The week in movies - 25 December 09

In a bizarre week at the movies, zombies, chipmunks, jinns and weird couples’ counselors all hit the silver screen. Alvin and the Chipmunks reprise their roles in their second animated feature, in which they meet their female counterparts. Vince Vaughan and Jon Favreau reunite after a decade in the relationship comedy Couples Retreat. And Turkish horror director Hasan Karacadağ recreates the approaching apocalypse once again in D@bbe 2.

Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel

The singing trio of chipmunks Alvin, Simon and Theodore celebrate their 50th year in showbiz in this sequel to 2007’s CGI feature animation. In the new movie, the boys are forced to go back to school, and this time they are not under the care of their human father, Dave Seville, but Dave’s slacker nephew Toby (Zachary Levi from the TV show Chuck). The trio must perform to win the $25,000 school prize, only to find harsh competition in the form of an all-girl band, the Chipettes, a charming blend of Destiny’s Child and the Supremes. The Chipmunks find their love interests in the Chipettes, Brittany, Eleanor and Jeanette (voiced by Anna Faris, Christina Applegate and Amy Poehler). Justin Long, Matthew Gray Gubler and Jesse McCartney all reprise their roles.

Who should watch it? Those looking for a holiday movie they can bring their small children to.

Who should avoid it? Those with high expectations for animated features and the latest CGI movies, which usually have 3-D visuals and plenty of adult undertones.

Couples Retreat

Vince Vaughn and Jon Favreau more-or-less reprise their roles in Swingers more than a decade later in this film, in which four couples go to an exotic locale that turns out to be a New Age couples retreat with obligatory counseling. Along with Vaughn and Favreau, Jason Bateman, Faizon Love, Kristen Bell (Veronica Mars), Kristin Davis, Malin Akerman and Kali Hawk star as the couples in retreat, while Jean Reno plays the world-famous “couples whisperer” Marcel. Mediocre directing overshadows the occasionally funny dialogue and impressive cast.

Who should watch it? Those who enjoyed Vaughn and Favreau’s Swingers.

Who should avoid it? Those expecting a smart and funny dissection of relationships by this promising all-star cast.

D@bbe 2

Turkish Director Hasan Karacadağ impressed horror aficionados with his crafty special effects and makeup, and clever use of Islamic themes, in his previous features, D@bbe (2006) and Semum (2008). In the sequel to D@bbe, Karacadağ again makes use of Islamic motifs to announce impending doom; jinns continue to use the Internet to communicate, and wait for signs of the apocalypse. Not necessarily a put-off, the previous two movies were rip-offs of the American films Pulse and The Exorcist, respectively.

Who should watch it? Those impressed with director Karacadağ’s previous horror flicks, especially D@bbe.

Who should avoid it? Those who have lost hope in Turkish cinema’s efforts to recreate the horror genre.

Originally published in Hürriyet Daily News on 25 Dec. 09