Alvin And The Chipmunks: The Road Chip (2016) Review

If “Avin And The Chipmunks: The Road Chip” teaches us anything it’s that clearly Jason Lee remains comfortable subordinating to selfish, arrogant, bossy and manipulative pipsqueaks with trademark conspicuously central dental arrangements. Scientology will have taught him that much. I guess those dianetics courses aren’t cheap, though, hence why Lee continues to subject himself to the indignity of these increasingly slapdash and lazy sequels.

When a series of misunderstandings convince Alvin, Simon and Theodore that Dave (Jason Lee) plans to propose to his new girlfriend Samantha (Kimberly Williams-Paisley), the three Chipmunks form a reluctant alliance with Samantha’s son Miles (Josh Green) and set out on a cross-country trip to prevent the proposal from taking place.

There’s a degree of stupid you’re obviously willing to accept when buying a ticket for a movie about three singing chipmunks but there’s such cynical laziness to “The Road Chip” that offends far more than the lacklustre shenanigans and desperately manic mugging of Tony Hale. While it fails to provide you any cause to laugh at it, it does feel like it might be laughing at you.

The cast do their best but there’s no effort here on the part of the filmmakers to produce anything even approaching a decent story. What story there is lacks any kind of momentum, ambling from set piece to set piece with little energy or invention and very little of it actually involves a road trip, despite the tedious title pun. Four movies in, the chipmunk’s trademark antics are tired, trite and repetitive, insulting the intelligence of the audiences who’ve bafflingly paid to see it. It trudges through its weary repertoire of poop and pee jokes, lifeless musical numbers and worn pop-culture laden dialogue.

“Alvin And The Chipmunks: The Road Chip” is rubbish. A lazy, cynical cash grab, wringing the last, joyless dollars from the fading franchise.

2/10