explains to Ian that the Chipmunks' voices have been worn out due to exhaustion and suggests that they take a long rest, but Ian, unwilling to issue refunds, advises the Chipmunks to
lip-sync Lip sync or lip synch (pronounced , the same as the word ''sink'', short for lip synchronization) is a technical term for matching a speaking or singing person's lip movements with sung or spoken vocals. Audio for lip syncing is generated th ...
. Dave sneaks into the concert with help from Claire; the Chipmunks hear Dave calling and decide to sabotage the show by causing chaos onstage. Dave is stopped by security, and Ian catches the Chipmunks, locks them in a cage, and prepares to take them on their world tour, escaping in his limousine with Dave in pursuit. When he loses Ian, the Chipmunks unexpectedly show up in his car. As Dave and the Chipmunks reconcile, Ian uncovers the escape, which costs him both his career and his fortune.


Cast


Live-action cast

* Jason Lee as David "Dave" Seville, a struggling songwriter and father figure to Alvin, Simon and Theodore * David Cross as Ian Hawke, the CEO of JETT Records * Cameron Richardson as Claire Wilson, a photographer and Dave's ex-girlfriend *
Jane Lynch Jane Marie Lynch (born July 14, 1960) is an American actress, comedian and author. She is known for starring as Sue Sylvester in the musical comedy series '' Glee'' (2009–2015), which earned her a Primetime Emmy Award. Lynch also gained recog ...
as Gail, an advertising executive and Dave's former boss


Voice cast

*
Justin Long Justin Jacob Long (born June 2, 1978) is an American actor, comedian, director and screenwriter. Long is known for his film roles, notably appearing in '' Jeepers Creepers'' (2001), ''Dodgeball'' (2004), '' Accepted'' (2006), ''Idiocracy'' (2 ...
as Alvin * Matthew Gray Gubler as Simon *
Jesse McCartney Jesse McCartney (born April 9, 1987) is an American actor and singer. He achieved fame in the late 1990s on the daytime drama ''All My Children'' as JR Chandler. He later joined boy band Dream Street, and eventually branched out into a solo m ...
as Theodore Additionally,
Kevin Symons Kevin William Symons (born February 2, 1971) is an American actor, who is best known for role as Dr. Kevin Adams in the television series ''Darcy's Wild Life'', as well as Councilman Bill Dexhart in the television comedy ''Parks and Recreation'' ...
appears as Ted, Frank Maharajh appears as Barry, and Veronica Alicino appears as Amy, Dave's three former coworkers.


Production


Development

Ross Bagdasarian Jr., the son of Alvin and the Chipmunks creator
Ross Bagdasarian Sr. Ross S. Bagdasarian (; January 27, 1919 – January 16, 1972), known professionally by his stage name David Seville, was an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor, best known for creating the virtual band, cartoon band Alvin an ...
who revived the franchise after his father's death, dreamed of making a live-action ''Alvin'' film since 1997, "and the dream has had many nightmare moments." On September 17, 2004,
Fox 2000 Pictures Fox 2000 Pictures was an American film production company within The Walt Disney Studios. It was a sister studio of the larger film studio 20th Century Fox and Fox Searchlight Pictures specializing in producing independent films in mid-range re ...
,
20th Century Fox Animation 20th Century Animation, Inc. (originally known as Fox Family Films, Fox Animation Studios, and 20th Century Fox Animation and sometimes referred to as Fox Animation) is an American animation studio located in Century City, Los Angeles. Formed ...
and Bagdasarian Productions announced they would collaborate to create a live-action computer-generated film starring Alvin and the Chipmunks. On April 17, 2005,
Jon Vitti Jon Vitti is an American writer best known for his work on the television series ''The Simpsons''. He has also written for ''King of the Hill'', ''The Critic'' and ''The Office'', and has served as a screenwriter or consultant for several animate ...
was revealed to be writing the screenplay. On January 24, 2007, it was announced Tim Hill was in talks with Fox to direct the film.


