DVD Reviews

A Chipmunk Christmas

Christmas, Christmas time is here. Time for love and time for... A Chipmunk Christmas on DVD!  I remember growing up and every Christmas I'd look forward to certain television specials.  There was A Christmas Carol, A Year Without a Santa Claus and of course... A Chipmunk Christmas.  So you can only guess how happy I was to see that it was finally coming to DVD.

You needn't wait for the holidays to roll around to enjoy A Chipmunk Christmas with Alvin, Simon and Theodore! In this tune-filled animated favorite, Dave Seville has managed to book Alvin for a harmonica solo at the famed Carngie Hall! But there's a slight problem - swept up into the holiday spirit, Alvin has given his beloved harmonica away to a sick little boy. Will Alvin, Simon and Theodore find a replacement, without Dave finding out? Will Alvin be able to keep his date at Carnegie Hall? Will Dave go ballistic as the big night grows closer? The whole family will treasure this Christmas classic in which The Chipmunks perform "Jingle Bells," "Deck the Halls," and that perennial holiday favorite, "The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)."

Video comes to us in a 1.33:1 full frame aspect ratio.  The colours are nicely recreated.  The video is somewhat clean though there are the occasional scratches and print damage.  Grain is minimal and never distracting.  I'd say the episode has been preserved very well.  The audio comes to us in Dolby Digital 2.0 and it does a really good job presenting the multitude of musical numbers from The Chipmunks.  And what would the Chipmunks be without music?  Dialogue is front and center and always understandable.

Extras include 2 other episodes of Alvin and The Chipmunks. Included are "Merry Christmas Mr. Carroll" and "Dave's Wonderful Life." Neither episode looks quite as good as "A Chipmunk Christmas" as they haven't quite stood up as well to the test of time.  There's a "photo gallery" of "Original Artwork From A Chipmunk Christmas" which includes over 40 images.  The best extra however is the classic "A Chipmunk Christmas" CD soundtrack on a separate CD.

If you're looking for a great Christmas DVD for the kids then look no further.  This is a must own in my mind.  The greatness of The Chipmunks combined into a great DVD with a free CD makes it a no-brainer.  This may be one of the only times that Alvin actually thinks he's going to get in trouble for doing something good... usually he deserves to get in a little trouble.  That's the beauty of Alvin and why we love him so much.  Though I will say that I think Theodore is my fav.

Review By Robert Harding