Writer: Naseem Randhawa

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Watch this if you liked: "The Smurfs" & "Garfield"

The Smurfs are back at it again, and needless to say, if you are a fan of the first movie or the adorable blue-loving creatures, then you may adore "The Smurfs 2". But unlike most animations these days that try to cater to all ages, "The Smurfs 2" will appeal mainly to its intended audience aged 12 and below.

This time around, the only female Smurf; Smurfette (voiced by Katy Perry) is kidnapped on her birthday by the evil wizard Gargamel (Hank Azaria) who is aided by his own brand of non-blue Smurfs; Vexy (voiced by Christina Ricci) and her fool of a brother Hackus (voiced by J.B. Smoove, who by the way sounds a lot like Crazy Dave in the "Plants Vs. Zombies" game).

To save Smurfette, Papa Smurf, Grumpy Smurf and Vanity Smurf leave their comfy Smurf Village to get into our world. In the human world which is first set in New York City and then Paris where Gargamel resides as a huge celebrity magician, we meet Patrick (Neil Patrick Harris) and Grace Winslow (Jayma Mays) once again, including their now toddler son and the addition of Patrick's stepfather, Victor (Brendan Gleeson) who all join forces to rescue Smurfette and foil Gargamel's plans in ruling the world.

Of the plot of the movie, it's rather lackluster and as many plot holes and under-developed characters it possesses, it is not the main concern here as "The Smurfs 2" is supposed to come off as giddying as possible regardless of the ridiculousness some parts of it translate to be. Well to be fair, to scrutinise the logic of this film would be like scrutinising parody films for their originality.

As cute as they are, "The Smurfs" will hardly ignite the Minion craze we saw not too long ago with "Despicable Me 2", but it will serve as a decent lighthearted entertainment for the young ones. But for adults or the mature, you may just find yourself saying "What the Smurf!".

Cinema Online, 31 July 2013