The Smurfs and the Magic Flute (1983)

Simply Perfect

Beautiful, moving film.

I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

The Smurfs and the Magic FluteEarning money with a musical instrument is possible on the right subway platform.Mind you, the musician in this animated movie is making money through magic.When the king's jester Peewit (Cameron Clarke) gets a hold of a magical flute that can make people spontaneously dance when played, he attracts the attention of a merchant McCreep (Mike Reynolds), who steals the wind instrument to rob villagers.Now, Peewit and a knight's squire named Johan must use a wizard's spell in order to convene with the mystical blue-skinned forest creatures that first forged the flute if they hope to change McCreep's tune.Written and directed by the Smurf's creator Peyo, this 1976 hand-drawn feature from Belgium set the standard of what would go on to become the 1980s Saturday morning cartoon phenomenon; mostly because it feels like three episodes pieced together.Incidentally, when Smurf's hear the magic flute played they turn rabid.Green Lightvidiotreviews.blogspot.ca

This is a real classic: fantastic story by Peyo, classy animation (far superior than Hanna & Barbera's) and great characters. For all the people complaining about the Smurfs not being the main characters, you just don't get it right. This was not meant as a Smurf's story, this was a Johan and Pirlouit story. In this story the Smurfs made their first appearance ever, and they were really meant as secondary characters. Only, they became so popular, that Peyo had to start the Smurf's comic book series, as well. So, blame it on the American distributors that marketed this as a Smurf film, while it's actually a fantastic Johan and Pirlouit story.

Most of us, remember "The Smurfs" as the Hanna-Barbara show from the 80s, right? Well, this isn't the Smurfs you grew up with. This movie was released in Belgium before anyone in the US knew what they were and later dubbed into English in 1983 to appease the masses yearning for those little blues freaks of nature. Well in the movie, Johan, a young knight and his annoying dwarf sidekick Peewee find a magic flute and a bad guy (not Gargamel!) steals it or something and they have to find it or something, they learn that the flute was made by the Smurfs, who live in an dimension or something so they drop acid or what and go to this other dimension. They meet the Smurfs, well more or less Papa Smurf and his crew. There's no Smurfette, no Baby, no Smurflings etc and they all sing and speak in unison. Hefty doesn't and have a tattoo and Brainy can't shut up. Johan and PeeWee explains to Papa what happened, and the Smurfs have to cut down another tree and make another flute to help Johan and PeeWee. I don't really what happens next all I remember is it end with Pee Wee throwing a hissy fit or something. Any way the Smurfs don't appear until like an hour in the movie, so it's kind of boring, mostly!

Though only 17 years since I've known of it, I thought I'd commemorate the 25th(!) anniversary of the film by revisiting my childhood memories of it. Being a kid of the 80's, the Smurfs was one of the cartoons I grew up on. Apparrently they've been around since the late 50's and made it to the big screen in 1976 with this Belgium feature. I still remember saying "Mom, why are their voices different than on the tv show?" Today is still puzzles me. If this was dubbed for American audiences two years after the show premiered, why did they not go with the tv voices? Still don't know. And also, the voices we do get all seem to be echoing somewhat, with the exception of Papa Smurf. And there is no Smurfette. Or Gargamuel. Or Azreal. But it doesn't hurt the film at all, as the Smurfs are secondary anyway. They don't even show up until 25 minutes in! And aren't even really seen until 35 minutes in! But when the Land of the Smurfs is reached, it's guilty pleasure time, for me at least. The three dopey songs featured are somehow extremely catchy. The one explaining how the Smurfs tell each other apart. Then later it's human character Pee-Wee trying to make out the Smurf language. Capped off by "We're the Smurfs, la, la!" The main story concerns the title instrument, which makes people dance upon hearing it. It's stolen by a villian named McCreep, who robs people by playing the flute, which causes them to be unable to defend themselves. They dance about and he makes off with their gold. The flute was created by the Smurfs, so a prince and a short, excitable musician from a royal court are recruited in tracking down the Smurfs for help. Harmless fun for kids, and I still get a kick out of it today. The animation if fair for a 25 year old movie, as the real star for me was Pee-Wee. So, give it a shot for youngsters or have fun taking yourself back in seeing it for the first time in awhile.