Smurfs: The Lost Village Gets, Well, Lost Trying To Tackle An Interesting Idea

The old axiom "third time's the charm" has been run into the ground as an axiom used in movie reviews to signify that the third entry in a certain movie franchise is the best movie in said movie franchise, but for Smurfs: The Lost Village it's kind of true, though it's more like "Fourth time's the charm" since the Smurfs did have that one animated movie back in the 80's, The Smurfs and The Magic Flute (which I have not seen). Having seen the 2011 Smurfs movie but not its 2013 sequel, I can say that Smurfs: The Lost Village is an improvement over that Raja Gosnell directed motion picture, though it's still got some seriously Smurfed up qualities to it as well.

Magic Mike XXL Review

He Works Hard For The Money

A bit of bait and switch occurred for audiences who saw Magic Mike in 2012, as marketing promising two hours of strippers dancing and having a good time gave way to a Steven Soderbergh feature that contemplated responsibility and the price to pay for forgoing the harsh realities of the world. There was still plenty of shirtless dudes gyrating, but the layers found in the movies themes took it to the next level of quality. Surprisingly, the sequel, Magic Mike XXL, manages to be a satisfying follow-up even while toning down the more introspective elements.