Casting

Chevy Chase Cornelius Crane "Chevy" Chase (; born October 8, 1943) is an American comedian, actor and writer. He became a key cast member in the first season of ''Saturday Night Live'', where his recurring ''Weekend Update'' segment became a staple of the ...
, Jim Carrey,
Tim Allen Timothy Alan Dick (born June 13, 1953), known professionally as Tim Allen, is an American actor and comedian. He is known for playing Tim "The Toolman" Taylor on the ABC sitcom ''Home Improvement'' (1991–1999) and Mike Baxter on the ABC/ ...
, John Travolta,
Ben Stiller Benjamin Edward Meara Stiller (born November 30, 1965) is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He is the son of the comedians and actors Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara. Stiller was a member of a group of comedic actors colloquially known ...
,
Vince Vaughn Vincent Anthony Vaughn (born March 28, 1970) is an American actor. Vaughn began acting in the late 1980s, appearing in minor television roles before attaining wider recognition with the 1996 comedy-drama film '' Swingers''. He has appeared in ...
, and
Bill Murray William James Murray (born September 21, 1950) is an American actor and comedian. He is known for his deadpan delivery. He rose to fame on ''The National Lampoon Radio Hour'' (1973–1974) before becoming a national presence on '' Saturday Nig ...
were originally considered for the role of David Seville. On March 7, 2007, Jason Lee joined the project to play David Seville, and Cameron Richardson signed on March 21. David was a more clean-cut character for Lee than his past roles, which he appreciated.
Patton Oswalt Patton Peter Oswalt (born January 27, 1969) is an American stand-up comedian, actor and writer. He is known as Spence Olchin in the sitcom ''The King of Queens'' (1998–2007) and for narrating the sitcom '' The Goldbergs'' (2013–present) as ...
and Brian Posehn were approached to play Ian Hawke but both of whom declined. Bagdasarian and his wife,
Janice Karman Janice Felice Karman is an American actress, producer, writer, and director. She is the co-owner of Bagdasarian Productions with her husband Ross Bagdasarian Jr. Early life Karman was born in Los Angeles, California. Her father was psycholo ...
, had always voiced the chipmunks since they revived the franchise; however, for the film, they were replaced by
Justin Long Justin Jacob Long (born June 2, 1978) is an American actor, comedian, director and screenwriter. Long is known for his film roles, notably appearing in '' Jeepers Creepers'' (2001), ''Dodgeball'' (2004), '' Accepted'' (2006), ''Idiocracy'' (2 ...
, Matthew Gray Gubler and
Jesse McCartney Jesse McCartney (born April 9, 1987) is an American actor and singer. He achieved fame in the late 1990s on the daytime drama ''All My Children'' as JR Chandler. He later joined boy band Dream Street, and eventually branched out into a solo m ...
for marketing reasons., despite the fact that for the first trailer of the film, Bagdasarian and Karman voiced the chipmunks. For recording, the chipmunk voice actors spoke their lines slowly to be sped up to normal speed in post-production; McCartney described it as a "tedious process," where "it could take 40 takes for one line." He was such an Alvin and the Chipmunks fan that he even owned the album '' Chipmunk Punk'' (1980), and studied 1980s ''Alvin'' cartoons for his role in the film.


Filming

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as a ...
began on March 28, 2007, making it the first film to be produced under the leadership of Fox Animation president Vanessa Morrison. Seville's house was built on
Sunset Gower Studios Sunset Gower Studios is a television and movie studio at the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Gower Street in Hollywood, California. Established in 1912, it continues today as Hollywood's largest independent studio and an active facility for telev ...
and contains references to Bagdasarian Sr.'s life. The set pieces included an
upright piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...
he used to write his songs and a flower visual he painted; the house's address number includes 1958, the year he created the chipmunk characters; and the house design is based on a cottage built in 1919, the year Bagdasarian Sr. was born. In shots where Lee interacted with the chipmunks, the actor rehearsed with small stuffed animals indicating where the chipmunks would be; the animals were then removed when it was time to shoot, and he used his memory of where the animals were.


