Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.5
Overall		2.0

Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip Blu-ray Movie Review

A chip off the (by now very) old block.

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman March 24, 2016

For those of us who grew up when turntables and records were still the norm, one of the stupidly entertaining things to do (hey, we didn’t have the internet!) was to put on a 33 ⅓ RPM disc and switch the player to 45 (or even better, 78!) and then to sit back and let supposed hilarity ensue. It’s probably not too much of a stretch to imagine Alvin and the Chipmunks creator Ross Bagdasarian having done something similar in his youth, though Bagdasarian (who was born in 1919) would have grown up in an era when 78s were the norm and may not have experienced the “joy” of speeding up a slower playing record until his adult years. Bagdasarian’s career was a bit of a marvel, including acting (he’s the pianist Jimmy Stewart repeatedly spies on in Rear Window) and songwriting (he wrote the wonderful if outré “Come on-a My House” that became one of Rosemary Clooney’s defining hits). But it wasn’t until Bagdasarian sprang for a then high tech tape recorder which allowed for variable speeds that he found his “true calling” (or at least a facile way to pay the bills). As David Seville, Bagdasarian rather unexpectedly hit the top of the charts with “Witch Doctor” in 1958, and at Christmastime that year he introduced the world to what would be his most lasting creation, The Chipmunks, attaining the Number One position again with “The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don’t Be Late)”. Rather interestingly, despite the Chipmunks’ lasting legacy in American culture, they weren’t all that popular after this initial rush of success. An early sixties animated series called The Alvin Show tanked after one inglorious season, though its continued airings in reruns helped to foster a large fan base which kept the little creatures alive, at least on the fringes of the pop cultural landscape. Bagdasarian died in 1972 at the rather young age of 52, and it might have seemed the Chipmunks were fated to drift off into some kind of weird footnote in the history of recording and/or television, but beginning in the late 1970s Bagdasarian’s son helped to reinvigorate the franchise, which led to new recordings and, ultimately, a second animated series which fared much better than the original The Alvin Show.

Ross Bagdasarian, Jr. continued to manage the further direction of the franchise, not always amicably, with several lawsuits accruing, including one that wrested control away from Universal and ultimately paved the way for the live action films that Fox engendered. Those live action films started with 2007’s Alvin and the Chipmunks, an entry that received less than kind reviews but which went on to rather staggering returns at the global box office, due no doubt to a combination of a new generation being introduced to the franchise along with the nostalgia factor that got hordes of Baby Boomers into cineplex seats. Critics (and you know how they can be) were seemingly shocked when the equally reviled Alvin and the Chipmunks 2: The Squeakquel raked in even more moolah than the first film, and were probably just as curmudgeonly when Alvin and the Chipmunks 3: Chipwrecked managed to haul in hundreds of millions itself. Now comes the fourth film in this seemingly inexhaustible “new, improved” version of the chipmunk clan, an offering which hasn’t (yet) achieved the stunning receipts of the first three films, but which was no slouch in its theatrical incarnation.

Though none of the (thus far) four films in the rebooted Alvin universe depend on the others for context, those interested may want to check out reviews of the previous releases here:

Alvin and the Chipmunks Blu-ray review

Alvin and the Chipmunks 2: The Squeakquel Blu-ray review

Alvin and the Chipmunks 3: Chipwrecked Blu-ray review

It’s some indication of the general tiredness of this enterprise that among the ubiquitous fart jokes and other potty humor, the forced chaos that substitutes noise for actual comedy, and a relentlessly predictable plot that posits initials nemeses who bond over trials to become BFFs, that perhaps the single funniest element in this film is the fact that The Chipettes are shipped off to Hollywood to (wait for it) judge for American Idol. Way to keep a franchise “relevant” and “happenin’”, screenwriters! Otherwise, this film simply ticks the boxes of typical “family film” entertainments, with an initial misunderstanding on the part of Alvin and the boys leading to a series of misadventures.

