PLOT:

The story begins in a hill backdrop in a forest during the winter. Three singing chipmunks named Alvin (voiced by Justin Long), Simon (voiced by Matthew Gray Gubler) and Theodore (voiced by Jesse McCartney) are singing Daniel Powter's "Bad Day". Alvin complains about the food storage when he accidentally empties their stock. He then complains about his own tough life to struggle for his survival and even calls their tree a "stupid, stupid tree". Then the tree shakes; Theodore thinks that Alvin has "made the tree angry." However, the tree is chopped down (with the trio in it), netted down to a truck, and driven to Los Angeles to become a Christmas tree. Meanwhile, struggling songwriter David "Dave" Seville (played by Jason Lee), is late for his meeting at JETT Records. Dave submits his song but is rejected by executive Ian Hawke (played by David Cross), who says he hates Dave's latest song. During Dave's meeting, the Chipmunks and the tree wind up in the lobby of JETT records; the trio manages to escape and get into Dave's car via a muffin basket he is carrying. When Dave gets home, he dumps the muffin basket in the garbage can and throws all his music equipment out the door. The Chipmunks set about raiding his cupboards while Dave watches television. When Dave discovers them, there's a scuffle, and Alvin finally causes Dave to lose consciousness by dropping a glass jar onto his head.

When Dave wakes up, he realizes that "squirrels" can talk, but Alvin corrects him that they're chipmunks. Dave then forces them to leave his house after they introduce themselves. Dave hears the Chipmunks singing The Platters' "Only You" (even though, Ringo Starr had the song on his album, "Goodnight Vienna"). After realizing that the trio can also sing, Alvin replies "that's not singing, this is singing", and they sing Lipps, Inc.'s "Funkytown". Enjoying their singing, Dave brings them back inside. Dave proposes a deal: if they sing his songs, they get to stay with him. Alvin then reminds him about his music equipment outside; frantically, Dave runs out in the pouring rain to retrieve the equipment.

Dave puts them to bed in an armchair; whilst the Chipmunks sleep, their snores accumulate into a song, sparking Dave's inspiration. He writes Ross Bagdasarian, Sr.'s The Chipmunk Song. When Dave awakens the next morning, the Chipmunks are trying to catch waffles shot out of the toaster, but when Simon tries to catch one, it drops right in front of him and he doesn't see it. Realizing Simon is nearsighted, Dave finds a tiny pair of round-framed glasses from a decorative Santa and gives them to Simon. With his new glasses, Simon can now see perfectly. The Chipmunks then sing Dave's song successfully.

Dave returns to JETT records and shows Ian his surprise: the three Chipmunks with his jingle in the background. Though the Chipmunks sang the song perfectly earlier, they get stage fright and refuse to sing; Ian thinks Dave is crazy and leaves. In the car ride back to Dave's house, they admit to Dave about their stage fright, and Dave sends them home. When Dave finally gets to his job, he begins presenting his advertising pitch about the "Goodable Energy Bar" commercial, but Simon calls him on his cell-phone: Alvin and Theodore are inside the vacuum cleaner and the house is flooding because Simon doesn't know how to turn off the sink faucet. Dave says he'll deal with the problems later and hangs up; however, when he begins his presentation, he discovers that the Chipmunks have drawn all over his presentation boards. Dave decides to clean out his office, as he knows that he is fired.

Dave is furious when he gets home. As he sits the trio down for a talk (after finding Alvin taking a shower in the dishwasher), Theodore elbows onto the phone's answering machine button. A message plays that reminds Dave that he has a dinner date with his crush, Claire Wilson (played by Cameron Richardson), and she'll be arriving at 7:00. When Dave realizes that it's now 6:30, Simon tells Dave to go get food for the dinner, and he and the others will clean up the house. Much to Dave's surprise, the house is spotless when he gets home from the grocery store, however, he soon realizes that the chipmunks have simply shoved the mess into the refrigerator.

During the dinner, Alvin attempts to "help" by playing music on the CD player, dimming the lights, and making a romantic fire in the fireplace, all to Dave's embarrassment and Claire's confusion. When Claire demands to know what's going on, Dave admits, "My life is being sabotaged by talking Chipmunks." Claire doesn't believe him and leaves, thinking he hasn't changed at all (a conversation earlier in the movie implied that their relationship originally failed due to Dave's immaturity).