Visual-effects

The Chipmunks were animated by
Rhythm and Hues Studios Rhythm & Hues Studios was an American visual effects and animation company, that received the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects in 1995 for '' Babe'', in 2008 for '' The Golden Compass'', and in 2013 for '' Life of Pi''. It also received fou ...
, a company that previously animated creatures for projects such as '' Mouse Hunt'' (1997); ''
The Cat in the Hat ''The Cat in the Hat'' is a 1957 children's book written and illustrated by the American author Theodor Geisel, using the pen name Dr. Seuss. The story centers on a tall anthropomorphic cat who wears a red and white-striped top hat and a red b ...
'' (2003); '' The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe'' (2005); and ''
Babe Babe or babes may refer to: * Babe, a term of endearment * A newborn baby * An attractive (especially female) person People Nickname * Babe Adams (1882–1968), American Major League Baseball pitcher * Babe Barna (1917–1972), American Maj ...
'' (1995), which garnered Rhythm & Hues an
Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
. As with all of its past projects, Rhythm & Hues used its own software for animating ''Alvin and the Chipmunks'', such as Voodoo and Icy, which was used for placing the CGI into live-action shots; although
Autodesk Autodesk, Inc. is an American multinational software corporation that makes software products and services for the architecture, engineering, construction, manufacturing, media, education, and entertainment industries. Autodesk is headquartere ...
programs like
Flame A flame (from Latin '' flamma'') is the visible, gaseous part of a fire. It is caused by a highly exothermic chemical reaction taking place in a thin zone. When flames are hot enough to have ionized gaseous components of sufficient density they ...
and
Maya Maya may refer to: Civilizations * Maya peoples, of southern Mexico and northern Central America ** Maya civilization, the historical civilization of the Maya peoples ** Maya language, the languages of the Maya peoples * Maya (Ethiopia), a popul ...
were used. According to Bagdasarian Jr., getting the look of the chipmunks suited for a live-action setting while maintaining the essence of the cartoon designs was challenging, and it took until September 10, 2006, for the artists to get it right. Hill instructed the artists to make the chipmunks look realistic, but not entirely like chipmunks. In addition to observing real chipmunks offered by
Universal Studios Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Americ ...
, Rhythm and Hues studied all versions of the chipmunk characters from past ''Alvin'' media for conceiving, fur-texturing, and animating designs for the film. Human dancers were referenced for animating the dance movements of the chipmunks, and
YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...
videos of famous guitarists playing the guitar influenced how Alvin's guitar-playing was animated. High-dynamic-range images of sets were also used for lighting the chipmunks to fit the live-action shots. The most difficult part of integrating the CGI critters in the live-action shots was match moving for instances when they climb on Seville's head. For scenes where the chipmunks interacted with props, some of them were live-action props while others, such as a paper airplane, were produced and animated with computers.


Music


Soundtrack

The soundtrack was released November 20, 2007, three weeks before the film's opening, and contains new versions of old songs such as "Witch Doctor" and "The Chipmunk Song (Christmas, Don't Be Late)" (as made famous by
David Seville David "Dave" Seville is a fictional character, the producer and manager of the fictional singing group ''Alvin and the Chipmunks''. The character was created by Ross Bagdasarian Sr., who had used the name "David Seville" as his stage name prior ...
and the Chipmunks), cover versions of songs such as "Bad Day" (as made famous by
Daniel Powter Daniel Richard Powter (; born February 25, 1971) is a Canadian musician. He is best known for his self-penned hit song " Bad Day" (2005), which was top of the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for five weeks. Biography Early life Powter grew up in Verno ...
) and "Funkytown" (as made famous by Lipps Inc.) and new songs such as "Coast 2 Coast", "Get You Goin'" and "Get Munk'd". The second track on the album is "The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)", a remake version, without Jason Lee as the voice of Dave. However, the seventh track, the rock version of the song, features Lee as the voice of Dave. The soundtrack is the first album to be released in three years by Bagdasarian Productions, and is the group's 43rd album overall. Four songs from the album have charted on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. The album has been certified
Platinum Platinum is a chemical element with the symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a dense, malleable, ductile, highly unreactive, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name originates from Spanish , a diminutive of "silver". Pla ...
by the Recording Industry Association of America for shipments of over one million copies.


Reception

In December 2007, the album debuted at number 133 on the ''Billboard'' 200. In its second week of sales, the album jumped to number 67 on the chart. The album's highest peak was number 5 on the ''Billboard'' 200, making it the group's highest on the chart album since '' Chipmunks in Low Places'' (which peaked at number 21). Following ''Alvin and the Chipmunk'' DVD release, the soundtrack went back into the top ten from number 16 to number five with a 111% sales increase; it sold 51,000 copies of what was its 18th week on the chart, and was the issue's greatest gainer. The album has been certified Platinum by the RIAA and has sold over 1,000,000 copies in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
. By doing this, the album has become the group's first RIAA-certified album since '' Chipmunks in Low Places'' (which also went Platinum). ''Alvin and the Chipmunks: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack'' has become the Chipmunks' third Platinum album and sixth RIAA-certified album total.


