STORY: The cute-as-a-button Smurfette has been kidnapped by the evil, scheming Gargamel who needs to get the formula for creating ‘true blue’ Smurfs. While Smurfette soon finds herself suffering from a bit of a crisis herself, it’s up to the rest of the Smurfs to rescue her, foil Gargamel’s plot and save the day. REVIEW: While the initial Smurfs flick was set in New York, this one takes a continental turn and shifts the scene to Paris, where the irrepressible Gargamel (a very eager Hank Azaria) needs something called ‘Smurf Essence’, which he uses as part of his magician’s act. So, he sends out one of his Naughties called Vexy ( Christina Ricci) to kidnap Smurfette ( Katy Perry, who fits the role pretty nicely) via an inter-dimensional portal he has opened. He believes that Smurfette is a key ingredient in his quest for world domination.

The fact that Smurfette is herself feeling a little blue, so to speak, because the whole village has forgotten her birthday (or so she thinks) doesn’t help matters. The pursuit begins with Papa Smurf ( Jonathan Winters), Clumsy ( Anton Yelchin), Grouchy ( George Lopez) and Vanity ( John Oliver) in hot pursuit. Papa Smurf, the voice of wisdom, uses magical crystals to port into the real world to enlist the help of Patrick Winslow (Neil Patrick Harris) and his stepfather Victor Doyle ( Brendan Gleeson). The pace, along with the live action, keeps moving and the script has several witty asides. In an attempt to appeal to a wider audience, there are a few sub-plots too, among them a moralistic take on who really created Smurfette. The rest of the Smurfs also get their 15 minutes of fame and gags. Apart from that, the film’s score (Heitor Pereira) adds a non-verbal emotiveness to some of the scenes. Also livening things up a bit is the comic timing in the movie.