Smurfs: The Lost Village (2017)

Dreadfully Boring

It isn't all that great, actually. Really cheesy and very predicable of how certain scenes are gonna turn play out. However, I guess that's the charm of it all, because I would consider this one of my guilty pleasures.

Worth seeing just to witness how winsome it is.

If you're interested in the topic at hand, you should just watch it and judge yourself because the reviews have gone very biased by people that didn't even watch it and just hate (or love) the creator. I liked it, it was well written, narrated, and directed and it was about a topic that interests me.

Today, I'll be reviewing "Smurfs: The Lost Village".In the film, Smurfette (played by Demi Lovato) is once again having trouble figuring out who she is and what her place in the world can be. But then, she and her friends Brainy (played by Danny Pudi), Clumsy (played by Jack McBrayer), and Hefty (played by Joe Monganiello) discover a map leading to another Smurf village leading into a place called The Forbidden Forest! Now, they must find the lost village with other Smurfs before their archenemy Gargamel (played by Rainn Wilson) finds it first in order to drain them of the magic inside of them!I'd like to start off by saying that while the film isn't the best out of all animated films, it isn't without entertainment here and there. In short, everything was mostly a fifty/fifty for me.I thought that the animators did a great job at helping the characters and settings retain the 1980s cartoon and comic look, but, I felt that the computer animation they used for the film didn't fit and that it should've just been hand-drawn animated. Everything about the animation and what it was used on had mostly felt like wallpaper that just wouldn't stay put no matter how much glue you use. Much of the time, it gave me a headache.But there are its standouts, really. The animation moments where shadows were cast onto light were parts that got me really intrigued. I also thought the animation used with liquid, dirt, and pictures in the film were really well done.With the voice acting and cast, in some ways I felt that it was a definite improvement over the old cartoon, because they didn't sound too high-pitched. But, I also felt like many members of the cast were struggling on how to make themselves sound natural like the old cartoon.The performance of Rainn Wilson as Gargamel was great, but, I felt like I had problems with it. Much of Wilson's voice acting and lines seemed to be particularly unnatural and long in so many parts of the film, and he seemed to struggle with how to make his character funny most of the time.Examples being these:"Stop ruining things! Ruining things is my thing!""Oh, I'm okay. A little tired. Kind of water-logged. Thanks for asking, but, I'm still evil, so...""Enjoy drowning! Hope you are better swimmers than you are judges of character.""Well, I was thinking of getting a little place out here. Just a quiet place in the forest. It's a little breezy up on the hill-WHAT DO YOU THINK I'M DOING HERE?!"Overall, I felt that it wasn't the best.But the voicing does have its standouts really. The performances of Demi Lovato as Smurfette, Jack McBrayer as Clumsy, and Michelle Rodriguez as Stormy (a new character) were the ones I really thought stood out when it comes to outstanding and funny performances. They had really awesome lines; made even the most unnatural of ones seem natural; and did such a great job at making their characters lovable too.With the story that the writers of the film made, I thought that the concept of another village, hidden away from outsiders in an enchanted place, was really original for a Smurfs story. Its focus on Smurfette in particular, as well as her character development and quest to find out who she is were parts of the film that particularly got me engaged. Everything about it was really relatable.In the end, Smurfs: The Lost Village will entrance kids and fans of the Smurfs, but it likely won't be something for adults, newcomers, and animation enthusiasts. It likely also won't pass as the best comedy ever despite some solid gags here and there.

To be fair, you must have a very high IQ to understand The Smurfs. The humor is extremely subtle, and without a solid grasp of theoretical physics most of the jokes will go over a typical viewers head. The philosophy draws heavily from Narodnaya Volya literature, for instance. The fans understand this stuff; they have the intellectual capacity to truly appreciate the depths of these jokes, to realize that they're not just funny- they say something deep about LIFE. As a consequence, people who dislike this movie truly ARE idiots- of course they wouldn't appreciate I'm smirking right now just imagining one of those addlepated simpletons scratching their heads in confusion as Dan Harmon's genius wit unfolds itself on their television screens. What fools.. how I pity them. 😂 And yes, by the way, I DO have a Smurfs tattoo. And no, you cannot see it. It's for the ladies' eyes only- and even then, they have to demonstrate that they're within 5 IQ points of my own (preferably lower) beforehand. Nothing personnel kid 😎

When I started watching this movie"Smurf", This is a nice film, that particularly targets little kids. Enjoy the movie! I watch a lot of animations and cartoons and love me a feel good film. This movie had some basic elements and the overall moral was quite nice. But this movie had been done a million times before and in a million better ways. A great homage to the classic Smurf characters, The Lost village is that and more. Great movie for everyone. That could have made for better comedy. Like it!!!

'SMURFS: THE LOST VILLAGE': Two and a Half Stars (Out of Five) A reboot to the 'SMURFS' film franchise, this one is entirely animated (unlike the previous two movies, which were partially live-action). In this film Smurfette, and three other smurfs, try to find a lost village before Gargamel does. It was directed by Kelly Asbury (who's also helmed other hit animated movies like 'SHREK 2', 'GNOMEO & JULIET' and 'SPIRIT: STALLION OF THE CIMARRON'). It was scripted by Stacey Harmen and Pamela Ribon, and it's of course once again based on the comic book (and cartoon series) created by Peyo. The film stars the voices of Demi Lovato, Rainn Wilson, Mandy Patinkin, Joe Manganiello, Jack McBrayer, Danny Pudi, Michelle Rodriguez, Ellie Kemper and Julia Roberts. It's received mostly negative reviews from critics (although they're better than the previous two movies) and it was also another huge hit at the Box Office (like the last two films). I found it to be decently made (for a kids' film), but still mostly a bore.When Smurfette (Lovato) thinks she sees another unknown smurf, she follows it into the Forbidden Forrest and is captured by Gargamel (Wilson). Hefty Smurf (Manganiello), Brainy Smurf (Pudi) and Clumsy Smurf (McBrayer) rescue her, and in the process they discover Gargamel's plot (and map) to discover a lost village. The four smurfs then venture to find the village before Gargamel does. The whole time Smurfette tries to learn her true purpose in the world.The movie is arguably better than the previous two installments; although I liked that the first one had Sofia Vergara in it, as a domineering antagonist (and this one has the voice of her husband, Manganiello). All three films have been surprisingly faithful to the source material (mostly), compared to most other modern feature adaptations of classic cartoon shows. Still, all three films also fail to capture the original cartoon's charm and nostalgic magic. They're all decently made, but also silly and boring (in my opinion). I definitely don't hate them either though, having grownup on the 80s' cartoon show. To me, this one is about equal to the others (possibly slightly better).Watch our latest 'MOVIE TALK' movie review here: https://vimeo.com/226190246