“The Smurfs 2” is the sequel following up the 2011 film and is loosely based off the comic-book series and TV show of the same name.
This time the storyline actually revolves around the character, Smurfette voiced by Katy Perry. Smurfette is having a hard time fitting in with the rest of the Smurfs because she is not like other Smurfs. She ends up being taken away by Christina Ricci and J.B. Smoove‘s characters Vexy and Hackus to Gargamelplayed by Hank Azaria into our world.
The Smurfs together with their human friends, Patrick, Grace, Blue and Victor played by Neil Patrick Harris, Jayma Mays, Jacob Tremblay and Brendan Gleeson to help rescue Smurfette.
Compared to the previous film, I found that the actors had very little screen time compared to their animated co-stars. I found this quite disappointing as I thoroughly enjoyed Neil Patrick Harris‘s charm and chemistry with Jayma Mays last time. In the previous film, their screen time was actually equal, hence my disappointment.
I thought the storyline was consistent, even though I believe the story focused on Smurfette simply because the character is voiced by Katy Perry who is now more popular than she was during the last film. I personally don’t mind this as I am quite biased and absolutely adore Katy Perry. I also don’t think the storyline suffered because of this fact. Would I consider parents taking their children to see this movie? I would. But it is good for people of any age to enjoy. Considering the session I went to had a lot of kids laughing at many parts of the film, I believe that The Smurfs 2 did exactly what it aimed to achieve.
The main moral of the story that the film wants to leave viewers with is that “it is not where you come from that decides who you are, but who you choose to be”. If considering since a lot of animations are mostly rubbish these days, I found it quite refreshing that this film had a positive message to leave. It also leaves us viewers with a catchy song by Britney Spears titled “Ooh La La” stuck in our head long after the film is over. But if the team want to create a trilogy for the Smurfs film series, I do not know how much further they can take it from here.