8. Alvin And The Chipmunks
Alvin, Simon and Theodore. Just saying those three names out loud is like setting off a car alarm. Those of you with less sensitive hearing may fondly remember the Eighties cartoon series (itself a follow-up of 1961's The Alvin Show), in which a trio of high-pitched rodents form a band and live with their adoptive father and manager, Dave Seville. And those of you who watched at least one episode may recall that Dave, despite coasting off the improbable success of these three miniature musicians, was a little too quick-tempered at times and all that screaming ''Alvin!'' can't have been good for his blood pressure. But still, at least it was all innocent, clean fun. And then, in 2007, came the live-action adaptation. Suddenly, those fresh, furry little faces had been given a smart-assed, CGI makeover. Now, they were nothing more than annoying ringtones. They terrorised poor Dave (played by Jason Lee; his lack of enthusiasm all too apparent) like pint-sized poltergeists. And worse still, they would
not stop singing. Yet despite a near-universal critical panning, the film made $360m worldwide and so the inevitable sequel (or, to use its own tortuous pun, Squeakquel) arrived two years later. Unsurprisingly, it didn't venture too far from the original- only now the chipmunks had a more recent repertoire to choose from and, in the form of the Chipettes, there were twice as many reasons for you not to buy a ticket. And then, in 2011, came the even less necessary third feature, Chipwrecked. Even David Cross, who played the conniving record company executive Ian Hawke and was perhaps the franchise's only redeeming feature, couldn't mask his contempt for the films: later calling his involvement in Chipwrecked in particular ''just a really awful, unpleasant experience''. A fourth instalment is scheduled for 2015. As well as casting aside your hopes of seeing Cross again, you'd be advised to stock up on the aspirin now.