The Chipmunks realize that Dave is mad at them and feel guilty; they then get an idea and leave the house. Meanwhile, Dave, completely exasperated with the three, puts together a box with waffles, a plastic water bottle, a blanket, and holes in the lid. He begins to write a letter of apology that their living arrangement is not working out. However, he changes his mind, crumples the letter up, and tosses it on the floor, where it rolls under his bed. Realizing that the chipmunks have left the house, he begins to search for them. Eventually, he gives up and goes to sleep. It is then shown that the chipmunks have taken a Cab to Ian's mansion. After singing Dave's Christmas song, Ian is impressed and responds, "Welcome to Jett Records."

The next day at the supermarket, while Dave and the Chipmunks are shopping, the Chipmunks' song plays on the store radio to Dave's amazement. Dave gets a call for Ian, who gleefully tells Dave that the chipmunk's song--as well as their video on youtube--is a hit. A montage follows, showing the chipmunks' increasing fame.

On Christmas Eve, Theodore tells Dave that he had a nightmare and that he wants to sleep with him. Although Dave tells Theodore that he can only if he stays on the other side of the bed; Theodore curls up on Dave's shoulder and Dave doesn't have the heart to make him leave. The next morning, Alvin and Simon wake up Dave and Theodore and they exchange gifts. Simon gets Dave a paper clip compass that he made, Alvin gets Dave his own wallet, and Theodore gives Dave a moving card with Pineapple-like images of the four as a family. Dave is firm that they are friends and nothing more, however, the Chipmunks continue to insist that Dave is their family. Dave gets the Chipmunks each a $100 savings bond, which they can spend in seven years, much to Alvin's displeasure. Ian bursts in (in his Santa Claus hat and carrying a bag stuffed with presents) and gives the Chipmunks lots of gifts, leading them to calling him Uncle Ian and making Dave's practical gift look bad by comparison.

One week later, Ian throws a launch party for The Chipmunks' new CD. At the party, The Chipmunks perform (where they sing Ross Bagdasarian, Sr.'s second, "Witch Doctor"), and Ian insists to Dave that they should market the boys more to make more money. Concerned for their well-being, Dave insists that The Chipmunks are "kids" and don't need so much craziness in their lives. After warning Dave that he "never loses," Ian tells The Chipmunks that Dave is holding them back and calls them "rats" behind their backs. The next day, Dave and The Chipmunks have an argument; in anger, Dave tells them that if they like "Uncle Ian" so much, they should just go live with him. That night, Theodore discovers the letter Dave wrote following the dinner disaster. The chipmunks believe that Dave meant what he said to them earlier and, saddened, decide to leave Dave and go live with Ian.

Although their life with Ian starts off great (they arrive at his mansion to a room full of expensive toys and the declaration is that the only rule is that there are no rules), after they set out for their coast-to-coast tour, Ian begins to change their image completely and overwork them to the point of exhaustion. A concerned Dave calls and asks to speak to them; Ian refuses, saying that they're too busy. When he gets off the phone with Dave, he lies to The Chipmunks, telling them that Dave said that he was doing great without them. After informing The Chipmunks that he sent Dave a ticket to their concert and Dave sent it back, Ian privately tells his head of security to not allow Dave into the concert for any reason.

Later, Dave sees Julian Reynolds on the news, who talks about the rumors that The Chipmunks are being overworked, however, Ian has assured the press that the boys are doing just fine. Reynolds also talks about how The Chipmunks are about to set out on their global tour, starting with a concert in Los Angeles. Dave realizes that he has to put a stop to this, and sets out to get The Chipmunks back.

