MANILA, Philippines - If you?re familiar with the old ?Alvin and the Chipmunks? cartoons, you probably felt some uneasiness upon seeing their digitally rendered faces on the official poster, which had them looking a little sinister. But worry not. The squeaky-voiced trio looks better and friendlier in the movie than on the poster. Whatever cuteness they inherently had as two-dimensional TV characters in the past is replicated now that they?re animated 3-D figures. They look cartoony but, paradoxically, they mesh nicely with their live-action surroundings.

Contemporary

The cartoon and music icons, created five decades back by Ross Bagdasarian Sr., reappear in the adorable ?Alvin and the Chipmunks,? directed by Tim Hill (?Spongebob Squarepants?) and co-written by Jon Vitti (?The Simpsons?), Will McRobb and Chris Viscardi (?The Adventures of Pete & Pete?).

It?s witty and very contemporary, humor-wise, but it?s still family-friendly enough. Well, there?s one gross joke that involves a raisin-like pellet, but that?s just a rare instance.

Mostly, the movie is about talking and singing animals in the ?real? world and their encounter with today?s pop star-making machinery. Of course, it wouldn?t be ?The Chipmunks? without their songwriter friend Dave Seville (Jason Lee), their first and favorite human pal. The laughs?and also the typically, predictably safe drama?mostly stem from the talented kid critters? interactions with him, and the tough time he has living with the three singing sensations. That bond, known to fans of the old records, remains intact and crucial.

But raising the boys gets doubly challenging when rowdy Alvin, clever Simon and cuddly Theodore (voiced by Justin Long, Matthew Gray Gubler and Jesse McCartney) immediately become a chart-topping boy band. Soon enough, they?re tempted to leave Dave by the smarmy and sneaky music producer, Ian Hawk (David Cross), who has no compunctions with overworking and exploiting the young new celebs.

?Alvin and the Chipmunks? goes through the motions, but it?s entertaining enough. It?s quite thrilling to see and hear the Chipmunks? wonderful renditions of ?Bad Day? and ?Funkytown,? among other sprightly numbers. The barrage of CGI cuteness doesn?t stop; it also helps that each of them is written distinctly?and more or less as how generations of fans remember them. It?s good that they fit in a current-day setting, too.

Not great, but enjoyable

There really isn?t much to explore in this first film, however. The trio?s success story proceeds quickly and without real consequence. After some rousing numbers and a few expected confrontations, the film just ends sedately. Still, everyone stays in character; it?s not as if they were fame-hungry wannabes when they started. It?s just that whatever conflicts the story was leading to sort of fizzled later and lacked much-needed impact.

While not a great movie, it?s still a pretty enjoyable one.