When I was a little kid, one of my favorite cartoons was The Smurfs. I think everyone anywhere near my age would have to agree. The Smurfs might have been THE dominant cartoon franchise of that time. I watch cartoons now and they are just insane. I mean Spongebob Squarepants is so out there and wacky that I’m surprised we aren’t raising generations of lunatic fringe group recruits. The Smurfs on the other hand was sensible and taught good lessons, albeit in a fantastical setting and context. One thing though you couldn’t argue with is that the system worked.
That’s one of the reasons I’ve been so put off by all the information that I’ve gathered about The Smurfs movie that’s coming out. If you’ve yet to see anything about the film, slated for an August 2011 release, count yourself lucky. The only thing that seems to be similar when compared to the cartoon might be the fact that yes this are small light blue colored creatures.
The film is a CGI/live-action hybrid film, which means that computer generated graphics are interacting with live actors and real places. This has been done many times before, but I’ve never seen it look as odd as this. You can check out the official teaser video here, but be prepared to be a little creeped out.
The basic premise of the movie is that the Smurfs tormentor the evil wizard Gargamel, played by Hank Azaria, discovers the Smurfs village and chases them into the woods. Some of the Smurfs seek refuge in a forbidden grotto and are transported to modern day New York City. There the Smurfs take up residence with a married couple, played by Neil Patrick Harris and Jayma Mays. Then of course they are in a desperate attempt to return to their village before Gargamel can track them down.
Now I know why they went out and made this film since reviving old cartoons seems to be a goldmine. The Smurfs name alone can sell massive amounts of tickets and the merchandising for this sort of thing is insane. The amount of different toys and stuffed animals alone they will sell for each different Smurf is going to be quite a tidy sum.
The cast of animated voices is quite eclectic, which is something that I can always get along with. The voices range from Jonathan Winters to George Lopez to Jeff Foxworthy to Wolfgang Puck to Paul Ruebens to Katy Perry. They seem to have covered almost every base in that department.
Yet, should they have made this film. Kids today might enjoy it, but I feel pretty confident that people that remember the original Smurfs are going to be cringing throughout the entire film. It seems a shame to go and ruin a classic no matter how much money it might bring in. I think this film is going to be a perfect example of the insane greed that’s overtaken Hollywood in the last decade or so. How many classic things are we going to willing let be butchered. Until the public stands up and stops eating up these disgraceful retreads, Hollywood is going to keep on making them. We have to change before they will. At least I think we still have a conscience.