The Movie
The highly anticipated (by my two daughters in first-grade, anyway) follow-up to their 2007 live-action debut, Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel finds the rodent trio at the top of their game as a worldwide musical sensation. But when an onstage accident leaves their manager/father figure Dave (Jason Lee) in a French hospital, Alvin, Simon and Theodore are left in the care of his clueless slacker cousin Toby (Chuck's Zach Levi), just as they embark upon the odyssey of high school. Complicating matters further is the arrival of The Chipmunks' female counterparts, The Chipettes, whose squeaky covers of girl-band hits threaten to outshine the boys. And worst of all, the ladies are being guided by the evil music mogul (a scene-stealing David Cross) who has a history of locking furry little singer/dancers in cages! With a talent contest looming and the fate of the school's music education program hanging in the balance, it just might take a sextet to save the day.
The Picture
The 1.85:1 high-def image is very crisp, very sharp, except for the chipmunks themselves, who are conspicuously computer-animated, a process which brings with it its own layer of video noise in contrast to the backgrounds, which are generally quite clean. This issue is not fatal but it does make the 'munks look a bit less realistic. CGI fur and the texture of their sweaters can be brutal, and they look more delineated in closeup. Colors really pop, though: Check out those R/G/B-clad main characters!
The Sound
The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track exhibits a pleasing directionality from a variety of angles across the soundfield throughout the movie, and some discrete left/right front-channel sound effects. Rear-channel usage was limited however, employed more for occasional emphasis or modest fill. The musical numbers always kick, with solid bass, but even a concert full of screaming fans doesn't sound very big.
The Extras
"Music in a Nutshell" puts all manner of relevant music trivia on the screen in optional pop-up windows during the movie. The "'Munk Music Machine" grants instant access to the songs from the movie, with a continuous repeat option. And the interactive "A-l-v-i-n-n-n-n!!! Album Maker" lets us design and collect our own album covers, grabbing still frames from the movie and more to customize them however we like, all via the remote control.
Eight featurettes offer multiple perspectives on the movie and the Chipmunk phenomenon in general. "Munking History: 50 Years of Chipmunk Mischief, Mayhem & Music" (nine minutes) benefits like much of the bonus content here from the involvement of Chipmunks heir Ross Bagdasarian, bringing ample clips from different eras to tell their story. "Meet the Chipettes" (also nine minutes) introduces the leading ladies, while "Rockin' Rising Stars" (six minutes) highlights two of the real music acts featured in the film. "Music Mania" (nine minutes) reveals the filming of the climactic talent show. "Chipmunks: Behind the Squeaking" is a ten-minute faux documentary, in contrast to the two-and-a-half minute "A-NUT-omy of a Scene," which provides a serious technical analysis of the animation creation for a typical scene. "Meet the Stuffies!" exposes the truth about the little stand-ins used during rehearsals (three minutes), and "Shake Your Groove Thing! with Rosero" (nine minutes) offers a dance lesson from the film's choreographer.
Music Videos & Sing-Along collects longer presentations of "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)," "We Are Family" and "Shake Your Groove Thing" with optional on-screen lyrics, plus two more showcasing the flesh-and-blood musicians (sans sing-along), "You Really Got Me" featuring Honor Society and "The Song" featuring Queensberry.
We can also interact with the movie via the FoxPop application for iPod touch, iPhone, Mac or PC. Disc Two is a DVD of the The Squeakquel with the Music Machine feature and "Music Mania" featurette. Disc Three is a DVD-ROM carrying a Digital Copy of the movie for iTunes and Windows Media.
Final Thoughts
Like most kid films, this Squeakquel overflows with button-pushing pop culture references, and yet the characters and story have enough heart to keep it above the level of inanity. The audio mix could be bigger and the computer animation could look better in HD, but hey: My kids did not complain once, and couldn't wait to watch it again. And again....
Product Details
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