Author
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Topic: Smurf Movie 2011
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Candy the blue rabbit
Smurfling
Member # 3465
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posted 07-29-2011 09:20 PM
I just saw the smurfs movie and all I have to say it was absolutely fantastic.I LOVED IT!!
Posts: 45 | From: Smurf Village | Registered: Jan 2011
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Shaney Smurf
Super Smurf
Member # 1345
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posted 07-29-2011 09:44 PM
So I went to the midnight show last night and FINALLY saw the movie. IT WAS SMURFTASTICLY AWESOME!!!! I absolutely ENJOYED it. There were a few minor disappointments as there are with everything movie. But overall I thought it was really good. I agree, the critics just do not get it. The movie was all about fantasy and fun, and that is what I got out of it. I will be seeing this in theaters again definitely. I will also be getting this on DVD without a doubt. So happy to have finally seen this movie.
Posts: 493 | From: NY, USA | Registered: Mar 2006
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BlueTiger10
Super Smurfette / Reporter Smurfette
Member # 3411
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posted 07-30-2011 04:16 AM
On Set with The Smurfs July 6, 2011
By: Bryan Reesman Fandango Film Commentator
Grouchy, Gutsy, Brainy, Papa and Smurfette Smurf in 'The Smurfs.'
The very live cast talks about filming opposite imaginary blue folks, collecting their toys, and turning their language into a drinking game.
We should preface this by saying our visit to The Smurfs movie set in Astoria, Queens last summer did not involve interacting with any live Smurfs—they’re all CGI. In fact, we saw only one Smurf statuette. But as consolation we got to chat with stars Neil Patrick Harris (who plays the do-gooding husband and father-to-be Patrick Winslow) and Hank Azaria (in costume as the crazed sorcerer Gargamel), which we were pretty cool with, and we did get to watch Gargamel do a wacky song-and-dance sequence on a massive set that was an impressive replica of the small castle in Central Park. (They weren't allowed to film there.) Still, no Smurfs. Those little guys got off easy.
The Smurfs movie opens on July 29th, and it will chronicle their adventures to Manhattan with the evil sorcerer Gargamel in obsessive pursuit as he seeks to sap their essence and become more powerful. Thankfully the little blue guys meet up with Patrick Winslow and his wife. At least we hope that's a good thing, because gritty New York sure isn't happy Smurf Village! From what we can tell, this won't be an ironic ‘80s throwback, but a contemporary take on a 53-year-old Belgian creation. And the stars seemed happy with the work.
Fandango: Was it tricky dealing with the whole green screen aspect of filming? Neil Patrick Harris: I thought there would be more green screen. I've always wanted to do one of those pictures where you stare at tennis balls on sticks while they're chasing you around, but this was not that. The technology is on actual sets. You rehearse with these gelatinous, jelly mold Smurfs that are on stands, they set them up in various positions so you know exactly where they will be and their exact height. Your rehearse it that way with voice-over people, then they move them away right before you shoot and look at where the eyes would be. So if I'm looking at the eyes here, I'd have to put a dot on the wall back there, so when I talk to them I have a point of focus. Only Hank really did the green screen stuff, which was in Smurf Village.
Fandango: You fit into that demographic of people who grew up with the Smurfs. Do you have a personal connection? Did you watch the Smurfs as a kid? Did you collect them? Harris: I wasn't a big collector of the little figurines, but I watched it on Saturday mornings, for sure. I never dressed up as a Smurf for Halloween. I always liked Grouchy Smurf. He made me laugh because he had the funny voice. "I hate prisons! I hate fun!" That says a lot about my childhood.
Fandango: How big is a Smurf? Harris: I think red delicious. I thought they would be smaller. I was assuming them to be the size of a G.I. Joe or something, but they're three apples tall.