Right before the concert is supposed to begin, a doctor says that the Chipmunks can't sing because their voices have given out. Ian doesn't want to hand out refunds and orders The Chipmunks to lip sync(which Simon calls "cheating"). Dave attempts to get into the concert and is helped by Claire, who provides him with her press pass. The Chipmunks begin their performance, and as Dave makes his way to the stage, he is grabbed by security. As he's being dragged away, Dave yells for Alvin. The Chipmunks see Dave being taken away and realize they've been tricked; they decide that they've had enough of Ian, reveal that they were lip-syncing, and run amok, ruining the concert. Dave escapes and makes it backstage, after a scuffle with security, Ian traps the chipmunks and locks them in a cat-carrier. Dave insists to Ian that since the Chipmunks ruined the concert, word will soon get out, and their popularity will decline. Ian however, remains unfazed by this, stating that because they are talking Chipmunks, people will still come.

The detained Chipmunks are left with Ian's luggage, next to a pile of talking Chipmunk dolls, while Ian quickly gets ready to board the plane to take the Chipmunks to Paris for their next concert. Alvin tells Simon to use his brain to think of a way out. Minutes later, Ian grabs the cat carrier, hops into his chauffeured car, and starts to drive off. Dave sets after him, determined to rescue the trio. However, Alvin, Simon, and Theodore stand up on the front passenger seat of his car and egg him on. Dave stops the car after realizing that the real Chipmunks are with him; Simon explains, "We're talking chipmunks, Dave. We can get out of a cat carrier.Not even hard to do it..." After admitting that they really are a family, the four drive home, by Dave letting Alvin steer, Theodore honk the horn, and Simon operate the window wipers. Later on, Ian looks into the carrier and is shocked to find three talking Chipmunk dolls instead of the real Chipmunks.

Later, Claire comes over, and Dave and the Chipmunks have prepared toaster waffles and champagne. Alvin tries to get the cork out of the champagne bottle, but when he succeeds, the cork flies into a glass china set, and all the liquid pours out of the bottle. Dave's patience is tested as he tries his best not to "say it". The spilled champagne then damages the power outlet, causing a blackout. Dave decides to "say it," and lets out his trademark "AAAALLLLVIIIIINNNNN!!" Alvin responds with "Okay!"

During the closing credits, a hopeless Ian is seen attempting to teach three squirrels to sing, but the squirrels do not respond, and Ian is forced down in tears as the credits continue.

REVIEW:

I was a fan of the chipmunks growing up in the 80s. I'm not well schooled on their origins, but from what I know, this film does them justice.

My qualm with this film is with the chipmunk's voices. They are up and coming stars in Hollywood, yet until you read their names in the credits, you would never know its them. Seems like a waste to me. The studio could have just hired Joe Schmo of the street, changed his voice and done that, rather than pay the ridiculous salaries these guys got for the voice overs.

Onto the positive, Jason Lee was inspired casting as Dave. There were times I thought I was actually watching the cartoon. He's spot on for Dave.

Cameron Richardson is a total hottie. Wish she could have gotten more screen time, but this is a family picture, so I'll allow it.

The animation of the chipmunks is superb. They didn't seem out of place the way some CGI objects tend to.

Plot-wise, I think there could have been more time spent on the developing relationship between Dave and the boys, rather than cram it all in as a montage, but that's just my personal preference.

If you were a fan of the cartoon, you won't be disappointed...and of course the most famous of Alvin & the Chipmunks' songs is included ad nausea in the film. lol

5 out of 5 stars

The 332 meter USS Theodore Roosevelt, known as "Big Stick", anchored off Cape Town yesterday and of course I had to have a look and try and get a photo. I chose Signal Hill as my vantage point and this was the best I could manage with the hazy day and my consumer grade zoom lens. I would have dearly loved a less hazy day and a 600mm lens for this occasion.

Their surroundings were immaculate, snow covered grounds everywhere you looked. Every stone had its pale cover of fresh innocence to it. They stood out sharply against the whiteness, wearing all black. There are only two of them. One a young boy of perhaps ten, at his side an older man who looked at most to be in his mid-thirties. Both had pale blond hair, the older man gray-green eyes, and the younger boy blue. The boy looked as if he had been crying for a while, and when the older man offered his hand, the boy took it without a word, leaning closer. The pair were father and son, it wasn't hard to see.

"Father?" The boy whispered the word softly, small hand clinging to his father's own and body moving so he could press his face against the older man's pressed suit. He hadn't really wanted to come here, but father had said it was important, an anniversary. Alexander had never met his grandfather, but his father always told him that he had been a great man who had done great things.

