Review of Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet the Wolfman (2000) by Jon T — 30 May 2012

ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS MEET FRANKENSTEIN was hardly an example of Alvin and the chipmunks at their best, but the financial success of that film ensured a second DTV feature to be made. This time, Alvin's school is putting on a production of "Dr.

Jekyll and Mr. Hyde", but of course things get out of hand in many ways. First, Alvin's "monster mania" (which includes staying up watching horror movies at night... to the point where he gets nightmares) gets the better of him.

.. to the point where he loses his part in the show as the lead (he also has suspicions that their creepy next-door neighbor Mr. Talbot is really a werewolf... a fear which turns out to be not just another one of his crazy ideas).

Secondly, Theodore gets bitten by a mysterious creature and not only undergoes a complete 180 degree change in personality, but changes into a werewolf for real! The whole film plays out more like a second-rate extended TV episode, and it shows in its serviceable animation and predictable, padding storyline.

(There's even a useless subplot in which a school bully antagonizes Theodore.) The best moments of the film, of course, are the songs (the showclosing "Everything's Gonna Be All Right" being a particular highlight, in which the Chipmunks and Chippettes perform simultaneously), but there isn't enough of them.

That said, it does have a better paced climax than its predecessor, in which the chips and Chippettes must improvise before the audience while trying to outrun both werewolves. Aside from that there's nothing really to recommend here - it's a pleasant enough diversion, for better or worse, but not much more.