Little Alvin and the Mini-Munks

Just like, say, Bob Dylan and Neil Young, '60s icons Alvin, Simon, and Theodore have challenged and reinvented themselves to remain vital in the 21st century. The two-hit wonders, whose television stints lasted into the ‘90s, are recast for a new generation as preschool age puppets struggling to get in touch with their feelings in this fanciful home-grown video production produced by Ross Bagdasarian Jr., son of the Chipmunks' creator, written by and starring his wife, Janice Karman. By turns precious, earnest, and a wee bit icky, this is clearly a labor of love. Karman stars as La Lu, who welcomes the rodent trio to her cottage while David Seville is away working on a new song, helping each one through emotional or behavioral issues, such as Alvin's sadness at Dave's departure, and Theodore's temptation to lie after causing La Lu's toilet to explode. Six pleasant songs, also penned by Karman, drive home lessons about responsibility and friendship, and the writing is consistently clever ("Feeling Centers" give an animated glimpse into what the characters are feeling, and one character, who functions as an audience surrogate, does a nifty James Stewart imitation). Granted, these are not the spunky Chipmunks we grew up with, but very young kids may go nuts for this new breed. A strong optional purchase. Aud: P. (D. Liebenson)