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The Smurfs (2011)

Starring: Hank Azaria, Neil Patrick Harris, Jayma Mays, Sofía Vergara, Tim Gunn, Katy Perry

Director: Raja Gosnell

Release Date: July 29th, 2011
Release Date: 10th August, 2011

Running Time: 103 Mins

Synopsis: When the evil wizard Gargamel chases the tiny blue Smurfs out of their village, they tumble from their magical world and into ours -- in fact, smack dab in the middle of Central Park. Just three apples high and stuck in the Big Apple, the Smurfs must find a way to get back to their village before Gargamel tracks them down.

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About the Movie

The Smurfs is a 2011 American 3D family film based on The Smurfs comic book series created by Peyo and the 1980s animated TV series it spawned. It was directed by Raja Gosnell and stars Neil Patrick Harris, Hank Azaria, Jayma Mays, and Sofía Vergara. It is the first CGI/live-action hybrid film to be produced by Sony Pictures Animation and in The Smurfs trilogy. During early production the film was known as The Smurfs Movie.

After five years of negotiations, Jordan Kerner bought the rights in 2002 and was in development with Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies until Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Animation obtained the film rights in 2008. Filming began in March 2010 in New York City.

After having the release date changed three times, Columbia Pictures released The Smurfs on July 29, 2011. Box office analysts initially predicted the film would tie with Cowboys & Aliens, but The Smurfs ultimately came in second grossing $35.6 million against Cowboys & Aliens’s $36.4 million. The Smurfs received generally negative reviews from film critics but has been a box office success, and CinemaScore polls showed a positive score from audience voters.

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Movie Reviews

Movie Review from TotalFilm.com

"I'm Papa Smurf. I have 99 sons and one daughter – nothing weird going on there..." sneers Hank Azaria's wizard Gargamel at the start of Raja Gosnell's (Scooby-Doo) CG/live-actioner based on Peyo's Belgian cartoons. There is something weird going on, not least the sexing up of Katy Perry-voiced Smurfette when the critters are transported from their village to New York.

Read the Full Movie Review at TotalFilm.com

Movie Review from Hollywood.com

Kids' movies may be the most difficult cinematic mountains to climb. The filmmakers must cater to two perspectives at constant odds with one another: young ones, who find amusement in simplistic stories and broadly painted humor, and their parents, who need enough of a grounded hook, emotional core and clever jokes to keep them from nodding off. Not an easy task. To see this winning combination pulled off by a 3-D, animation/live-action hybrid adaptation of a rather irritatingly sweet cartoon from the '80s…well, it's both a shocking and welcome surprise.

Read the Full Movie Review at Hollywood.com

Movie Review from Guardian.co.uk

Perhaps you watched Alvin and the Chipmunks and were convulsed by a deep need for another film like that. Or perhaps you specifically felt the need for a sugary family 3D film about the Smurfs – who are described in this film, incidentally, as "mythical", rather than fictional. Either way, this could be the film for you. The little blue Belgian creatures find themselves in modern-day New York, where they are pursued by the evil wizard Gargamel, played by comedy stalwart Hank Azaria.

Read the Full Movie Review at Guardian.co.uk

Movie Review from TimeOut.com

To play The Smurfs Drinking Game you will need: Two 500cl bottles of Blue Bols (per player), one white sleeping cap, ample powder-blue face paint and too much spare time. Rules: When the word 'Smurf' is used as a family-friendly substitute for an expletive (eg 'What the Smurf?!'): take a shot. When the Smurfs sing their happy indoctrination song: take a shot. When the Smurfs conduct an unreasonably lengthy dialogue scene in front of a well-placed product: shot.

Read the Full Movie Review at TimeOut.com

Movie Review from Movies.com

No amount of putting "smurf" into normal words could make this movie interesting or cute. As per usual, I kept an ear out for what the children in the theater found funny, and the biggest laughs were Gargamel falling into a pile of garbage bags and Clumsy falling into the toilet. Those were the two big moments, and I'm convinced that the small giggles I heard during the other 84 minutes of the film were brought on by kids fooling with their parent's cell phones.

Read the Full Movie Review at Movies.com

Movie Review from Telegraph.co.uk

The Smurfs might be OK if it weren't for the annoying little blue people. Raja Gosnell's movie whisks them from their village to Manhattan via a wormhole, and has them plague a frazzled ad exec (Neil Patrick Harris, wondering if it's all a nightmare) until he gives in to their smushy charms. Hank Azaria's Gargamel isn't as funny as you'd hope, but the film's self-aware enough to admit the weirdness of Smurfette being the sole girl, agrees about the utter nuisance of their singing, and all but apologises to the parents in the audience.

Read the Full Movie Review at Telegraph.co.uk

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'The Smurfs' Stars

Hank Azaria, Jayma Mays, Katy Perry, Neil Patrick Harris, Raja Gosnell, Sofía Vergara, Tim Gunn

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'The Smurfs' Movie Links

The Smurfs on IMDb
The Smurfs on Wikipedia

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