Fandango: Is there any part of you that actually wanted to play one of the Smurfs? Harris: Not really. I've done a lot of voiceover work, but you're so removed from the process because you just do little records in a little padded cell for a couple of hours, then you get to watch the movie a year later. But this was fun. It was a really weird, unique acting style because it's super storyboarded, and yet you have to match everything and deal with these points of focus all over the place. So when it was just a scene with Papa Smurf on the roof that was a little bit easier, whereas the scenes in the living room where the Smurfs are revealed and all over the place, that was tricky. You had to know that that dot's Clumsy there, then he moves across and that dot becomes Clumsy, and that dot is now Smurfette. It was tricky and highly technical, which I enjoyed.
Fandango: How much did you work with the rest of the human cast? Harris: I barely see Hank through the whole movie. He's trying to track the Smurfs and me down. He's on our tail the entire time. Yesterday was my last day, and we had a scene together that was one shot. We had both individually filmed our own sides on different days, and we were like, "We should've acted a bit more in this movie together, you and I. It's nice to see you, Hank." Jayma is A-plus plus plus. She plays a very sweet, pregnant wife that has a lot to teach the Smurfs about humanity, motherhood and conquering your individual fears. You could either be too saccharine and simplistic and have it feel like a children's television show, or you could be a little too wink-wink nudgy-nudgy and not feel very grounded in legitimacy. She's really great.
Fandango: The Smurfs have a very interesting vocabulary. Is there any logic to when they swap out normal English words? Harris: There's no real logic to when a Smurf word is filled in for another, but I suspect it will make a fine drinking game.
Fandango: Hank, everyone knows about Gargamel but we’ll ask you about his character here anyway. Hank Azaria: He's Gargamel. What else can you say? He hates Smurfs, and he wants to conquer the world. He's a Virgo and loves water sports.
Fandango: How did you develop the voice? It sounds like a combination between a lot of things we've heard you do. Azaria: To me, this voice is your classic cartoon villain voice. It's the one I remembered as a kid. I didn't aim for it to be similar to the Paul Winchell, American Gargamel, but it is, especially when I yell, "Smurfs!" At first I tried to back off all that. I wanted to make him more sarcastic than rageful, which we do in a lot of places to give it another color, but you can't play Gargamel and not scream, especially over [background noise on set]. We really do have the noisiest sets ever. I'll be looping half the film. I really will.
Fandango: You have Gargamel's classic look: patched up frock, bald head, hunched back. Have you found your prosthetic nose to be a hindrance at all? Have you accidentally damaged at all in any way? Azaria: No, this thing? We've done some gags of mushing it around, and it really stays. It's incredible how tight it's on there.
Fandango: Do you miss having hair? Azaria: Yeah, I do. My hair is receding, so now I can pretend it's not [after having been bald]. "Normally my hairline is fantastic!" So in a way it makes you look a little younger.
Fandango: Did you develop any kind of back story for Gargamel? Azaria: We talked about this. I sort of see him as aspiring to be one of these wonderful sorcerers you see in Harry Potter, sort of Hogwarts-graduates-made-good. In the cartoon it varied. He wanted Smurfs for three reasons that switched. Sometimes he wanted to eat them, sometimes he wanted to just kill them because he hated them, and sometimes he wanted to extract their essence for his magical purposes. So we have chosen the latter. It's like he broke off from the Academy. They laughed at him at the Academy. "Smurfs are not the way to be a great wizard." "No, they are the way! I'm telling you, they're magical. If you can capture their essence, you will be the most powerful sorcerer in the world." He spent years literally chasing this dream down, and he can't find the Smurfs. That's why he's so crazed to get them, to prove them all wrong. It does work. Once he gets even a little drop of essence in his secret compartment ring, his magic is very powerful.
Fandango: Can you talk about how you got the role? Azaria: I was in the middle of a Hawaiian vacation, they phoned up and asked if I was interested in this. Honestly, I was too old for the Smurfs. I knew what they were, but I wasn't a huge fan. I also thought Gargamel was annoying. Then I read it, and I thought they were trying to do some funny things with it, especially with his relationship with the cat [Azrael]. It occurred to me that they're like married, so we could play it like they're essentially this bickering married couple, and they thought it was a great idea. That takes care of a lot. Instead of these making evil pronouncements to nothing, like villains do a lot, he is always saying them to the cat and arguing with the cat over them.
