Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakuel (3 Stars)

My grandson Oliver seems to be getting a taste for films. Only three days ago he watched "We can be heroes", and today he told me there was another film he wanted to watch. He asked me to sit with him and watch it. That's a task I greatly enjoy doing as a grandfather. I want to encourage him in his love of films, and it also gives me a chance to see something new. I've hardly ever watched children's films, not even when I was a child myself.

The film he picked was "Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakuel" (2009), a sequel to "Alvin and the Chipmunks" (2007). Obviously. I tried to steer Oliver towards the first film, but he'd already made up his mind. The picture box on Netflix for the sequel looked better. Oliver's not a purist like me. Not yet, anyway.

There were several references to the first film, but I think I can figure out what happened. I'm interested in watching the first film, when I can persuade Oliver.

Alvin and the Chipmunks are a rock band. After an accident on stage they have to stop touring and go to school. At first they're bullied by the other boys, but they win them over when they reveal their skill at sports, in particular dodgeball and (American) football. They're asked to participate in a music contest to win $25,000 for their school music department.

I enjoyed the film when it started. The initial rock concert and the slapstick humour entertained me. Then it slowly went downhill, both the music and the humour. Especially the music. The band started with rock music, and then degenerated into playing insipid Destiny's Child covers. A real rock band would never decline like this. My feeling is that the director knows too little about modern music to achieve consistency.

But Oliver liked it, which makes the film a success. The first film had a different director, so I'll give it a chance.

Success Rate:  + 4.3

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