Songs

Four songs from the album managed to chart on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 during the month of December 2007. They became the group's first charting songs in 47 years (" Alvin for President" had been the last charting single for the group, it peaked at number 95 in 1960). None of the songs were released as singles or ever solicited to mainstream radio (although it is possible that kid-oriented radio stations, such as Radio Disney, might have played them anyway); they charted solely because of high digital downloads. The four songs that charted on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and/or the Hot Digital Songs chart were:


Track listing

A soundtrack sampler was released along with the DVD of the film in a two-pack sold exclusively at
Walmart Walmart Inc. (; formerly Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets (also called supercenters), discount department stores, and grocery stores from the United States, headquarter ...
. This features five songs produced exclusively for the soundtrack. * 1Denotes original song. * 2Performed by Ross Bagdasarian, Sr. as David Seville. This version is technically without the Chipmunks. * 3Featuring Ross Bagdasarian, Sr. as David Seville (speaking only) and the singing voice for Alvin, Simon and Theodore.


Personnel

* Ross Bagdasarian, Jr. — lead guitars and the spoken voice of Dave on track 2 and the sung vocal of Alvin * Steve Vining — bass on track 8 and the sung vocal of Simon *
Janice Karman Janice Felice Karman is an American actress, producer, writer, and director. She is the co-owner of Bagdasarian Productions with her husband Ross Bagdasarian Jr. Early life Karman was born in Los Angeles, California. Her father was psycholo ...
— the sung vocal of Theodore * Jason Lee — spoken voiceover on track 7 (as "David Seville") *
Justin Long Justin Jacob Long (born June 2, 1978) is an American actor, comedian, director and screenwriter. Long is known for his film roles, notably appearing in '' Jeepers Creepers'' (2001), ''Dodgeball'' (2004), '' Accepted'' (2006), ''Idiocracy'' (2 ...
- spoken voiceover on tracks 7 (as "Alvin") * Matthew Gray Gubler — spoken voiceover on tracks 7 (as "Simon") *
Jesse McCartney Jesse McCartney (born April 9, 1987) is an American actor and singer. He achieved fame in the late 1990s on the daytime drama ''All My Children'' as JR Chandler. He later joined boy band Dream Street, and eventually branched out into a solo m ...
— spoken voiceover on tracks 7 (as "Theodore") *
Jason Gleed Jason Gleed is a Canadian musician, songwriter, and producer. Originally from Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Gleed graduated as an Ontario Scholar from Crescent School, studied briefly at McMaster University, but left to attend York Mills Collegia ...
— guest vocals and rhythm guitars * Chris Classic — secondary guest lead vocals * Rebecca Jones — tertiary guest lead vocals *
Ali Dee Theodore ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib ( ar, عَلِيّ بْن أَبِي طَالِب; 600 – 661 CE) was the last of four Rightly Guided Caliphs to rule Islam (r. 656 – 661) immediately after the death of Muhammad, and he was the first Shia Imam. ...
— keyboards, bass (except track 8) and drum programming * Alana Da Fonseca — uncharacterized backing vocals * Joey Katsaros — manipulation of original concept album samples and uncharacterized backing vocals * Zach Danziger — live drums and uncharacterized backing vocals * Vinny Alfieri — uncharacterized backing vocals * Andy Richards — string synthesizer on track 4, piano on track 8 * Ross Bagdasarian, Sr. — piano on track 15, the singing voice of Dave on track 15, and the spoken voice of Dave, as well as singing voices for Alvin, Simon, and Theodore on track 16 * Aaron Sandlofer —keyboards, bass, guitar, drums & uncharacterized backing vocals


Charts


Score album

The film's original score was composed and conducted by
Christopher Lennertz Christopher Joseph Lennertz (born January 2, 1972) is an American composer, songwriter, and conductor of film, television, and video game scores. His musical scores appeared in ''Alvin and the Chipmunks'', '' Hop'', '' Think Like a Man'', and '' ...
, a fan of the Chipmunks since childhood. La-La Land Records released a limited edition album on September 19, 2008. # Main Title (1:07) # I'm Late (:40) # Ever? (2:07) # Dave's Theme (:48) # No More Nuts/Storing Food for the Winter (4:43) # Rescue the Gear/Toaster Waffles (1:44) # Leave Me Alone (2:17) # I'll Clean Out My Office (1:35) # Are You Awake? (1:13) # Christmas Morning (4:09) # Live with Uncle Ian (2:36) # Dinner! (2:07) # Dave Remembers/Missing the Boys (1:08) # Get Them! (1:03) # Dave's Phone Call (1:06) # Theodore's Nightmare (1:05) # I Want to Go Home (1:28) # Alvin!!!/You'll Never Take Us Alive (4:09)