Something rustled and the older man gently pulled his son closer to himself, letting the boy hide his wet face against his stomach. "Yes Alexander?" His words were soft and smooth, a light accent touching the voice that told anyone the man had not been born in this country.

"Why is he gone? Why didn't I get to know him? Why did they take him away right before I was born?" The questions tumbled out of his small mouth in German, despite how much his mother was constantly bothering him about speaking in English since they were in an English speaking country and town. He didn't want to. A feeble sniffle and hiccup escaped him before he pressed closer, small arms trying to encircle his father.

Breathing a sigh, the man lifted his hand to brush his fingers through his son's hair, murmuring soft nonsense for the youth's ears only, quieting when his son did and hugging the small form closer still. "It was an accident, Alex. Nothing could be done about it. I wish you could have known him and I wish he could have known you, but he watches over us now, that's what's important and we both know that, yes?" His gaze moved down to the boy and a slight smile touched his lips when he saw that head nod somewhat.

Leaning somewhat away from his father, the boy rubbed his eyes dry and offered his arms, smiling slightly himself when the older man picked him up. Nestling his head along that shoulder, he sighed and closed his eyes, relaxing against the man and ignoring the several dark suited men standing in the nearby pathway.

"We miss you, dad." He had never been allowed to call his father that while the man had been alive and now that the man was gone, he allowed himself the mild pleasure of being able to do that much. The man hadn't been so strict, but he had been a no nonsense person. Cradling his son close, Theodore moved and knelt briefly, careful of his bundle, and brushed the snow from the top of the gravestone, smiling faintly. Standing again, he moved back to the pathway, bypassing his bodyguards who moved to follow him as he went back to his car.

It would be a long drive home, but that was alright, he knew Alexander needed the rest and also knew that his wife wouldn't let the boy sleep when they were home, something about lessons.

"Close the feed, Oddie..." Sighing, Alexander rubbed his eyes lightly and leaned back down, nestling himself close to his sleeping lover. "You're both watching over me now, right? Dad, I used to lean on you all the time when I was young, and now I have someone to lean against too, but make me strong enough so that he can lean on me when he needs it too." He murmured the words lightly, pressing his lips tenderly to a shoulder and closed his eyes.

Check out the write-up here, or pick up a copy practically anywhere around the Lou (and make sure to czech page 156)!

We also wanted to shout a little holla at Apop Records' Camp Concentration for the "Best Underground Club" nod!

Another thing worth mentioning is tonight's Billiken Club show: Damien Jurado is playing with Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson and Saint Louis' own Theodore.  As always, this show is free, all ages, and open to the public.  Doors at 8pm, show at 9pm.  Jurado released Caught In The Trees on September 9th to much critical acclaim, so tonight should be a real rowdy-dowd!  Not to be missed.

[audio http://sq.txdnl.com/mwt/t/o/e/t/toetaps/playlists/187020/1781747.mp3]Damien Jurado - Gillian Was A Horse [MP3][Insound]

Such was most certainly not the case today.  Usually Theodore at least acknowledged her presence, even when he was in the process of making an angry phone call or re-arranging the contents of his desk.  But no.  He was playing pinball.  Pinball?  Cardea tried not to dwell too long on the recent addition to the office (though she had to admit he had taste, it was Lord of the Rings, from the sound of it).  Instead she sat down and waited.

And waited.

Eventually he finished, the last ball slipping between the bumpers, hotly pursued by a curse from Theodore.  Only then did he turn around and glower at the intruder in his personal space for a moment, but spoke before Cardea could even open her mouth.  "Before you ask, no, I'm not going to accept your resignation."

Cardea stared, dumbfounded.  "How did you know I wanted to quit?"

"I keep trying to tell you, Cardea, I know everything, but you never listen."  Settling back behind his desk, Theodore's expression began to turn from anger to smugness.  "Futhermore, you only ever come to visit me when you have something to gripe about.  I've been expecting this for some time, and you're even polite enough to wait until the end of the quarter when I'd stand a decent chance of finding another teacher on short noticed."

