Strictly-for-kids-only affair in latest ‘Smurfs’ offering

SMURFS: LOST VILLAGE Running time: 1hr 30min Starring: Ariel Winter, Michelle Rodriguez, Julia Roberts, Mandy Patinkin, Demi Lovato, Gordon Ramsay, Meghan Trainor Director: Kelly Asbury SONY Pictures Animation has gone back to the well and unapologetically left adults behind for the third entry in their Smurfs franchise.

Discarding the combination of live-action and animation that marked the first two efforts, Smurfs: The Lost Village is strictly animated and geared only for younger viewers. The reboot should please its target audience while providing little entertainment value to adult chaperones who appreciated Neil Patrick Harris and Hank Azaria’s over-the-top turns in the first two films. Set entirely in the Smurfs’ fantastical village, it revolves around Smurfette (Demi Lovato), the only female of the species. Upon discovering a mysterious map, she sets off with fellow Smurfs Brainy (Danny Pudi), Clumsy (Jack McBrayer) and Hefty (Joe Manganiello) in search of answers.

The Smurfs’ arch-nemesis, the evil wizard Gargamel (Rainn Wilson), and his feline and avian underlings are in hot pursuit, as is the concerned Papa Smurf (Mandy Patinkin). The Smurfs’ adventures include a harrowing white-water rafting chase, as well as encounters with dragonfly-like insects, Venus Flytrap-style plants and giant, glowing bunny rabbits with a propensity for stampeding. (For further details on the plot, please consult a small child).

Eventually the Smurfs encounter a whole tribe of female counterparts in the Lost Village. They’re led by the commanding Smurf Willow (Julia Roberts), who at one point engages in a coy flirtation with Papa Smurf (ew!).

Featuring animation so brightly coloured and frenetically paced that it potentially threatens the well-being of both diabetics and epileptics, the film is purely for the small fry.

And with a relentless barrage of the sort of bland pop songs designed to fill out a soundtrack CD, Smurfs: The Lost Village is a mediocre effort that nonetheless succeeds in keeping its blue characters alive for future merchandising purposes. – Hollywood Reporter