Naa naa nana na naa, sing a happy song. Naa naa nana na naa, stuck in your head all day long!
For generations, the village of “3 apple high” innocent creatures known as The Smurfs have represented all things innocent and good. They’ve evaded capture not only by the evil wizard Gargamel but also by his meaner brother Razamel (both voiced by JP Karliak).
100 years ago, Razamel plotted to rule the universe with the use of four magical books. But one named Jaunty (Amy Sedaris) escaped and has been protected and kept hidden by wise Papa Smurf (John Goodman) and unknowingly, the whole village ever since, as Smurfs like Smurfette (Rhianna), Hefty (Alex Winter), Vanity (Maya Erskine) and the rest live out their happy, love filled lives.
But No Name Smurf (James Corden) is upset at his lack of a defining characteristic. A chance run in with Jaunty makes his dreams come true, imbuing him with magical powers, but also puts the village at risk! With Papa Smurf kidnapped, Smurfette leads a group of Smurfs on a cross dimensional voyage to rescue him and save the universe.
Created by Belgian comic book artist ‘Peyo‘ in 1958, Smurfs are named after a misremembering of the French word for ‘salt’. Fittingly, these smallest of adventurers and their stories have entertained masses for nearly 70 years. They’ve been adapted to comics, videogames, multiple animated series, and several films. Not to mention, an absolute juggernaut of a merchandising empire fuelled by collectors of all things blue and cute.
The Smurfs were always around while I was a child, being a fan of the comics, toys and 80s TV show. I still remember my favourite episode involved the village stumbling upon crystals which transmitted images, and everyone got their own TV set! Cynically you could say I was only ever into them because of a petrol station tie-in promotion. But nonetheless, I’ve always found the Smurfs franchise to be endearing, a celebration of childhood innocence and all things good.
This is what has given them such everlasting appeal to different generations of children and no doubt, the kids in my audience were having a ball! There’s not a lot to be said for the story of ‘Smurfs‘ as a film, other than its zany, always on the move and ready to introduce new diverse characters.
Criticisms might be that the plot with all its universe hopping, going from fully CGI to live action-animation hybrid does feel like a bit of a mess at times. Not to mention the similarities to the recent ‘Trolls‘ films is quite apparent. Although, Smurfs is not as music heavy in comparison, series writer Pam Brady leans further into that same style of humour, rather than fully distancing from it.
Musically as well, this is one of those films that don’t really feel like a musical. The Smurfs do sing and dance, yet these numbers are so few and far between that they catch you off guard when one pops up (eliciting a few moans from the young audience). Besides the expected modernisation of The Smurfs’ main theme, I can only say a few songs stand out, with the ones featuring Rhianna being highlights.
As is Rhianna‘s performance as Smurfette. It’s traditional now for Smurfette‘s voice in the Smurf feature films to be portrayed by a musical artist. Katy Perry had the role in 2011 & 2013 with Demi Lovato inheriting the part in 2017. Rhianna provides the right amount of heart of a character quite literally defined by her goodness, but also a level of sass to make the role her own. Other supporting cast members are effective with James Corden showing that whether you love him or hate him, the man is an affable voice over artist.
Added to this is a CGI style which is kind of “2.5D”. Some things look solid and three dimensional while others look like old school flat animation. It reminds me of the Spiderverse franchise to some extent, however not at all so jarring in execution. An interesting aesthetic to the feature which harkens back to its early comics roots.
It’s not the best animated film ever and does has some issues with its story. Honestly, I’m not thrilled with the way No Name Smurf’s crisis of identity is wrapped up. Not so much teaching kids that you don’t need to be the best at something or even if you lose your “thing” it’s not the end of the world, which is the lesson Smurfette is trying to teach before the movie itself forgets about it, and just gives us more magical powers!
But I, as well as the children in my cinema, still had a lot of fun with 2025’s Smurfs. Like No Name Smurf, the movie itself has identity issues in trying to live up to the Trolls film franchise. But as light-hearted entertainment for young audiences, there is still much to enjoy here. Plus, you’ll have ‘The Smurfs Theme’ stuck in your head for hours afterwards, regardless of whether you like it or not!