Grudgingly, Cardea nodded.  There was no point in trying to deny anything.  He'd just summarized her exact thought process.

"You'll stay until I tell you that you can leave."  Theodore's expression softened further into something that might almost have been a sincere smile.  "I need you."  Then suddenly the moment was gone and he brandished a pile of student files at Cardea.  They all had different colored forms attached to them, differentiating between talents and specialties, but all had a white piece of paper as well, indicating that they were all new students.  "Take a look at these for me, will you?  I'm particularly interested to know your opinion of the first one."

Taking the hint, Cardea opened the first file, for a teenage empathic female, and skimmed it.  "Frankly, sir, she looks a bit, well, boring.  As far as I can tell from this file, she's a basic case of a first-generation talent.  Nothing unusual."

"I know."  Theodore smiled dreamily.  "Isn't she wonderful?"

Just a new vid I made and posted on YouTube. I repitched the song "I'll Always Return" from Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron for Theodore from the Chipmunks and made it into a little story based around the Chipmunk Adventure, although I ended up changing the plot of the Chipmunk Adventure around to fit the vid. In the vid, the story goes that the Chipmunks ran away from home to try to find the Chipettes because they'd found out that the Chipettes were delivering diamond dolls (without the girl's knowledge, of course, which is why later I put in the clip of the girls discovering the issues) and while they're searching, Theodore is remembering good times back home with Dave and the Girls and all the adventures they had and all the while is dreaming of seeing Eleanor again...Well, while trying to find the girls the boys get captured and almost sacrificed in Africa, so Theodore 'closes his eyes' and remembers better times...then the girls rescue them! Yay! But, if you remember the movie, they were kidnapped again when they got back to LA. So what does Theodore do? Remember home. Thus ends the song...of course I had to add in a happy ever after! After the song I put the clip of Dave jumping out of the cop car and the Chipmunks jumping out of Klause and Claudia's crashed car and them all sharing a loving hug.

Welcome home boys and girls ^^.

So how many break-outs do you think Michael Scofield (Wentworth Miller)  has to do to achieve his normal life? I doubt even if he succeeds in taking down the 'Company'. See the official website at: http://www.fox.com/prisonbreak/

Also, I wonder if anyone picked up on Obama's direct reference to the work of MLK. The day of the speech being the 40th anniversary of King's I Have A Dream speech, Obama paraphrased King in his line about Republicans forcing people to pick themeselves up by their own bootstraps, even though they might not have any.

My server was Tiffany and she was a doll.  She made a genuine recommendation when I ordered a grilled steak chimichanga to add mushrooms.  This was not an upsale recommendation but rather her honest opinion.  It was a winner.  The "chimi" was light and crisp and lacked the greasiness often found at other Tex-Mex restaurants.  The salsa was quite good, a little light on the garlic for my personal tastes but crisp and refreshing none the less.  The cheese dip, too, was good - creamy and spicy and more of it was ladled over the chimichanga.  I look forward to returning to indulge in the tequila bar.

The beauty and flavors found at Hacienda San Miguel are a breath of fresh air for the industrial, blue collar Theodore area.  Finally, folks there have an elegant restaurant in which to celebrate their special occasions without having to venture into the city proper.  Buen apetito!

Hacienda San Miguel
5805 Highway 90
Theodore, AL 36582
(251) 653-9163

She was about to turn around and ignore him, when a pin on his lapel caught her attention.  It looked like a crest of some sort and was naggingly familiar.  She opened the door.

There was a somewhat awkward moment of silence as she tried to figure out why her visitor looked so familiar and he contented himself merely with smiling vaguely at her.  Eventually the man cleared his throat politely and asked, "Miss Cardea Osten, I presume?"

"Yes, that's me."  Cardea regarded the man suspiciously, her last desperate hope that he was just here to sell her something evaporating with the fact that he knew her name.  Even so, courtesy took over.  "What can I do for you?"

"You are familiar with the concept and operation of educational institutions."  He stated it as a fact rather than as a question.  Cardea was still trying to formulate so some or witty response when he continued, "Due to your expertise in the areas of Microbiology and Biochemistry, as well as certain other qualifications you are undoubtedly aware of, it has been decided by the powers that be that you are prime teaching material.  They are offering you a position, Miss Osten, and you would do well not to refuse it."

