Beverly Hills Chihuahua 3: Viva La Fiesta Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

Beverly Hills Chihuahua 3: Viva La Fiesta Blu-ray Movie Review

Party animals.

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf October 31, 2012

Although it seems strange to commit this thought to the page, it appears the “Beverly Hills Chihuahua” saga is improving as it motors along, now firmly ensconced in DTV mode. Please contain your eye-rolls, I’m not comparing this talking animal franchise to “The Godfather,” but as a harmless family film diversion with an emphasis on good-natured adventures, mild screenwriting, and accelerated colors, the producers are heading in the right direction, reducing the scale of these efforts as they go. The original 2008 picture was all-around awful, yet the 2011 sequel and now “Beverly Hills Chihuahua 3: Viva La Fiesta” have developed a modest personality, keeping the antics on an approachable level of mischief and domestic concern, free of a theatrical release burden that once plagued the creative credits. Instead of a cross-country journey of personal enlightenment, “Viva La Fiesta” keeps the antics contained to a struggling hotel, allowing time for its four-legged stars to develop with help from the animated voice acting, while the story, albeit derivative, has a few moments to breathe before it returns to predictability. Again, it’s not high art, but the wee ones should get a charge out of Papi and Company’s return to the small screen, while parents won’t feel battered by relentless stupidity.

Ready to build a life for themselves, Sam (Marcus Coloma) and Rachel (Erin Cahill) hope to land jobs at a posh hotel, which would supply a room for the couple and their collection of dogs, including Papi (voiced by George Lopez), Chloe (Odette Annable), and their wild litter of young troublemakers. While Sam deals with landscaping woes and a lazy subordinate (Kyle Gass), and Rachel struggles to earn respect as a sous-chef under the harsh kitchen rules of French cooking master Chef Didier (Sebastian Roche), Papi finds himself losing control of his family, watching Chloe become the face of the dog-friendly hotel, while his instructional influence over his kids is diluted by the new surroundings, tainting his relationship with runt Rosa (Kay Panabaker). Determined to win back his daughter’s heart with a quinceanera celebration, Papi’s efforts to arrange such a shindig are thwarted by suspicions of corruption inside the hotel, with a rival property working on deceptive means to steal away important guests such as Amelia Jones (Frances Fisher). Teaming up with pal Pedro (Ernie Hudson) to figure out what’s going on with an untrustworthy Saint Bernard named Oscar (Jake Busey), Papi also stands by while Rosa comes into her own, learning confidence in the water as she blossoms into maturity.

Without much of a budget and a loss of superstar voice talent, “Chihuahua 2” found its place as frivolous entertainment. Without the burden of mass appeal, the sequel and its reduced scale found a pleasing sense of tomfoolery, playing directly to the core demographic with its collection of cute animals and their awkwardly CG-animated mouths. It was nothing extraordinary, but in its own small Disney manner, it managed to cough up a minute amount of appeal -- an impressive feat considering the unwieldy, unfunny approach of the original effort. “Viva La Fiesta” continues down the same low-wattage path, only this time the action is completely confined to the hotel setting, doing away with the street sensibilities of the previous installments to keep the antics in a controlled environment that also introduces a touch of class warfare between Papi and property guests, watching as his loved ones are lured into the comfort of their elegant surroundings while he manages a more instinctual routine. Screenwriter Dana Starfield keeps the premise simple and the conflicts light (and blessedly free of bathroom humor, outside of Papi’s determination to teach his kids about “Pee-mail”), but there’s an interest in exploring the hotel grounds and a few of its uptight characters, maintaining some variation on the same old talking dog experience.

The story isn’t anything to consider too deeply, focusing on a villainous enterprise to ruin the hotel that involves Oscar, a mute dog who carves clues into wood, and several moments where crimes of vandalism are pinned on Papi. Oddity is more satisfying with this material, observing Papi audition bands such as Houndgarden, Black Labbeth, and Lady Gaga and the Tramp to play Rosa’s party, assisted by an effeminate pug (is there any other kind?). There’s also a subplot with Rosa and hits of humiliation as she figures out how to manage water play without her “swimmies,” instructed by her parents to decorate the safety devices with her artful touch. And there’s Chole, once again stepping behind the keys to entertain brunch guests with her piano skills. “Viva La Fiesta” isn’t a viciously intellectual viewing experience, but what it does offer it does so kindly, with director Lev L. Spiro hitting all the highlights with ease while keeping a decent pace, also bringing the human actors to a cartoon boil (Cahill is especially gifted with the broad stuff) without overdoing their screentime.

Also worth mentioning is cinematography by Greg Gardiner, who employs unexpectedly gorgeous lighting to bring “Viva La Fiesta” to life. Wonderfully colorful and pleasingly bright, the picture looks terrific for the small-scale production that it is. Forced to manipulate a single location, Gardiner turns the confines into a miniature paradise with his crisp, clean work.

Beverly Hills Chihuahua 3: Viva La Fiesta Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (1.78:1 aspect ratio) presentation for "Viva La Fiesta" is expectedly attractive, with HD cinematography making a smooth transition to BD. Blessed with a bright palette, the visual experience is filled with constant stimulation, with golden lighting bringing out natural animal hues and human skintones, while fine detail on fur and hotel particulars is pleasing, also extending to crinkly facial reactions on the two-legged participants in this story. Textures are satisfactory on costumes and animal hijinks, while the fantastic clarity of the presentation also reveals the limitations of the CG-animated mouth movements. Colors are bold with a wonderful pop on party time pinks and green foliage, while the hotel pool retains an impressive wash of glowing blue, while further hue exploration remains stable and attractive. A minor amount of crush is detected in the feature's sole foray into limited lighting.

Beverly Hills Chihuahua 3: Viva La Fiesta Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 5.1 DTS-HD MA sound mix carries a jubilant charge to back up the cartoon shenanigans of the movie. While wild sweeps of directional activity are largely absent from the listening experience, surrounds are engaged for group activities and atmospheric interests, maintaining a mild circular atmosphere. Soundtrack selections are equally upbeat and immersive, with crisp instrumentation and broad positioning, lacking precise channel articulation. Dialogue exchanges are fresh and frontal, keeping the antics and accents secure and easily understood. Scoring is simplistic but never tinny, supporting without intrusion. Low-end is limited at best, rarely engaged outside of musical moments.

Beverly Hills Chihuahua 3: Viva La Fiesta Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• "Hangin' with Papi" (5:52, HD) is a comedic exploration of the lead dog's life on the set, faced with fawning co-stars and a submissive costume designer, while Chloe also shares in the luxury of film production, reaching diva status. Interviews with cast are jokey, so don't expect anything of informational value here.

• "Living Your Dreams" (3:53, HD) and "Vive Tus Suenos" (3:45, HD) are English and Spanish music videos from Raini Rodriguez.

Beverly Hills Chihuahua 3: Viva La Fiesta Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Cooling its instincts to be obnoxious family entertainment, "Beverly Hills Chihuahua 3: Viva La Fiesta" comes across endearingly simple and digestible, ideal for younger viewers thirsting for an easy afternoon movie ride. It's amusing, vibrant, and contains a mild message on the importance of fatherly trust and juvenile responsibility, although it's a dramatic cause wrapped up a script that features a canine mariachi band as a Greek chorus, an extended fixation on the pleasures of peanut butter, and the concept of a quinceanera for a dog.