When Papa Smurf is taken by evil wizards Razamel and Gargamel, Smurfette leads the Smurfs on a mission to the real world to save him. (from IMDb)

The Smurfs feel like they've been around forever at this point, and many of us have grown up with the little blue fellas being part of our childhood in some capacity. When I was a kid, it was the cartoon show, and then in recent years, Sony released their live action, CG animated hybrid films. But at some point (around 2022 apparently), Paramount Pictures got their fingers on the franchise and we've received a brand new animated, - with an odd mix of occasional live action - music-heavy feature film, simply titled Smurfs.

With the production leading with Rihanna as the big draw voicing Smurfette, it doesn't sound too promising. It's not that Rihanna doesn't have star power, but I'm pretty sure most Smurfs fans aren't going to hear about a Smurfs movie boasting Rihanna as the sole name attached to it and immediately feel the need to check it out. There's so many things that are strange and don't make a lot of sense about this production. The film feels like a broad collection of ideas that are all put together just for the heck of it. And, sadly, they don't work collectively. Some movies are zany and full of some really neat ideas, and it works. This movie is the perfect example of when it doesn't.

For example, in this film, the Smurfs meet these new creatures called Snooterpoots. They kind of look like what you'd get if you took just the hair from those little Trolls dolls and gave it snaggle-toothed faces. They're not very unique in appearance, and they feel really random for this world. The film also, once again, drags the Smurfs into the live action real world. It's only part of the story, but it feels so overdone and tired at this point. I loved the idea of getting a Smurf village / Smurf world kind of story, but it doesn't stay there for very long. And when we get a glimpse of the village later in the movie, there's an exhale of relief to see it again. Sadly, it doesn't last. Furthermore, there's a gag about the multi-verse, which they use to take the characters through several different visual art styles. It's a little neat, but it feels like it's been done many times before - and done better. There is also an inexplicable mix of cartoon humans and then real world humans. At one point, in the real world, the Smurfs go to visit humans and those end up being animated. It's a head-scratching moment that just makes the movie feel even more disjointed and frenetic - in a bad way - than it already is.

Then there's the music. Rihanna's songs are fine, but if they're not your cup of tea stylistically, you'll not be too interested in it. The movie forces song interludes that feel like mini music videos, and it all just feels like it's trying too hard to make the Smurfs cool and relevant for a new generation. Again, other productions seem to be able to do this well, but Smurfs does not. And when the movie closes with a musical dance number that mixes Hindi into the lyrics, it's just... weird. Where on earth did that come from?

But "inclusion" feels like the unofficial goal of the film. The main character is No Name Smurf. It's a cute idea - since all Smurfs have a "thing," be it Handy, Vanity, Brainy, etc - but it's kind of a joke that wears thin pretty quickly. It's about figuring out who you are and what your place is in life. Again, it's a tired theme, which can often be done well regardless, but it feels "blah" here. Also, Smurfette is supposed to be the only female Smurf, but some actresses voice some of the male Smurfs to support their individual themes. So having Maya Erskine voice Vanity Smurf feels particularly iffy and suggestive of what that might mean. Sandra Oh voices Moxie Smurf and Billie Lourd voices Worry Smurf. Maybe if it's made more clear that these are also female Smurfs, it'd be fine, but it makes you wonder a bit. However, it makes you wonder a little bit less when you realize Razamel and Gargamel are both voiced by JP Karliak, and their assistant Joel, who's very effeminate, is voiced by Dan Levy. It starts to feel like this version of Smurfs has an agenda.

So is there anything good about Smurfs at all? I guess I've seen worse. I do love the animation style here, for the most part. It goes for a 2D, hand-drawn feel, but it's clearly computer animation. It strikes a nice balance between the classic Smurfs look with a slightly modern update. And I also really enjoyed seeing the Smurf village and a couple of the gags with the different kinds of Smurfs (Sound Effects Smurf may be my new favorite). It gets kind of weird when we meet a brother for Papa Smurf and then the 'greatest Smurf of all-time,' Ron, who's voiced by Kurt Russell, but it's fun to hear some of these characters voiced by legends like Russell, John Goodman (Papa) and Nick Offerman (Ken).

The content for Smurfs is mild, but I see why they gave it a PG rating. A turtle character says "What the shell?" not once, but twice. And at one point, the name "Bad *ss Smurf" is suggested and the "*ss" is bleeped out. Another bleep is used seconds later, causing No Name to defensively say "Hey! I said 'Smurf!'" instead of the much worse word the bleep suggested. There are a few uses of "Smurf" as a cuss substitute, but that's pretty on-par for The Smurfs. Finally, there's some action violence, but it's relatively mild, leaving just the magical elements of the plot as something that might concern some parents. I knew some kids growing up who weren't allowed to watch The Smurfs cartoon show because of the magic spells and such, so if that's a problem for anyone, this movie definitely treads similar ground. The plot involves four magical books that Razamel has been spending decades trying to track down and unite, and there is plenty of spell-casting throughout the film. One of the Smurfs also finds that they have the ability to use magic, too.

2025's Smurfs is a mess. Diehard fans of the little blue characters may be more forgiving, but for the most part, this latest feature film feels like a collection of mediocre - or bad - ideas that do not coalesce well as a movie. Fans of Rihanna and her music might want to check it out, but everyone else should just let this one pass them by.

Smurfs is available on Blu-Ray and DVD, but it does not appear to be available in 4K. However, the digital copy - which lets you choose between Apple or Fandango - appears to be in 4K UHD.

Featurettes - Play All (22:16)

1. Blue in the Booth: Voicing the Smurfs (5:15)
2. There's a Smurf Like Me: Blue, Old, New (4:07)
3. A World They've Never Seen: Animating Smurfs (5:23)
4. Composing the Blue (4:33)
5. In the Club with DJ Snake (2:58)

Music Videos - Play All (6:30)

1. "Friend of mine" by Rihanna (3:31)
2. "Higher Love" by Desi Trill (feat. Dj Khaled, Cardi B, Natania and Subhi) (2:59)

Lyric Videos - Play All

1. "Friend of mine" by Rihanna (3:31)
2. "Higher Love" by Desi Trill (feat. Dj Khaled, Cardi B, Natania and Subhi) (2:59)
3. "Everything Goes with Blue" by Tyla (2:20)