Release


Marketing

The first poster for ''Alvin and the Chipmunks'' was revealed online on July 4, 2007. Later that month, Fox launched the official website for ''Alvin and the Chipmunks'' with only a trailer and synopsis; Several games were added later on. In an August 2007 survey of 750 American teens ran by
eCRUSH The eCRUSH network consisted of two sites: eCRUSH.com and eSPIN.com. The network was acquired by Hearst Media on December 31, 2006. The original eCRUSH site was opened on February 14, 1999 in Chicago by Clark Benson and Karen DeMars Pillsbur ...
and OTX, ''Alvin and the Chipmunks'', alongside '' Saw IV'', '' National Treasure: Book of Secrets'', '' Mama's Boy'', ''
Fred Claus ''Fred Claus'' is a 2007 American Christmas comedy film directed by David Dobkin, screenplay by Dan Fogelman and a story by Dan Fogelman and Jessie Nelson, and starring Vince Vaughn, Paul Giamatti, Miranda Richardson, John Michael Higgins, Eliz ...
'', '' I Am Legend'', and '' Enchanted'', were the most anticipated films of the 2007 fall and winter seasons in the group.


Reception


Predictions

Months before its release, bloggers predicted ''Alvin and the Chipmunks'' to be terrible because of the involvement of the director of '' Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties'' (2006); the writers of the ''Ice Age'' films, ''
Robots "\n\n\n\n\nThe robots exclusion standard, also known as the robots exclusion protocol or simply robots.txt, is a standard used by websites to indicate to visiting web crawlers and other web robots which portions of the site they are allowed to visi ...
'' (2005) and ''
Big Momma's House 2 ''Big Momma's House 2'' is a 2006 American crime comedy film, the sequel to 2000's ''Big Momma's House'' and the second installment of the ''Big Momma'' film series. The film was directed by John Whitesell and starring Martin Lawrence reprising h ...
'' (2006); and the poor quality of previous live-action adaptations of old cartoons.


Critical response

''
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
'' reported that "critics say this may be the weakest vehicle for the helium-voiced rodents yet," elaborating, "the pundits say despite a few laughs, this is pretty bland stuff: dated, weakly constructed, and lacking in three-dimensional characters of the human or CGI variety." , on
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
the film had an approval rating of 28% based on 109 reviews and an average score of 4.52/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Though cutely rendered, ''Alvin and the Chipmunks'' suffers from bland potty humor and a rehashed kids' movie formula." , on
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...
the film had a
weighted average The weighted arithmetic mean is similar to an ordinary arithmetic mean (the most common type of average), except that instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others. The ...
score of 39 out of 100 based on reviews from 23 critics. Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave it grade A, on a scale of A+ to F.
Ty Burr Ty Burr (born August 17, 1957) is an American film critic, columnist, and author who currently writes a film and popular culture newsletter "Ty Burr's Watchlist" on Substack. Burr previously served as film critic at ''The Boston Globe'' for two ...
of the ''
Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
'' said, "the script leans heavily on the pranks and big-eyed cuteness of the li'l guys and leaves the live actors with unfunny dialogue and nothing to do." According to ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'', "its animated protagonists are egregiously eclipsed by the live-action characters." '' Chicago Reader'' criticized the "cardboard" characters of David Seville and Ian Hawke. The most common censure was the film's satire on commercialism, which was hypocritical due to being bombarded with popular brands, including the chipmunks themselves. Explained Burr, the film's message "is torn between the glitz that sells and the homilies that endure." Some critics disliked Lee's under-acting, particularly his underwhelming yelling of the word "Alvin!" In '' Premiere'''s view, "Jason Lee makes for a sympathetic Dave, yet there's an almost somnambulistic quality to his performance," and ''Vice'' wrote that Lee's "rather 'cartoony' acting style here leaves a lot to be desired." However, Lee's acting did have some supporters for working as a likable protagonist, such as '' Time Out'', a source that thought his "wry approach lends an edge to some of the script’s wittier moments." Some reviewers praised Cross' performance, such as Bill Goodykoontz of ''
The Arizona Republic ''The Arizona Republic'' is an American daily newspaper published in Phoenix. Circulated throughout Arizona, it is the state's largest newspaper. Since 2000, it has been owned by the Gannett newspaper chain. Copies are sold at $2 daily or at $3 ...
'' who called the villain the highlight of the film: "Cross is hilarious in everything he does, but he's surprisingly effective in a kids comedy. His villainy is so broad that it's never really scary, and he's so funny that you never tire of seeing him on-screen." However, one reviewer, Tim Robey, admitted to being annoyed by Cross in the film. ''Premiere'' called Richardson "sufficiently adorable and winsome, though the film's purity makes it difficult to imagine any sort of romantic entanglement." Wrote Roger Ebert, "Jason Lee and David Cross manfully play roles that require them, as actors, to relate with empty space that would later be filled with CGI." ''
The Philadelphia Inquirer ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The newspaper's circulation is the largest in both the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley metropolitan region of Southeastern Pennsy ...
'' wrote, "the values and the CGI are good." Some critics praised the chipmunk protagonists; with Vice writing they were "integrated pretty well into the live-action elements." ''The A.V. Club'' wrote, "the manic Chipmunks wear out their welcome pretty quickly."
The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...
also commented on the shot composition: "you've got regulation-height dancers and musicians backing a singing group the size of kids' mittens." "As rendered here by the average-looking CGI effects, the characters are underwhelming in their appeal, lacking the charm of their previous animated incarnations," summarized ''
The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly larg ...
''. Some reviewers, including Ebert, also panned the lack of distinction between the chipmunks. However, ''
Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' thought there was a "persuasive interaction of human and digital co-stars."


