Smurfs: The Lost Village

This review may contain spoilers!

This is probably the closest we'll ever get to a perfect modern take on the Smurfs. I would give Smurfs: The Lost Village a 7/10.

This movie does a lot of hard work around the character of Smurfette which pays off in quite a big way. Smurfette was originally created to infiltrate the Smurfs and deliver them up to the evil sorcerer Gargamel, however Papa Smurf uses his magic to help her become good and now she lives happily alongside all the Smurfs. This film really focuses on the fact that Smurfette lives in a place where each Smurf can define themselves through one word, whether that be Hefty or Brainy or Clumsy etc. Through the film she is trying to discover what exactly at 'ette' is and what her place is within the world, with the hope of proving she isn't just an evil creation and nothing more. Over the course of the movie this character takes charge of her destiny and sets out to define herself, proving that Smurfette is not like the Smurfs; as the film puts it "Smurfette can be whatever she wants to be". Apart from this brilliant work around the main character the film introduces a new village of all-female Smurfs and both Smurf villages are quick to judge one another on their differences alone, however once Gargamel attacks and Smurfette sacrifices herself for the villages we get a great moment where both villages are united despite their differences. The animation for the film is pretty good with a lot of the quirky or classic character design having a joke or two made at it's own expense, the background animation is some of the best work and the scenery that has been created throughout the feature is some of the most stunning animation so far this year. The soundtrack for the film was also pretty good, using fairly recent tracks added a lot of energy to the film and kept the scenes feeling fresh.

Rainn Wilson, who voiced Gargamel, really brings a classic take on the villain to life; his over the top monologuing and threats made him a baddie to remember. Mandy Patinkin, who voiced Papa Smurf, had the calm yet firm temperament of the leader of the Smurfs; his compassion and love for all the Smurfs in his care really came through in Patinkin's performance. Ellie Kemper, who voiced SmurfBlossom, was such a rapid fire performer when it came to her line delivery; her character hit the screen filled with energy and a fun comedic wit. Julia Roberts, who voiced SmurfWillow, was a very serene and kindly leader; Roberts smug tone and fun interactions with Patinkin were some of the better parts of the film. Jake Johnson, who voiced Grouchy Smurf, really went at this character in a fun committed way; his completely serious and angry tone contrasted greatly with Lovato's performance in their scene together. Gordon Ramsay, who voiced Baker Smurf, was such a great cameo; he really just parodied his usual criticisms about people's cooking/baking but it was one of the funnier moments of the film.

However the best performance came from Demi Lovato, who voiced Smurfette. Lovato provides a character who is so compassionate and seems so kind that she's hard not to like; the fact that she manages to set up that connection with the audience very early into the film is only a bonus. In this feature Smurfette is a character who feels lost amongst a crowd of characters who know without a doubt who they are, Lovato takes Smurfette upon a great exploration of character development over the course of the feature. There's a scene near the end of the film where the Smurfs of the lost village are kidnapped because of her, the resulting moment of guilt and grief from Lovato is the best scene of the entire film. Smurfette is a character seeking out who she is and with the amount of goodness and kindness she displays constantly, Lovato's role is certainly a huge role model for young girls in this movie.

This film has long periods of time where the villain isn't present or the danger that the Smurfs are in doesn't feel like all that much, this means that the film lacks a lot of tension and plays things a bit too safe. Building on from this is the type of comedy used over the course of the film which is cheesy, riddled with bad puns and downright never seeks to do anything all that clever, this Smurfs movie is happy to create a fun animated film but it's not actively trying to be one of the most memorable animated film scripts of the year. Furthermore the way the characters break the fourth wall from time to time is kinda jarring, it draws you out of the moment and is a technique that really doesn't serve much purpose.

Joe Manganiello, who voiced Hefty Smurf, is just super cheesy and plays up his performance too much; his infatuation with Smurfette gets a bit hard to swallow at times and is shoved in your face a lot throughout the film. Jack McBrayer, who voiced Clumsy Smurf, has very little screen presence out of all the main cast; McBrayer plays a goofball role so he often winds up with the dumbest lines of the film. Danny Pudi, who voiced Brainy Smurf, has the most annoying voice out of all the main characters; his whiny tone makes him the hardest to like and connect with. Michelle Rodriguez, who voiced SmurfStorm, doesn't have a voice well suited to voice acting; her stern tough tone doesn't actually provide a lot of range. Ariel Winter, who voiced SmurfLily, is one of the main cast members of the lost village but is probably the most forgettable; Winter is sadly eclipsed in most her scenes by Kemper and Roberts. Kelly Asbury, who voiced Nosy Smurf, is one of those roles who just played to his role's stereotype rather than trying to flesh out a character; this resulted in a rather bland and humourless recurring role.