Chip ‘n Dale Rescue Rangers Review: These Two Gumshoes Are Picking Up The Slack

In 2022, Disney+ has brought new life to the Rescue Rangers, but not the way you’d think. The new movie Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers takes place in a world where cartoons and real life collide–much like Who Framed Roger Rabbit?–and the titular chipmunks have to save one of their friends, 30 years after their TV series was canceled. While the idea of this movie may be a little bizarre, it has an exceptionally brilliant voice cast and is one of the funniest films of the year.

In the late ’80s, the anthropomorphic chipmunks Chip ‘n’ Dale got their own animated series. While the duo primarily popped up in shorts during the ’40s and ’50s, Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers put the brothers in the spotlight as owners of a detective agency. Now, the duo are back as former actors who starred in Rescue Rangers who need to save their friend. Dale (Andy Samberg) has been surgically converted into a CGI creation and is looking for acting work, while Chip (John Mulaney) has settled down into life as an insurance salesman.

However, there is someone stealing toons, altering them, and selling them to companies that make bootleg movies overseas. Of course, Chip ‘n Dale knows one of the stolen toons, so they’re back working a case in order to rescue one of their friends.

In one sense, this is Taken with Disney characters, and it works incredibly well. Yes, there are a couple people with a particular set of skills, but none of said skills involve killing your way to the top. We do, however, get that journey of the chipmunk duo turning every stone in order to find their friend.

The typical dynamic of Chip being the level-headed straight-man reeling in Dale’s wild card character continues here. Dale is a bit more grounded and intelligent here, but he still needs some guidance. Mulaney and Samberg play exceptionally well off of each other, both equally funny but for entirely different reasons. Mulaney’s jokes almost go under the radar–a little of a departure from his fantastic stand-up specials–and that’s because the spotlight is a bit more on Samberg’s delivery, which is much more “in-your-face.”

And here’s the thing about Rescue Rangers, it’s really funny. The writing is exceptionally witty and appeals to all ages, which can be a challenge. The juggle of keeping the youngsters entertained while also keeping adults engaged is something some animated films struggle with when the secret to this is simple: just make a good movie. Adults and kids can appreciate the same type of humor, as humor in universal, and that’s typically what Rescue Rangers does well–it plays more toward universal laughs rather than dividing the time trying to appease kids and adults at separate moments.

However, there is something within Rescue Rangers that is exceptionally problematic. This is a movie steeped in pop culture references from every decade, and at many times, it becomes a distraction. It spends a lot of time working in cameos from other animated movies/TV shows/video games into every nook and cranny of the film and there are a few times where pivotal plot points are being delivered to the audience, but there’s a cavalcade of cameos happening in the background, so you tend to focus on that. And because of that, you may miss what’s going on. And while that seems like a silly complaint because “how distracted can you be by cameos,” this movie is made for people to keep track of everything going on in a scene. It’s Where’s Waldo, but without Waldo–unless Waldo was in this movie, and we missed it, which wouldn’t be much of a surprise. This is an aspect of the movie you’re trained to take part in early on, so the hunt for other characters becomes a part of every scene.

The thing that elevated Roger Rabbit from a family movie to one of best films in the last several decades was the mixture of live-action and animated characters on screen, and Rescue Rangers takes that to a new level. It’s live-action, 2D animation, 3D animation, puppets, and even stop-motion animation. Much like the element of cameos in every scene, the mixture of animation can be a little bit of sensory overload, but in a sense, that only seems to add to the chaos that these characters have to traverse on a regular basis. This amalgamation of media gives the film its own look and feel, and it’s engrossing in a way you don’t realize until the movie is over and you’re thrusted back into reality, where your city’s detective is a human and not made of clay.

Chip ‘n’ Dale: Rescue Rangers takes a show parents may remember from their youth and turns it into something better, something a bit more original, all while keeping in the spirit of the original series. It may be a movie, but it’s still a mystery at its heart with a dynamite cast taking over many of the roles. It’s one of the funniest and most entertaining movies so far this year, and it’s something that will bring you a lot of joy, regardless if you loved the original series or not.