I’m not really a fan of these movies, but this is the best one.
This week the Smurfs return to theaters with their fourth modern-era film – and the third of which can be considered a reboot – since 2011. Two rather ugly but star-studded live action/animation hybrids were followed up by 2017’s course correction: a much better fully animated refresh, Smurfs: the Lost Village.
From the jump, the new film, simply titled Smurfs, already bears one major distinction from those prior films: a new studio. (Pre-Spider-Verse) Sony produced those last three films; this time around Paramount takes the reins. And it does clear a relatively low bar to become the best of the Smurf movies.
Smurfs is directed by Chris Miller – but not that Chris Miller (The Lego Movie, 21 Jump Street, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs). The other Chris Miller (Shrek the Third, Puss in Boots). Not only is Smurfs the best Smurf movie, it’s also the best other Chris Miller movie.
The new film again reboots the concept with a new cast, and returns to the “real world settings” approach of the first two Sony movies, with a crossover between the (mostly) live action world of humans and the animated world of the Smurfs – and has far more success with this execution than the prior films.
One thing the franchise has always done pretty well is feature an impressive cast. Even so, this one may be the best. John Goodman is an ideal Papa Smurf, and Nick Offerman and Kurt Russell are also featured as other warrior Smurfs from his secret past. Rihanna, who is also a producer on the film, stars as Smurfette, carrying on the trend – previously set by Katy Perry and Demi Lovato – of having a pop star in the role.
It’s a move that makes sense for a musical film, and as you probably guessed this one’s full of poppy numbers. This is, after all, the cartoon brand that put out a German techno album in the 90s.
And Smurfette is reliably a major character – not only because she’s the only female Smurf, but also because she has the most dimensionality and backstory, having begun life as a magical creation of the wizard Gargamel as a spy to honeypot the Smurfs. She chose instead to join them
It’s a distinction from the other Smurfs, who are all intentionally one-dimensional as a gimmick, with adjective-driven names that define their characteristics: Brainy Smurf, Grouchy Smurf, Clumsy Smurf, etc. Smurfs works around this limitation by introducing a smurf whose gimmick is that he hasn’t found his gimmick yet (James Corden). He’s “No Name” for the time being.
No Name doesn’t have a thing, but desperately wants magic to be that thing. When he does encounter a magic phenomenon in the form of an ancient grimoire, it ends up tearing a hole in the universe, and putting the Smurfs in the path of their old foe Gargamel and his brother Razamel (both voiced by JP Karliak), who are connected to an ancient evil plot to conquer the world using the power of the grimoires.
Faced with this new challenge, a group of Smurfs venture out into the world to seek out Papa Smurf’s brother Ken (Nick Offerman), a red-bearded tough guy who clues them in on a bigger world than the Smurf Village they know, and of a secret and hidden past that Papa Smurf has put behind him.
The film’s cast is rounded out by an impressive troupe of supporting actors and cameos including Alex Winter, Octavia Spencer, Sandra Oh, DanLevy, Natasha Lyonne, Amy Sidaris, Billie Lourd, Jimmy Kimmel, and Xolo Maridueña among others.
While the Smurfs have turned into a big soulless media property, I respect their origins, as the comic creations of Belgian artist Peyo, first appearing in the 1950s. Their film franchise is much older than most people probably realize; their 1965 first feature was black and white.
I think of the Smurfs as occupying exactly the same class as other great European creations like Asterix and Obelix, Lucky Luke, Marsupilami, or Tintin. Which, thankfully, is something the movie seems to acknowledge. The real-world sequences are set in Europe, specifically Germany and France, countries where The Smurfs have traditionally enjoyed popularity.
I would call attention to one particular sequence where the film earned my favor, a multiversal jaunt in which the Smurfs warp through different universes represented by alternate animation styles like clay stop motion and anime. This sequence really demonstrates how much these creators love animation, and is pretty funny as well.
– A/V Out
