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THE SMURFSMovie Reviews
Live-action and animated family comedy follows the Smurfs as they are transported to New York City by an evil wizard and must find a way back to their village. Cast:Neil Patrick Harris, Jonathan Winters, George Lopez, Paula Kay PerryDirector:Raja GosnellRelease Date:July 29, 2011DVD Release:December 2, 2011From:Columbia PicturesRating:PGLength:1 hr 49 minIn 3D
The Smurfs played to weak reviews. • Ty Burr wrote in the Boston Globe, "...noisy, formulaic... Any movie that gives Jonathan Winters work is doing something right." • John Anderson wrote in New York Newsday, "Makes enough fun of itself to keep parents amused; kids will eat it up." • And MaryAnn Johanson wrote for Flick Filosopher, "...creates in one the urge to crush them under one’s boot." More Reviews Below...
The Smurfs Positive Reviews (32 Reviews, reviews below)
Keith Staskiewicz, Entertainment Weekly: WEAK(cg) "...recycles discarded bits from other celluloid Happy Meals like 'Alvin and the Chipmunks,' 'Garfield,' and 'Hop'... all careful studio calculation."(See all of Keith Staskiewicz's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 71 words, 07/29/11
Scott Bowles, USA Today: MODERATE(cg) "Attention, all 4-year-olds reading this review: You're going to love 'The Smurfs'.... Attention, parents of said 4-year-olds: You may want to bring something to read..."(See all of Scott Bowles's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 365 words, 07/29/11
Glenn Kenny, MSN Movies: WEAK(cg) "...the strangely lifelike cuddly creatures will have the stoned persons in the audience 'peaking' about 10 minutes in, and are likely to delight actual children as well."(See all of Glenn Kenny's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 687 words, 07/28/11
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Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News: WEAK(cg) "Every other word is 'Smurf': 'Smurf off!,' 'No smurfing way!,' etc. It always sounded strange; now it also sounds self-absorbed."(See all of Joe Neumaier's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 346 words, 07/29/11
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: POOR "...more 3-D disaster than family comedy. Even Neil Patrick Harris, who has proved he can save just about any sinking ship, cannot make this boat float."(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 575 words, 07/29/11
Lou Lumenick, New York Post: POOR(cg) "...relentlessly witless and cynical... packed with potty jokes, product plugs and double-entendres along the lines of 'What the Smurf?' "(See all of Lou Lumenick's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 437 words, 07/29/11
Logan Hill, New York Magazine: POOR "...take a long-in-the-tooth franchise and move it to -- New York! Bound to work, right? If nothing else, just think of the clichés to mine.... this is lazy at best."(See all of Logan Hill's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 472 words, 07/29/11
Nell Minow, Chicago Sun-Times: WEAK(cg) "...combines an enchanted world of magical, animated characters with live-action New York City and manages to get the worst of both worlds.... It's raw and mean-spirited..."(See all of Nell Minow's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 795 words, 07/29/11
Bruce DeMara, Toronto Star: VERY GOOD(cg) "Kids are sure to find it smurf-errific, smurf-ilicious or just plain smurfy. Adults will happily settle for smurf-ectly inoffensive."(See all of Bruce DeMara's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 549 words, 07/29/11
Jennie Punter, Toronto Globe & Mail: MODERATE(cg) "Without a child character to interpret and join the action, it's a pretty dull way to introduce young viewers to the new blue crew."(See all of Jennie Punter's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 486 words, 07/29/11
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel: MODERATE(cg) "...sickeningly sweet and upbeat. But if you've got kids, it's not nearly as torturous to sit through as you might have feared. I smurf you not."(See all of Roger Moore's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 526 words, 07/29/11
Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star-Tribune: VERY GOOD(cg) "...has brains, heart and style... combines vivacious grown-up appeal with mischief guaranteed to have children giggling."(See all of Colin Covert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 508 words, 07/29/11
Stephen Whitty, New Jersey Star-Ledger: MODERATE(cg) "Although the tiniest children may laugh at the broadest gags, there's nothing here to interest anyone over 5... the 3-D is migraine-inducing..."(See all of Stephen Whitty's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 506 words, 07/29/11
