''Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet Frankenstein'' is a 1999 American

animated Animation is a method by which still figures are manipulated to appear as moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Today, most ani ...

dark comedy Black comedy, also known as dark comedy, morbid humor, or gallows humor, is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is generally considered taboo, particularly subjects that are normally considered serious or painful to discus ...

horror film produced by Bagdasarian Productions, LLC. and

Universal Cartoon Studios Universal Animation Studios (formerly known as Universal Cartoon Studios) is an American animation studio and a division of Universal Pictures, a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, which is owned by Comcast. It has produced direct-to-video sequels to ...

and distributed by

Universal Studios Home Video Universal Pictures Home Entertainment (formerly Universal Studios Home Entertainment, Universal Studios Home Video, MCA/Universal Home Video, MCA Home Video, MCA Videodisc and MCA Videocassette, Inc.) is the home video distribution division of Am ...

. It is directed by Kathi Castillo, written by John Loy and based on characters from '' Alvin and the Chipmunks'' and

Mary Shelley Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (; ; 30 August 1797 – 1 February 1851) was an English novelist who wrote the Gothic novel '' Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' (1818), which is considered an early example of science fiction. She also ...

's 1818 novel ''

Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus ''Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' is an 1818 novel written by English author Mary Shelley. ''Frankenstein'' tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who creates a sapient creature in an unorthodox scientific exp ...

''. This is the first of two ''Alvin and the Chipmunks''

direct-to-video Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, TV series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strategy wa ...

films, and the first of three Universal Cartoon Studios productions to be animated overseas by Tama Production in

Tokyo, Japan Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

. This is the only animated ''Alvin and the Chipmunks'' film where the Chipettes do not appear. It was followed up a year later by a standalone sequel, titled ''

Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet the Wolfman ''Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet the Wolfman'' is a 2000 American animated horror musical dark comedy film produced by Bagdasarian Productions and Universal Cartoon Studios and based on characters from ''Alvin and the Chipmunks''. It is the second ...

''.

Plot

The Chipmunks are performing at a theme park called Majestic Movie Studios. While taking a break from their concert, the Chipmunks get lost, and eventually get locked inside the park. They find their way to the "Frankenstein's Castle" attraction, where a real Dr. Victor Frankenstein is working on his monster. The monster is brought to life, and the doctor sends it in pursuit of the Chipmunks. In their escape, the monster retrieves Theodore's dropped

teddy bear A teddy bear is a stuffed toy in the form of a bear. Developed apparently simultaneously by toymakers Morris Michtom in the U.S. and Richard Steiff under his aunt Margarete Steiff's company in Germany in the early 20th century, the teddy b ...

. The monster follows the Chipmunks home and returns the bear to Theodore, who quickly befriends him. The Chipmunks learn that the monster whom Theodore has nicknamed "Frankie" is truly good-hearted. Dave goes to the park to book a concert that night to celebrate the premiere of an anticipated film. Dr. Frankenstein tracks Frankie to the Chipmunks' home, and, angered at the monster's benevolence, kidnaps Alvin. Simon, Theodore, and Frankie hurry back to the park to rescue Alvin. Dr. Frankenstein force feeds Alvin a potion and induces a powerful electrical shock. Alvin is released by Frankie, and after Simon swipes the doctor's potions book, the four of them escape back into the park. Shortly after, the process Alvin underwent takes effect, transforming Alvin into a zany cartoon monster. Alvin escapes to the premiere, causing chaos and havoc in his path. Using the potions book, Simon and Theodore mix an

antidote An antidote is a substance that can counteract a form of poisoning. The term ultimately derives from the Greek term φάρμακον ἀντίδοτον ''(pharmakon) antidoton'', "(medicine) given as a remedy". Antidotes for anticoagulants are s ...

using various food items from a buffet, and feed it to Alvin during his rampage. Alvin returns to normal, and the Chipmunks go to perform their concert. Before the concert begins, Dr. Frankenstein attempts to transform Alvin back to his monster self, but is thwarted by Frankie, which leads to an explosion. After the smoke clears, Theodore introduces Frankie to the public, promising that Frankie will bring no harm if treated kindly. Meanwhile, Dr. Frankenstein is revealed to have been given the job of being the studio's mascot, Sammy Squirrel, much to his dissatisfaction, as he is trying to get the mascot's head off in a last ditch effort to kidnap Alvin.