Accolades

Fox submitted ''Alvin and the Chipmunks'' to the
Academy Awards The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
for a Best Animated Feature before the film had a theatrical run required for the award; it wasn't nominated. Upon the announcement of the submitted films, Brad Brevet of ComingSoon.net questioned the submission of a live-action/animated film like ''Alvin'': "I mean, why wouldn’t ''Transformers'' then be considered animated?" While the
Movieguide Awards The Movieguide Awards is an annual award ceremony for Christian entertainment held every year in Hollywood and broadcast on the Hallmark Channel around the same time as the Academy Awards. The awards are commonly described as "The Christian Osca ...
named ''Alvin and the Chipmunks'' the third best family film of 2007, ''
PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, fi ...
'' called it the second worst film of the year. It was also named one of 2007's worst pictures by science fiction writer John Varley. In 2011, ''Entertainment Weekly'' ranked ''Alvin and the Chipmunks'' the third worst live-action/animation hybrid film of all-time. In terms of lists regarding the worst talking animal films of all time, both ''
Complex Complex commonly refers to: * Complexity, the behaviour of a system whose components interact in multiple ways so possible interactions are difficult to describe ** Complex system, a system composed of many components which may interact with each ...
'' and '' Screen Rant'' named it eleventh worst. In 2013, it was ranked by '' GamesRadar'' the 48th worst Christmas movie ever. In 2016, ''Box Office Prophets'' ranked it the fifth worst live-action film based on a cartoon. The film also won a
Kids' Choice Award The Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards (also known as the KCAs or Kids' Choice) is an annual American children's awards ceremony show that is produced by Nickelodeon. Usually held on a Saturday night in late March or early April, the show honors ...
for Favorite Movie, a BMI Film & TV Award for Film Music, and was nominated for a
Young Artist Award The Young Artist Award (originally known as the Youth in Film Award) is an accolade presented by the Young Artist Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded in 1978 to honor excellence of youth performers, and to provide scholarships for young ...
for Best Family Feature Film (Fantasy or Musical).