Annoyance and exhaustion overtook Cardea almost simultaneously and she slouched against the door frame, a habit she thought she'd broken herself of long ago.  "Don't tell me that.  I gave up try to shape the future of the world by nurturing its young when I was still young myself.  It's rarely ever worth it.  The trust needed just isn't a factor of the human condition."

"This is no ordinary position, Miss Osten.  But if the prospect of teaching does not appeal to you, then perhaps you should look at it as an opportunity to preserve your potential for a routine life.  There is more at stake here than you know, and we are not above using force."  As he spoke, the man had pulled a cream colored envelope from one of the pockets in his suit coat, this envelope he now handed to Cardea.  It bore an enlarged version of the crest on the man's lapel.

"Jesus Christ."

"He prefers Theodore, actually, but that is beside the point.  He's waiting for you, Miss Osten."

Playing around with fonts, patterns and reflections

“Es mejor vivir un día como un león que mil años como un cordero”, esto se puede leer en la pagina web del proyecto One day as a lion, un viaje musical guiado por Zack de la Rocha (Rage against the machine) y Jon Theodore (The mars volta) un par de personajes que tomaron esa frase para representar los principios fundamentales de su música, rabiosa, salvaje, revolucionaria, un poco de los Rage, aderezado con la locura de los Mars y las texturas extras que cada uno de estos panas le sumaron a este esfuerzo.

Lo que quedó de esta simbiosis fue un EP que vio la luz el día 22 de julio debutando de forma espectacular en la lista billboard 200 colocándose en el top treinta del conteo, un gran logro para un disco de rock, en formato ep (Extedend play) y con el contenido lírico que puede salir de la boca explosiva de Zack. En este trabajo Zack además de la voces se da con fuerza con los teclados, y el señor Theodore nos hace mover la cabeza con fuerza al castigar los tambores con el mismo animo que los hacia con los Volta, un duo duro sin duda.

One day as a lion contiene cinco temas los cuales son:

Wild internacional

“Ellos dicen que en guerra la verdad será la primera baja….”

Un loop infinito que pretende ser una guitarra es el fondo de un tema que escupe rabia por todos lados, la voz de Zack pudiera ser cualquier tono de un tema de Rage, es mas, me atrevería a decir que este tema tiene mucho del sonido de la Maquina, buen comienzo.

Ocean view

“Spray de pimienta sobre concreto agrietado”

Industrialoso el comienzo de esta canción, para luego caer en un medio tiempo donde los tambores se imponen hasta por sobre la voz, que va como siempre dedicándole estrofas a lo establecido, la sociedad y nuestro modo de vida.

Last setter

“Tu Dios es un asesino sin hogar, que vaga por el mundo para salvar…”

Batería sola para empezar, teclados narcóticos para hacer peso, repeticiones hasta la locura, Zack canta usando artilugios, el coro tiene ritmo, el rapeo desesperación, extraordinario tema.

If you fear dying

“I´m like fela with my Heart in Venezuela”

Además de nombrarnos en este tema, Zack se luce en el, llega un momento que mas allá del loop que usa lo único que manda en la canción es su voz, pero cuando el pana de la batería le mete el acido la cosa se pone dura, otra buena canción.

One day as a lion

“Venimos como el ejercito de la gente”

Muchos tambores, efectos con el teclado, la voz de Zack en primer plano, de verdad que harán falta mas canciones para escuchar bien a este combo, excelente trabajo pero muy corto, como buen EP, bájenlo y se lo vacilan, ojo para mentes abiertas reyes y reinas del metal amantes del power abstenganse.

Para mas información dirigirse a:

http://www.onedayasalion.org/

http://www.myspace.com/onedayasalion

"Whick Chipmunk Are You?"

Soy Theodore :hiper:

(mentira..me toco Alvin..pero lo hice de nuevo..me niego a ser otra cosa mas que Theodore)

See..soy una pelotuda grande..pero me encanta esa ardilla..es chiquitita y gordita y toda inocente yyy..

(ok..me doy lástima hasta a mi)