This latest addition to the 53-year-old sing-song franchise sees Dave (Jason Lee) and his six-pack of CGI’d rodents enjoying a sea cruise when Alvin, displaying signs of rebellious adolescence, encourages his peers to commandeer a kite which dumps them on an island. Meanwhile, Dave has a row with record company adversary Ian (David Cross), who’s dressed as a duck. They wrestle, fall overboard and drift to the other side of the island, which – in a nod to ‘Cast Away’ – is occupied by a woman (Jenny Slate) with more balls than Tom Hanks and a determination to locate some treasure. As usual, the Chipmunks and Chipettes break into squeaky rap and R&B whenever there’s a lull, which is often. To be fair, this franchise was never intended to appeal to anyone over six. But you do wonder how the filmmakers still managed to contrive something so unfunny and trite. Parents should take along their own entertainment.

Derek Adams

From Time Out London

Dir Mike Mitchell, category I, 87 mins, opens on Dec 22