Peter Hartlaub, San Francisco Chronicle: MODERATE(cg) "...a better movie than anyone could have possibly expected, thanks in large part to an honest effort by Neil Patrick Harris in a thankless role."(See all of Peter Hartlaub's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 424 words, 07/29/11
Moira Macdonald, Seattle Times: MODERATE(cg) "The bad guys (which include a cat who deserves a better script) lose, as you might expect, and all ends, well, Smurfingly. For the kids in the audience, anyway."(See all of Moira Macdonald's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 333 words, 07/29/11
Jody Mitori, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: MODERATE(cg) "...the slapstick humor will appeal to younger children.... Parents can appreciate the innocence of the movie: no shootouts, panda killings or overly adult jokes..."(See all of Jody Mitori's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 357 words, 07/29/11
Steve Persall, St. Petersburg Times: MODERATE(cg) "...no better than 'Yogi Bear' or worse than a 'Chipmunks' flick, and that's coming from someone who enjoyed the talking critters in 'Zookeeper.' "(See all of Steve Persall's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 494 words, 07/28/11
Eric Eisenberg, Cinema Blend: POOR(cg) "...exceedingly dull.... never attempts to work any harder than it has to, leaning on its culturally-established characters while making no effort to try anything original..."(See all of Eric Eisenberg's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 669 words, 07/28/11
Brett Michel, Boston Phoenix: WEAK(cg) "...an uninspired rip-off of Disney's 'Enchanted'.... 'I hated this much less than I expected,' complains Grouchy near the end. Cranky (this critic) disagrees."(See all of Brett Michel's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 150 words, 07/28/11
Tasha Robinson, AV Club: WEAK(cg) "...kids may find this fun, but for adults, watching 'The Smurfs' may feel a little too much like trying to wrangle an overcrowded kiddie birthday party."(See all of Tasha Robinson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 469 words, 07/28/11
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: POOR "...more 3-D disaster than family comedy. Even Neil Patrick Harris, who has proved he can save just about any sinking ship, cannot make this boat float."(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 575 words, 07/29/11
MOVIE INDUSTRY (5 Reviews)
Justin Chang, Daily Variety: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "...patently unnecessary yet kinda sweet.... hits its life-affirming, mall-wrecking beats with practiced polish and nary an objectionable or unpredictable moment."(See all of Justin Chang's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 813 words, 07/28/11
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: POOR "...more 3-D disaster than family comedy. Even Neil Patrick Harris, who has proved he can save just about any sinking ship, cannot make this boat float."(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 575 words, 07/29/11
19.8 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
The Smurfs's reviews are separated by an average 19.8 percentage points. The norm for this measure is 18.4 percentage points. Less than 18.4 indicates more consistent reviews; greater than 18.4 indicates more mixed reviews. In the chart below, each dot represents a review, with the dots at the top more positive than the dots at the bottom. From left to right, the dots represent reviews in big, bigger and biggest publications. Roll over each dot for more detail.
The Smurfs (32 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:The Smurfs's reviews cover 37.3% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 15,510 words involume (average is 20,194 words). Length:The film's reviews average 485 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
The Smurfs Coverage, Volume & Length (32 Reviews, reviews below)
Reviews Broke 3.8 Hours Before Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
The Smurfs's reviews on average broke 3.8 hours before opening. Norm for this measure is 1.2 hours before. The chart below shows reviews on opening day and the days before and after opening; the left side is earlier and the right side is later. The red bars extending above the horizontal mid-line represent more positive reviews, and the red bars extending below represent more negative reviews. The white space/red bar in the middle is The Smurfs's opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
The Smurfs (32 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
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