Latest news with #SmurfVillage
San Francisco Chronicle
16-07-2025
- Entertainment
- San Francisco Chronicle
Movie Review: 'Smurfs' has Rihanna but not much else
Justin Timberlake had 'Trolls.' Rihanna has 'Smurfs.' Now, we patiently await a 'Gummi Bears' with the Biebs. But first we have 'Smurfs,' which, like 'Trolls,' gets as much mileage as it can from its pop singer-voice actor. Rihanna voices Smurfette and supplies a new song, giving a half-hearted injection of star power to an otherwise uninspired, modestly scaled, kiddo-friendly cartoon feature. 'Smurfs,' directed by Chris Miller ( 'Puss in Boots,' 'Shrek the Third'), cribs heavily from the 'Trolls' playbook. Both feature brightly colored little forest creatures that like a good tune. In the opening of 'Smurfs,' Papa Smurf (John Goodman) is DJing for a dancing Smurf Village. As the many Smurfs gyrate next to mushroom houses, you might find yourself wondering how we got here. And what, exactly, is a Smurf, anyway? It's been nearly 70 years since Belgian comic artist Peyo created 'Les Schtroumpfs,' though most of those still familiar with the little blue fellas remember them from the 1980s Hanna-Barbera cartoons. The Smurfs have never really transcended their Saturday morning cartoon origins. Neither a pair of live-action hybrid movies in the early 2010s or a 2017 animated release have done much more than keep us vaguely aware of what a Phrygian cap is. And 'Smurfs' is unlikely to change that. The best thing that can be said for the latest attempt to reboot the blue Belgian beings is that it maintains the light feel of a morning cartoon. Even with a brief SpongeBob SquarePants short running ahead of it, 'Smurfs' — seemingly designed to be the least ambitious of all possible parent-child outings — passes in about 90 minutes. The pressing issue in Miller's film is that one Smurf, No Name Smurf (James Corden), lacks a defining feature. There are so many other labels already taken that all that's left for him are Clog Making Smurf and Shark Taming Smurf — and neither of those is promising, either. When No Name Smurf suddenly grows magical powers, he gets a boost in confidence but inadvertently sets off a dangerous chain reaction. The burst of magic reveals the location of Smurf Village and a long-hidden magical book that, if reunited with three others, confers world domination. (Fun fact: This is also what happens if you reunify all first editions of James Joyce's 'Ulysses.') The outburst brings the attention of the evil wizard Razamel, brother of Gargamel. (Both are excellently voiced by JP Karliak.) And the Smurfs are cast into a chase through dimensions to rescue the kidnapped Papa Smurf and prevent Razamel from seizing the fourth book. The trip takes them through Paris, Munich, Australia and, briefly, Claymation. The zaniness is often forced. There are also Koosh ball-like creatures named Snooter Poots with a leader named Mama Poot (Natasha Lyonne). And if you were ever hoping to hear Rihanna sing, as a Smurf, from the seat of a kangaroo pouch, your movie has finally arrived. But any expectations of something more quickly dissipate, despite the fact that 'Smurfs' was scripted by Pam Brady, the screenwriter of 'Hot Rod' and co-writer of 'Team America: World Police.' Most of the attempts at adult-winking gags are hackneyed jokes about Zoom, podcasting, spam filters and LinkedIn.
Hamilton Spectator
16-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Hamilton Spectator
Movie Review: ‘Smurfs' has Rihanna but not much else
Justin Timberlake had 'Trolls.' Rihanna has 'Smurfs.' Now, we patiently await a 'Gummi Bears' with the Biebs. But first we have 'Smurfs,' which, like 'Trolls,' gets as much mileage as it can from its pop singer-voice actor. Rihanna voices Smurfette and supplies a new song, giving a half-hearted injection of star power to an otherwise uninspired, modestly scaled, kiddo-friendly cartoon feature. 'Smurfs,' directed by Chris Miller ( 'Puss in Boots,' 'Shrek the Third'), cribs heavily from the 'Trolls' playbook. Both feature brightly colored little forest creatures that like a good tune. In the opening of 'Smurfs,' Papa Smurf (John Goodman) is DJing for a dancing Smurf Village. As the many Smurfs gyrate next to mushroom houses, you might find yourself wondering how we got here. And what, exactly, is a Smurf, anyway? It's been nearly 70 years since Belgian comic artist Peyo created 'Les Schtroumpfs,' though most of those still familiar with the little blue fellas remember them from the 1980s Hanna-Barbera cartoons. The Smurfs have never really transcended their Saturday morning cartoon origins. Neither a pair of live-action hybrid movies in the early 2010s or a 2017 animated release have done much more than keep us vaguely aware of what a Phrygian cap is. And 'Smurfs' is unlikely to change that. The best thing that can be said for the latest attempt to reboot the blue Belgian beings is that it maintains the light feel of a morning cartoon. Even with a brief SpongeBob SquarePants short running ahead of it, 'Smurfs' — seemingly designed to be the least ambitious of all possible parent-child outings — passes in about 90 minutes. The pressing issue in Miller's film is that one Smurf, No Name Smurf (James Corden), lacks a defining feature. There are so many other labels already taken that all that's left for him are Clog Making Smurf and Shark Taming Smurf — and neither of those is promising, either. When No Name Smurf suddenly grows magical powers, he gets a boost in confidence but inadvertently sets off a dangerous chain reaction. The burst of magic reveals the location of Smurf Village and a long-hidden magical book that, if reunited with three others, confers world domination. (Fun fact: This is also what happens if you reunify all first editions of James Joyce's 'Ulysses.') The outburst brings the attention of the evil wizard Razamel, brother of Gargamel. (Both are excellently voiced by JP Karliak.) And the Smurfs are cast into a chase through dimensions to rescue the kidnapped Papa Smurf and prevent Razamel from seizing the fourth book. The trip takes them through Paris, Munich, Australia and, briefly, Claymation. The zaniness is often forced. There are also Koosh ball-like creatures named Snooter Poots with a leader named Mama Poot (Natasha Lyonne). And if you were ever hoping to hear Rihanna sing, as a Smurf, from the seat of a kangaroo pouch, your movie has finally arrived. But any expectations of something more quickly dissipate, despite the fact that 'Smurfs' was scripted by Pam Brady, the screenwriter of 'Hot Rod' and co-writer of 'Team America: World Police.' Most of the attempts at adult-winking gags are hackneyed jokes about Zoom, podcasting, spam filters and LinkedIn. You can almost feel IP-rights pressures animating the entire enterprise. See, there are other Smurf names out there. What about Corporate Mandate Smurf? 'Smurfs,' a Paramount Pictures release, is rated PG by the Motion Picture Association for action, language and some rude humor. Running time: 92 minutes. One and a half stars out of four.
Winnipeg Free Press
16-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Winnipeg Free Press
Movie Review: ‘Smurfs' has Rihanna but not much else
Justin Timberlake had 'Trolls.' Rihanna has 'Smurfs.' Now, we patiently await a 'Gummi Bears' with the Biebs. But first we have 'Smurfs,' which, like 'Trolls,' gets as much mileage as it can from its pop singer-voice actor. Rihanna voices Smurfette and supplies a new song, giving a half-hearted injection of star power to an otherwise uninspired, modestly scaled, kiddo-friendly cartoon feature. 'Smurfs,' directed by Chris Miller ( 'Puss in Boots,' 'Shrek the Third'), cribs heavily from the 'Trolls' playbook. Both feature brightly colored little forest creatures that like a good tune. In the opening of 'Smurfs,' Papa Smurf (John Goodman) is DJing for a dancing Smurf Village. As the many Smurfs gyrate next to mushroom houses, you might find yourself wondering how we got here. And what, exactly, is a Smurf, anyway? It's been nearly 70 years since Belgian comic artist Peyo created 'Les Schtroumpfs,' though most of those still familiar with the little blue fellas remember them from the 1980s Hanna-Barbera cartoons. The Smurfs have never really transcended their Saturday morning cartoon origins. Neither a pair of live-action hybrid movies in the early 2010s or a 2017 animated release have done much more than keep us vaguely aware of what a Phrygian cap is. And 'Smurfs' is unlikely to change that. The best thing that can be said for the latest attempt to reboot the blue Belgian beings is that it maintains the light feel of a morning cartoon. Even with a brief SpongeBob SquarePants short running ahead of it, 'Smurfs' — seemingly designed to be the least ambitious of all possible parent-child outings — passes in about 90 minutes. The pressing issue in Miller's film is that one Smurf, No Name Smurf (James Corden), lacks a defining feature. There are so many other labels already taken that all that's left for him are Clog Making Smurf and Shark Taming Smurf — and neither of those is promising, either. When No Name Smurf suddenly grows magical powers, he gets a boost in confidence but inadvertently sets off a dangerous chain reaction. The burst of magic reveals the location of Smurf Village and a long-hidden magical book that, if reunited with three others, confers world domination. (Fun fact: This is also what happens if you reunify all first editions of James Joyce's 'Ulysses.') The outburst brings the attention of the evil wizard Razamel, brother of Gargamel. (Both are excellently voiced by JP Karliak.) And the Smurfs are cast into a chase through dimensions to rescue the kidnapped Papa Smurf and prevent Razamel from seizing the fourth book. The trip takes them through Paris, Munich, Australia and, briefly, Claymation. The zaniness is often forced. There are also Koosh ball-like creatures named Snooter Poots with a leader named Mama Poot (Natasha Lyonne). And if you were ever hoping to hear Rihanna sing, as a Smurf, from the seat of a kangaroo pouch, your movie has finally arrived. But any expectations of something more quickly dissipate, despite the fact that 'Smurfs' was scripted by Pam Brady, the screenwriter of 'Hot Rod' and co-writer of 'Team America: World Police.' Most of the attempts at adult-winking gags are hackneyed jokes about Zoom, podcasting, spam filters and LinkedIn. You can almost feel IP-rights pressures animating the entire enterprise. See, there are other Smurf names out there. What about Corporate Mandate Smurf? 'Smurfs,' a Paramount Pictures release, is rated PG by the Motion Picture Association for action, language and some rude humor. Running time: 92 minutes. One and a half stars out of four.