That misunderstanding has to do with a little diamond ring the boys find which they are convinced is going to be an engagement offering from Dave (Jason Lee, certainly regretting his involvement with this series by this point) to his girlfriend Samantha (Kimberly Williams-Paisley). That wouldn’t be so bad, actually, if it weren’t for Samantha’s bratty son Miles (Josh Green), who mixes with the little furry guys like oil with water. When Dave and Samantha take off to promote the work of rising pop star Ashley Grey (Bella Thorne), the three chipmunks and Miles are forced to go on the chase to prevent any potential nuptials. A number of silly subplots are folded into this enterprise, including one featuring an officious air marshal (Tony Hale) and another featuring an addlepated neighbor (Jennifer Coolidge) who is supposedly keeping an eye on the Seville household while Dave is away.

There are sight gags galore sprinkled throughout this film, but virtually no real character based humor. Instead, Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip seems content to aim for the lowest common denominator at virtually every turn, seemingly realizing that younger kiddies probably couldn’t care less about the fine points of innovative writing and will be delighted just to see a bevy of singing and dancing chipmunks. Based solely on the box office returns of this film, that would seem to have been a completely sure bet.

Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. According to the IMDb, this was shot digitally with Red Epic cameras, perhaps a slight but telling factoid that points out that budgets are being monitored on this series as it continues (previous entries were shot on good, old fashioned film). The look here is still very much in line with the more traditionally shot previous entries, with a bright, colorful ambience that typically pops extremely well, especially since so much of the film takes place in brightly lit and/or outdoor environments. Perhaps a bit ironically, the best detail here is in the pure CGI elements, including things like the chipmunks' fur or even their eyes. Live action elements can tend to look just a little drab and less precisely detailed when thrust up against the CGI elements (something that happens with great regularity). A few darker scenes, including an early party scene and some later sequences inside a club, don't offer substantial shadow detail but still manage to pop quite well in terms of the general palette.

Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip features a boisterous DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 that has quite a few opportunities to strut its sonic stuff courtesy of several musical interludes sprinkled throughout the proceedings. These moments offer some really fulsome lower end while spreading the musical material capably throughout the surround channels. The film is pretty frenetic quite a bit of the time, and that noisiness also tends to offer consistent immersion, though sometimes at the cost of clear prioritization once dialogue intrudes into the equation. Nonetheless, fidelity is top notch and dynamic range rather wide on this problem free track.

Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Story So Far (1080p; 4:57) is a brief tour through the previous three films.


• Cue the Chipmunks: The Great Big Chipmunks Music Finale (1080p; 5:46) is a glorified EPK which focuses on the film's big concert scene.


• Our Furry Planet (1080p; 4:35) is a cute little piece which starts out in Wild Kingdom or True Life Adventures territory before verging into Chipmunks land.


• Alvinisms (1080p; 2:50) is a compendium of Alvin moments.


• WETA and the Chipmunks: Animators' Reference Reel (1080p; 1:47) offers split screen comparisons of film moments with some pretty clunky reference footage.


• Ultimate Playlist (1080p)

  Music Machine

  Music Videos (with Optional Sing-Along)

  Lyric Videos

• Munk Rock (1080p; 1:48) is another brief EPK.


• Redfoo "Squeaky Wiggle" Dance Instructional (1080p; 1:44)


• After the Party: A Munkumentary (1080p; 1:29) offers some supposed hilarious commentary from Redfoo.


• Theatrical Trailers (1080p; 3:27)


• Bound for Georgia (1080p; 2:16) is yet another brief EPK, this one ostensibly focusing on one of the film's southern locales.


• Road Chippin' Through Georgia (1080p; 5:03) features some okay behind the scenes footage.

Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip offers decent faux babysitter potential for parents wanting to get a little housework done as the tots are otherwise occupied, but it's by far the least involving of this already too rote franchise. Technical merits are generally strong for those considering a purchase.