The Smurfs Movie Review

A family movie with a message for everyone

Reviewed by Dominique Glazier and Elise Cox.

La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la….The Smurfs

You may remember seeing the original Smurfs cartoons on TV as children, reading Smurf books or playing with Smurf toys when you were younger. For those of you who don’t know, Smurfs are little blue creatures who live in an enchanted forest. This humorous, light-hearted movie seems to cross the classic nineties film 'Space Jam' and Disney’s 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarves' except the little guys in this movie are blue!

What's the movie all about?

These small, blue, magical creatures are trying to escape the clutches of the evil sorcerer Gargamel, who is bent on their destruction. The Smurfs are chased into a forbidden cave where they are all sucked into a gigantic vortex, which takes them to New York. They crash land into the lives of dedicated worker Patrick (played by Neil Harris from 'How I met your Mother') and his wife Grace (played by Jayma Mays from 'Glee') who is pregnant with their first child. What follows is a constant stream of fun and hilarity as the Smurfs turn their lives upside down, particularly Patrick’s, as he is under a lot of pressure from his work. For the Smurfs, it is a journey to find their way home and for Patrick it becomes a journey of self discovery as he comes to realise what is more important and what matters most in life.

Amongst the fresh cast are Sofia Vergara (Modern Family) and Katy Perry as the voice of Smurfette.

What the Smurfs movie is trying to teach us

As Papa Smurf and Patrick have a D&M, this movie interestingly delves into an issue that is not often dwelt upon - that achieving success and focusing on one’s career is not as important as other things in life such as family. The Bible also speaks of this in Ecclesiastes 4:8-12, which describes how pointless it is to work for wealth, but then end up with no one to enjoy your life with. The writer describes it as a meaningless pursuit, just like chasing after the wind.

The movie also touches on the issue of judging people. Through the character of Clumsy (who we find out doesn't always have to be clumsy) the movie provides good advice about not letting your first impressions of others cloud your vision and prevent you from seeing what else they can do and be.

Overall the movie was enjoyable to watch with plenty of entertainment for all ages and some positive messages to take away.