Blue crew’s big screen adventure
The latest cinematic adventure for Peyo’s characters, Smurfs, promises a fun family outing. What began in 1958 as a Belgian comic book series quickly became a sensation, spawning TV adverts, a Hanna-Barbera series in the 1980s, two live-action films in the early 2010s, and another animated film by Sony Pictures Releasing in 2017.
My own history with The Smurfs stretches back to childhood, when I was obsessed with the Hanna-Barbera series and especially the live-action films starring Neil Patrick Harris in 2011 and 2013. Vanity was always my favourite Smurf.
The 2025 film, also titled Smurfs, introduces us to No Name, a Smurf literally without a name, voiced by James Corden. He’s on a quest to discover his identity and purpose. One day, No Name accidentally gains magical powers and creates a portal, sucking Papa Smurf, voiced by John Goodman, into the real world. Now, Smurfette, voiced by Rihanna, and No Name must rally their friends and travel to the real world to rescue Papa Smurf, who has been captured by Razamel, Gargamel’s evil twin brother. That’s all I’m giving away – no spoilers!
First, the good points. The animation is absolutely dazzling, a real feast for the eyes, reminiscent of The Peanuts Movie with its 2.5D look. The story was genuinely engaging; halfway through, I wasn’t sure who was good or bad, and I loved the unpredictable outcome. The chemistry between Smurfette and No Name was also a highlight; they genuinely felt like best friends. The film’s message about believing in yourself and being true to who you are also resonated.
The voice acting was really on point. Addressing the big blue elephant in the room first: Rihanna as Smurfette. I usually dislike it when singers try acting, as many, in my opinion, struggle (cough, cough, Ariana Grande in Wicked, as much as I adore her). But in this instance, Rihanna was truly charming and made a great Smurfette. She was sweet, funny, and utterly adorable, just like the character she voices.
James Corden voices No Name. I usually can’t stand James Corden – I hated him in The Emoji Movie and as Peter Rabbit – but here, he was actually tolerable and played a character rather than himself. Rylan Clark voices Vanity Smurf. When I first heard this news, I thought, “YES, THAT IS PERFECT!” However, he wasn’t given many lines and felt quite dull, which was a shame.
To conclude, Smurfs is a really fun, colourful, and engaging film to take your little ones to this summer whilst they’re off school. It felt like a 90-minute episode of the Hanna-Barbera series, and it was genuinely fun to watch. That’s all I wanted from this film; I didn’t expect anything big, action-packed, or life-changing – just an enjoyable time, and for that, this movie delivers.
This film gets a big blue 8.5 out of 10.
