Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip

Combining live-action with computer-animated characters, this is the fourth installment in the chirpy chipmunk series that began in 2007. As the plot unfolds, mischievous Alvin (voiced by Justin Long), chubby Theodore (voiced by Jesse McCartney), and studious Simon (voiced by Matthew Gray Gubler) are worried that their beloved surrogate dad/manager, Dave Seville (Jason Lee), has become overly enamored with his ER doctor girlfriend, Samantha (Kimberly Williams-Paisley). Terrified by the idea that Dave will abandon them, the furry friends reluctantly team up with Samantha's loathsome teenage son Miles (Josh Green), to fly from Los Angeles to Miami, where they believe that Dave is about to propose. Problem is: en route, one of the chipmunks accidentally sets free all of the animals in the cargo hold. Obviously, the disruption of this airborne menagerie irks the federal air marshal, vengeful Agent Suggs (Tony Hale), who promptly threatens them with prison and puts them on the No Fly List. As directed by Walt Becker, this is a tediously silly franchise film, predictably filled with slapstick, along with the requisite bathroom humor. But there is one amusing scene for film buffs: treated disdainfully in First Class by subversive, idiosyncratic director John Waters, snippy Alvin retorts, “Don't judge me! I saw Pink Flamingos!” Optional, at best. (S. Granger)