Voice cast

* Ross Bagdasarian, Jr. as Alvin Seville / Simon Seville / David "Dave" Seville *

Janice Karman Janice Felice Karman is an American actress, producer, writer, and director. She is the co-owner of Bagdasarian Productions with her husband Ross Bagdasarian Jr. Early life Karman was born in Los Angeles, California. Her father was psycholo ...

as Theodore Seville * Michael Bell as Doctor Victor Frankenstein, Person in Mob and Delivery man * Frank Welker as Frankie, the Frankenstein's monster, Man dressed up as Frankenstein, Sammy Squirrel, and Movie Director *

Jim Meskimen James Ross Meskimen (born September 10, 1959) is an American actor, comedian and impressionist, who is best known for his voice-over work in video games. Early life James Ross Meskimen was born in Santa Monica, California on September 10, 1959 ...

as Mr. Yesman, Person in Mob, Boy #2 and Police Officer #2 *

Dee Bradley Baker Dee Bradley Baker (born August 31, 1962) is an American voice actor. Much of Baker's work features vocalizations of animals and monsters. Baker's roles include animated series such as ''Avatar: The Last Airbender'', '' Codename: Kids Next Door'', ...

as Tour Guide and Person in Mob *

Mary Kay Bergman Mary Kay Bergman (June 5, 1961 – November 11, 1999), also credited as Shannen Cassidy, was an American voice actress and voice-over teacher. She was the lead female voice actress on '' South Park'' from the show's 1997 debut until her death. Th ...

as Miss Miller, Mother at the theme park, Little Boy, Boy #1, Female Bouncer * Kevin Michael Richardson as Bud Wiley, Man with Camera, Male Bouncer and Security Guard * Susan Boyd as Police Officer #1, Mother at the playground and Olivia D’Handlotion

Production

The film was in production around 1998 alongside direct-to-video sequels to An American Tail. Universal Home Entertainment acquired the home video rights for

The Chipmunk Adventure ''The Chipmunk Adventure'' is a 1987 American animated musical-comedy film based on the Saturday-morning cartoon series ''Alvin and the Chipmunks''. Directed by Janice Karman and written by Karman and Ross Bagdasarian Jr., it stars the voices of ...

in the hopes of creating long lasting direct-to-video film series matching the success of The Land Before Time.

Songs

All original songs written by

Michele Brourman Michele Brourman (born April 12, 1947) is an American composer and songwriter who is known for writing the songs to most of the films in ''The Land Before Time (series), Land Before Time'' series (with Amanda McBroom), as well as the accompanying ...

and Amanda McBroom. Soundtrack available on

MCA Records MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc., which later became part of Universal Music Group. Pre-history MCA Inc., a powerful talent agency and a television production company, entered the recorded music business in 1962 w ...

. # "Things Out There" # "If a Monster Came in Our Room" # "If You Wanna Have Friends" # "

Dem Bones "Dem Bones" (also called "Dry Bones" and "Dem Dry Bones") is a spiritual song. The melody was composed by author and songwriter James Weldon Johnson (1871–1938) and his brother, J. Rosamond Johnson. It was first recorded by The Famous Myers Jub ...

" # "Sammy Squirrels Theme Song"

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Alvin And The Chipmunks Meet Frankenstein 1999 direct-to-video films Alvin and the Chipmunks films 1999 animated films 1990s monster movies Universal Animation Studios animated films Universal Pictures direct-to-video animated films Animated crossover films American comedy horror films American animated horror films American direct-to-video films 1990s American animated films Universal Pictures direct-to-video films Films scored by Mark Watters American supernatural horror films Children's horror films 1990s children's films 1999 horror films Films set in amusement parks 1999 films 1990s children's animated films 1990s English-language films