The three stars of the new live action Alvin and the Chipmunks movie have an undeniable charm.
The Chipmunks have been entertaining audiences for nearly 50 years as musicians and TV stars, and they've finally made it to the big screen.
Director Tim Hill is suitably qualified for this sort of film following Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties. It stars Jason Lee (My Name is Earl), David Cross (She's the Man) and computer-animated versions of Alvin, the mischievous leader of the pack, Simon, the bespectacled genius, and Theodore, the cute, chubby one.
The opening scene is reminiscent of the original cartoon: Lee's character Dave is a struggling songwriter who comes across the rodents and sees their showbiz potential. He writes them a song which becomes a huge hit.
The rest of the film is like a recycled Disney movie plot.
An evil music executive (David Cross) tricks the Chipmunks into thinking that Dave doesn't care about them or their career.