First Official Image from THE SMURFS Movie

This new Smurfs movie looks exactly how I imagined it would look, and that's not a good thing. Smurfs in New York City is your first sign that this movie is going to suck. I hate it when hollywood takes these kind of characters out of their element to try and make things a little more interesting for audiences, because it doesn't make them interesting, it does the complete opposite! It would have been better had they told the Smurfs story in their original setting, which was the Middle Ages among knights, kings and wizards.

USA Today reports that during the opening scene, set in that original time, Gargamel discovers the Smurfs' magical village and scatters them into the woods. Clumsy ends up going the wrong way into a forbidden grotto where a few other Smurfs follow. Apparently a blue moon causes a magical portal to open that transports the Smurfs to Central Park. The Smurfs take refuge with a husband and wife played by Neil Patrick Harris and Glee's Jayma Mays as Gargamel pursues them. 

In the original cartoon Gargamel was all about eating the Smurfs, but that won't be the case in this film. Now, Gargamel just wants to capture the Smurfs to serve as charms, whose mystical essence will make his magic more powerful and dangerous. That's weak sauce!

The 3D movie is being directed by Raja Gosnell who also made the live-action Scooby-Doo, so I guess we can expect that level of quality for this Smurfs film.

I'm sure the kids will enjoy the movie, but I'm not sure how fans of the original animated series will react. It looks like they've changed a lot of things, and not for the better. What do you all think?