Yahoo
16-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Rihanna thrilled to see Smurfs movie being 'birthed'
Rihanna is thrilled that Smurfs is "finally being birthed". The 37-year-old star voices the part of Smurfette in the new animated movie, and Rihanna is delighted that her kids can now finally enjoy the movie. The chart-topping singer - who has RZA, three, and Riot, 23 months, with A$AP Rocky - told Extra: "We get to watch the movie together for the first time. I get to watch it in its full completion. So, that should be interesting. "Everybody gets to watch it on the 18th. So, we're really going for it now. It's finally being birthed." Rihanna - who stars in the new movie alongside the likes of James Corden, Sandra Oh, Jimmy Kimmel, Octavia Spencer, Alex Winter, and Hannah Waddingham - admitted that the film's premiere felt "so far away" when the project began. She said: "We've been working on it for so long. So, like, a few years now, actually. And it's happening … You know, you start working on something and 2025 feels so far away and then we're here." Despite this, Rihanna's sons weren't aware of her involvement with the movie. However, the singer - who has largely put her music career on hold in recent years, in order to focus on other ventures - was looking forward to seeing the reaction of her boys. Asked if they knew that she was playing Smurfette, Rihanna replied: "The boys know nothing, they're being introduced to Smurf Village right now, the blue carpet, and next is going to be me watching their reaction when they realise my voice is coming out of the screen. I can't wait for that one." Rihanna was a Smurfs fan during her younger years, and Ramsey Naito, the president of Paramount Animation and Nickelodeon Animation, thinks she's perfectly suited to the role of Smurfette. Ramsey recently told Variety: "When we first met with her, we learned that the Smurfs was her favourite show growing up, and from that moment, everything just clicked. "It felt completely natural to reimagine the Smurfs for today's audience with Rihanna as Smurfette because her genuine love for the franchise made her the perfect fit." Rihanna's "passion" for the Smurfs franchise actually shone through during the production process. The Paramount boss also observed that the film's "secret ingredient is love". Ramsey said: "I think when you're refreshing a beloved franchise like The Smurfs, the secret ingredient is love. And that love must come from people who truly care about the characters and their story. "Rihanna brought that passion, and it shines through in every part of the film."
Perth Now
14-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Perth Now
Billie Lourd predicts her kids will love Smurfs movie
Billie Lourd's kids will "freak out" about her Smurfs role. The 32-year-old actress stars in the new animated movie alongside the likes of Rihanna, James Corden, Sandra Oh, Jimmy Kimmel, Octavia Spencer, Alex Winter, and Hannah Waddingham, and Billie is convinced that her kids will love the film. Billie - who has son Kingston, four, and daughter Jackson, two - told People: "I just love to do anything that they'll care about." The actress - who previously appeared as Lieutenant Connix in the Star Wars sequel trilogy - is "so excited" for her kids to watch the new movie. She said: "This might be my career peak because it's something that they're gonna freak out about, and I'm just so excited for them to watch it and love me more." Meanwhile, Rihanna - Billie's Smurfs co-star - is also delighted that her kids can now finally enjoy the movie. The chart-topping singer - who has RZA, three, and Riot, 23 months, with A$AP Rocky - recently told Extra: "We get to watch the movie together for the first time. I get to watch it in its full completion. So, that should be interesting. "Everybody gets to watch it on the 18th. So, we're really going for it now. It's finally being birthed." Rihanna explained that the film's premiere felt "so far away" when the project began. She said: "We've been working on it for so long. So, like, a few years now, actually. And it's happening … You know, you start working on something and 2025 feels so far away and then we're here." Rihanna's sons weren't aware of her involvement with the movie. However, the singer - who has largely put her music career on hold in recent years, in order to focus on other ventures - was looking forward to seeing the reaction of her boys. Asked if they knew that she was playing Smurfette in the film, Rihanna replied: "The boys know nothing, they're being introduced to Smurf Village right now, the blue carpet, and next is going to be me watching their reaction when they realise my voice is coming out of the screen. I can't wait for that one."