Response towards Cross

Cross' appearance in ''Alvin and the Chipmunks'' was negatively received by fans of the comedian, ''
The New York Observer ''The New York Observer'' was a weekly newspaper printed from 1987 to 2016, when it ceased print publication and became the online-only newspaper ''Observer''. The media site focuses on culture, real estate, media, politics and the entertainmen ...
'' reporting blog comments that called him a "smug, condescending asshole" and "a huge prick." On December 10, 2007, comedian
Patton Oswalt Patton Peter Oswalt (born January 27, 1969) is an American stand-up comedian, actor and writer. He is known as Spence Olchin in the sitcom ''The King of Queens'' (1998–2007) and for narrating the sitcom '' The Goldbergs'' (2013–present) as ...
published a writing on his MySpace blog titled "Godawful/Thank God," where he revealed he and Brian Posehn were approached for the part of Ian for ''Alvin and the Chipmunks''; he made the following remark in the post: "We both threw the script across the room in disgust. David Cross caught it." All of this prompted Cross to publicly discuss his involvement with the film on his website ''The Bob and Davider'' on December 31, 2007. He explained that he actually was offered the role before the casting team approached Oswalt and Posehn, but rejected. He got the offer again after six months of failing to find acting work and having a
down payment Down payment (also called a deposit in British English), is an initial up-front partial payment for the purchase of expensive items/services such as a car or a house. It is usually paid in cash or equivalent at the time of finalizing the transactio ...
on a cottage in the middle of
Sullivan County, New York Sullivan County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 78,624. The county seat is Monticello. The county's name honors Major General John Sullivan, who was labeled at the time as a hero in the A ...
due; this time, he accepted the role out of desperation. He also admitted in the post he never saw the film, and hoped that his post "hopefully lessens some of the sense that I'm some kind of whore sell-out who doesn't care about anything but making money." The post only garnered more bad comments on blog stories about it: a '' Defamer'' reader commented that it was "the shittiest fucking defense since the
Nuremberg trials The Nuremberg trials were held by the Allies against representatives of the defeated Nazi Germany, for plotting and carrying out invasions of other countries, and other crimes, in World War II. Between 1939 and 1945, Nazi Germany invaded m ...
," an ''A.V. Club'' user stated that "he's digging his own grave, professionally," and a '' Stereogum'' reader thought he "wouldn’t mind if rossdies." Oswalt responded to the post via ''The A.V. Club'' on January 2, 2008. He revealed that the comment towards Cross was nothing more than a "snide, private in-joke between us" that referenced a comment Cross made at a party in New York in March 2006; Cross had just received the script for ''
Failure to Launch ''Failure to Launch'' is a 2006 American romantic comedy film directed by Tom Dey, and starring Matthew McConaughey and Sarah Jessica Parker. The film focuses on a 35-year-old man living with his parents who shows no interest in leaving the comf ...
'' and stated, "Man, they sent me that script, and I read ten pages and threw it across the room." He called blog comments that responded to Cross' writing "very entertaining," but also concluded, "I don't care what any of my friends – or, for that matter, enemies – does to pay the bills. I think my role in this is finished, so it's up to someone else to mention your massive cash donations to Operation Rescue, or your upcoming tour with Toby Keith." When it came to responses from professional writers towards Cross' behavior in the debacle, Jeff Bergstrom of '' BrooklynVegan'' opined that "no explanation was needed; a person needs work. And to be honest, I found his 5 part response to be a mega-invaluable resource for learning what Cross has been up to these days." '' Gawker'' stated the post "will effectively quash any burgeoning feud between two of our favorite comedians—especially since Cross demonstrated the above-referenced respect for his
Pixar Pixar Animation Studios (commonly known as Pixar () and stylized as P I X A R) is an American computer animation studio known for its critically and commercially successful computer animated feature films. It is based in Emeryville, Californ ...
-blessed peer by not noting Oswalt's longtime involvement in ''
King of Queens ''The King of Queens'' is an American television sitcom that ran on CBS from September 21, 1998, to May 14, 2007, a total of nine seasons and 207 episodes. The series was created by Michael J. Weithorn and David Litt, who also served as the sho ...
''." C. Robert Cargill, on the other hand, thought that while Cross gave "pretty good reasons" in his post, "he forgot that he could drop some really biting sarcasm in the place of a 1000-word diatribe" and "lost" in responding to Oswalt. ''Playlist'' was very harsh, calling Cross' post an "extremely lengthy and tedious defense" and that "at least Jason Lee had the good sense to take the pay check and shut the fuck up." Writing for ''The A.V. Club'', Steve Hyden called Cross' blog post a "snide, dishonest, and largely unsuccessful attempt" to deflect the harsh responses thrown at him. He cited similar public statements Cross made when involved in previous projects, such as when he discussed being in the '' Law & Order: Criminal Intent'' episode " Bombshell" with ''
Time Out Chicago ''Time Out'' is a global magazine published by Time Out Group. ''Time Out'' started as a London-only publication in 1968 and has expanded its editorial recommendations to 328 cities in 58 countries worldwide. In 2012, the London edition beca ...
''; he elaborated, "Even at his funniest Cross is distant, cold, untouchable; he either can't admit to the occasional lame moment in his own life or he honestly believes he's above the foibles the rest of us idiots are guilty of every day." A week after Cross-published on his blog, ''The New York Observer'' interviewed him and reported that he "seemed genuinely hurt by the criticism he was being subjected to online." Cross stated while being interviewed: In 2014, '' Flavorwire'' named Oswalt's snide remark in the MySpace blog the 30th harshest comedian-on-comedian insult of all time.


