“E.T. forgive Batman.”

Justin’s rating: I am not embarrassed to tell you that I can sing this theme song verbatim and on key.

Justin’s review: You know how we all do that thing where we try to describe what a movie is like by comparing it to a mash-up of other films? Well, I’ve got the strangest comparisons to encapsulate Chip ‘n Dale Rescue Rangers. You ready? Here goes: Galaxy Quest, Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, and The Lego Movie.

Yeah. Try wrapping your head around THAT. But it’ll make sense if you hear me out.

This is such a delightfully strange mixture that Chip ‘n Dale Rescue Rangers defied expectations of being a forgettable reboot of a nostalgic IP to becoming one of the most underrated hits of 2022. And it does it by utilizing some of the best features of the aforementioned films.

As with Roger Rabbit, this movie takes place in a Hollywood where humans and cartoons live together without any commentary as to why this is a thing. As with Galaxy Quest, the core plot is about actors from a former TV show coming back together to essentially reprise their roles but in real life. And as with The Lego Movie, there’s a deep reverence for the source and a willingness to cram in as much pop culture references as possible — the more obscure, the better.

Chip (John Mulaney) and Dale (Andy Samberg) are childhood friends that end up starring in the three-season Disney afternoon cartoon hit in the late ’80s and early ’90s. However, a falling out between buds and the show collapsing led to an estrangement that went on for years — years in which Dale gets CGI surgery (yeah, it’s a thing) and their former fame fades.

However, when their good friend Monterey Jack (Eric Bana) is kidnapped by “Sweet Pete” (an aging Peter Pan), it’s up to these two former pretend gumshoes to become detectives for real. And that means a wildly unpredictable adventure through a fan convention, the Uncanny Valley, Main Street (now with muppet fights), and a garage full of legendary merchandise to save their pal before he becomes “bootlegged.”

Out of every outlandish element in this film — and there are a lot of them — the fact that the villain’s scheme revolves around modifying cartoon characters’ bodies to force them to act in low-budget bootleg knockoffs made me shake my head in pure admiration. That’s not just a deep cut; that’s a cut so severe that every artery’s been severed and I can’t believe Disney authorized this.

I also can’t believe how many random references they packed into this movie, from Jurassic Park to My Little Pony to (of course) Darkwing Duck. But out of every outlandish reference, I was absolutely applauding the use of Ugly Sonic as a pretty major part of the story. Remember Ugly Sonic? The first version of the 2020 CGI character that the internet had the mother of all hissy fits about? This film not only remembers, it absolutely owns it. And it is beautiful and hideous at the same time.

My good friends, if you have a sense of humor and a love for nostalgic baiting, then you must partake in Chip ‘n Dale Rescue Rangers. It does the old show justice while being just as approachable for people (such as my kids) who have no frame of reference for it. It’s unexpectedly hilarious, and my childhood applauds.

Intermission!

• MC Hammer pants!
• E.T. vs Batman — I would totally watch that
• Paw Patrol, Jurassic Park, and My Little Pony in one film, my kids were all happy
• Butthead for Senator
• Uncanny Valley… shudder
• Darkwing Duck! Scrooge McDuck!
• Cartoon reboots ALWAYS rap
• All of the amazing bootleg titles (Jasper the Ghost is my favorite)
• He-Man and Skeletor signing autographs at the same booth tickled me
• AUNT-MAN starring Paul Rudd
• All of the slams against Alvin and the Chipmunks
• Nice Terminator 2 frozen bad guy reference