Topic summary
The Chipmunk Adventure
The Chipmunk Adventure is a 1987 American animated musicaladventurecomedy film based on the Saturday-morning cartoon series Alvin and the Chipmunks and the Alvin and the Chipmunksvirtual band and media franchise created by Ross Bagdasarian Sr. The film was directed by Janice Karman and written by Karman and Ross Bagdasarian Jr. As the events of the film take place between the fourth and fifth seasons of Alvin and the Chipmunks, the plot follows the Chipmunks and the Chipettes as they go on a hot air balloon race around the world while their guardian David Seville is out on a trip, not knowing that it is a cover for a diamond smuggling ring. The chipmunks travel through a series of adventures in different countries while being hunted down by the diamond smugglers, Claudia and Klaus Furschtein.
After the success of the Alvin and the Chipmunks television series on NBC, several companies had been interested in financing an Alvin and the Chipmunks film. Bagdasarian Jr. and Karman decided to finance the movie themselves. Animators from The Black Cauldron (1985) worked on the film after its box-office flop caused many animators to get laid off from Walt Disney Feature Animation. The animation was provided overseas to several regions such as Utah and Canada. Randy Edelman composed the music after he was visited by Bagdasarian Jr. in London. Production of the film lasted for a year to be completed.
The Chipmunk Adventure was released on May 22, 1987, and grossed $6.8 million at the box office, making it a moderate box-office success. The film initially received mixed reviews from critics. Most critics praised the animation, visuals, and soundtrack, but the plot and voices of the Chipmunks and Chipettes were polarizing. The film's reliance on racial stereotyping was also criticized. Retrospective reviews of the film became more positive. It was the Chipmunks' first theatrical film; the franchise's second theatrical film, Alvin and the Chipmunks, was released on December 14, 2007, 20 years after the film came out.