Box office

''Alvin and the Chipmunks'' was released in North America on December 14, 2007. The film grossed $44.3 million in 3,475 theaters its opening weekend averaging to about $12,750 per venue, and placing second at the box office behind '' I Am Legend''. Its second weekend was $28.2 million, behind '' National Treasure: Book of Secrets'' and ''I Am Legend''. On its third weekend, it surpassed ''I Am Legend'' for number 2 at the box office, but still ranked behind ''National Treasure: Book of Secrets''. The film closed on Thursday June 5, 2008, making $217.3 million in the US and $144 million overseas for a total of $361.3 million worldwide. The sustained box-office success surprised the studio; Elizabeth Gabler of Fox 2000 told the ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...
'', "I look at the numbers every day, and we just laugh". Given its $60 million budget, ''Alvin'' was far more profitable than either ''I Am Legend'' or ''National Treasure: Book of Secrets''.'Alvin's' broad appeal pays off
''Los Angeles Times'', January 3, 2008.
According to MTV, it also became the highest-grossing talking animal/cartoon adaptation until its sequel. It is also 20th Century Fox's highest-grossing film in the US to be released in 2007.


Home media

''Alvin and the Chipmunks'' was released in
DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...
in North America, Greece, and Mexico on April 1, 2008; Hong Kong on April 10, 2008; the United Kingdom on April 14, 2008; and Taiwan on November 24, 2008. On
Blu-ray The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of st ...
, the film was issued in the United States on April 1, 2008; Portugal, South Africa, and the United Kingdom on April 14, 2008, Germany on April 25, 2008; Australia on June 18, 2008; Norway and Sweden on July 2, 2008; South Korea on July 7, 2008; Brazil on July 10, 2008; Finland on July 11, 2008; Hong Kong on July 18, 2008; Taiwan on August 8, 2008; France on November 19, 2008; Denmark on December 19, 2009; Canada on March 29, 2011; Mexico on October 16, 2011; and Spain on November 16, 2011. Also on April 1, 2008, a Blu-ray "gift set" that included dolls of all the three chipmunks alongside the movie was released. On Amazon Prime, the film was originally released in standard definition on March 30, 2010, before being issued in HD on September 18, 2012; and it was made available on
Movies Anywhere Movies Anywhere (MA) is a cloud-based digital rights locker and over-the-top streaming platform that allows users to stream and download purchased films, including digital copies redeemed from codes found in home video releases as well as d ...
on October 12, 2017.


Video game

The video game for this film was released December 4, 2007 for the Wii, Nintendo DS, PlayStation 2, and the PC. It was written and produced by DeeTown Entertainment.


Sequels

A sequel, titled '' Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel'', was released on December 23, 2009.
Zachary Levi Zachary Levi Pugh ( ; born September 29, 1980) is an American actor. He received critical acclaim for starring as Chuck Bartowski in the series '' Chuck'', and as the title character in '' Shazam!'' and its 2023 sequel, as a part of the DC Ex ...
joined the cast to replace Jason Lee due to his small role and because of his role on ''
My Name Is Earl ''My Name Is Earl'' is an American television sitcom created by Greg Garcia that aired on the NBC television network from September 20, 2005, to May 14, 2009, in the United States. It was produced by 20th Century Fox Television and starred Ja ...
''; the main cast members reprised their roles for the sequel and the film also re-introduced
the Chipettes The Chipettes are a group of three female anthropomorphic chipmunk singers: Brittany, Jeanette and Eleanor who first appeared on the cartoon series ''Alvin and the Chipmunks'' in 1983. In this and related materials, the Chipettes served as fem ...
. A third film, titled '' Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked'', was released on December 16, 2011. A fourth and final film, titled '' Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip'', was released on December 18, 2015.


Notes


References


External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Alvin And The Chipmunks 2007 films 2007 fantasy films 2000s musical comedy films American films with live action and animation American children's animated comedy films American Christmas films American fantasy comedy films American musical comedy films 2000s English-language films Alvin and the Chipmunks films Jukebox musical films Films set in Los Angeles Films shot in California Live-action films based on animated series 20th Century Fox films Regency Enterprises films Dune Entertainment films Films directed by Tim Hill Films scored by Christopher Lennertz 2007 comedy films Films produced by Ross Bagdasarian Jr. Films produced by Janice Karman 2000s American films