Fandango: Are there real cats used in the movie? Are there CGI cats? Does the cat have its own personality? Azaria: Yes to all. There are four real cats that are Azrael. Occasionally it's the real cat with CGI elements. Sometimes it's completely CGI, depending upon what he needs to do. Cats aren't like dogs. They can't do a lot of stuff. They can hit a mark, stop and look where you want them to look and kind of meow on cue, but other than that if you want them to do sophisticated stuff you have to draw that.
Fandango: Can you talk about this whole song-and-dance scene that you're shooting now? Azaria: This is a crazy thing they added at the end of the movie. Gargamel now has this song that he sings about loving to hate him that is probably going to play over the end credits, and it ends up being his own dream. He has big dreams, but they never quite make it, so this is the musical expression of that. There were two other songs in the movie. There's a sweet lullaby Papa sings that I also sing a verse of, and there's this other weird, little number that I do that is actually taken from the old Belgian version that Gargamel used to sing.
Fandango: The sense of humor here seems to be more innocent than sardonic or ironic. Is it refreshing to do something like that? Azaria: It pretty much is, although I definitely tried to make him [that way]. As far as I knew, Gargamel was never sarcastic. I tried to put a lot of that in as an expression of anger. Like, "Great, thank you, that's wonderful." I thought that would be a better way to play him sometimes. Basically it's physical comedy, and hopefully it's genuinely funny. That is what we we're really trying to do, not just Saturday morning cartoons from 30 years ago. There are definitely times I feel like the Child Catcher in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, especially when I'm really getting evil with the Smurfs. At one point I even sniff them out, and that definitely reminded me of the Child Catcher, but hopefully this is funnier than that. That's the thing with something like this -- you want to mostly be funny, but at times you want to scare the 9 year olds. But not generally terrify them! It's a tough balancing act.
-------------------- Twitter/HubermanProject
Posts: 947 | From: City Island, Bronx, NY USA | Registered: Nov 2010
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Smurfy1For2
Blue Believer
Member # 1224
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posted 07-30-2011 04:38 AM
THE SMURFS 3D IS THE BEST MOVIE EVER MADE EVER!!!!!!!!!!
-------------------- u wished u rocked as i
Posts: 1957 | From: Fairfield, VA | Registered: Nov 2005
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BlueTiger10
Super Smurfette / Reporter Smurfette
Member # 3411
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posted 07-30-2011 11:10 AM
Yes, say "Smurfs are more popular than 'Cowboys & Aliens'." Smurfiest movie ever!
-------------------- Twitter/HubermanProject
Posts: 947 | From: City Island, Bronx, NY USA | Registered: Nov 2010
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BlueTiger10
Super Smurfette / Reporter Smurfette
Member # 3411
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posted 07-30-2011 11:14 AM
Basset hound in the smurfs movie
Basset Hound in the Smurfs Movie
Our basset hound Hank played Elway in the newly released movie The Smurfs! News at 10 from FOX ch. 13 on July 29, 2011.
-------------------- Twitter/HubermanProject
Posts: 947 | From: City Island, Bronx, NY USA | Registered: Nov 2010
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BlueTiger10
Super Smurfette / Reporter Smurfette
Member # 3411
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posted 07-30-2011 11:21 AM
I went to see the "Smurfs" movie in 3D with Natalie and Linda and my Mom. It was Smurftastic! I have had the Smurfiest time experiencing it! The village, the City of New York, the sights and sounds, the FAO Schwarz, and all the places in New York the Smurfs visited! It was so fun! You bet your boots that Smurfs are more popular than "Cowboys & Aliens", because although it's not Oscar-worthy, it must become the greatest film ever!
-------------------- Twitter/HubermanProject
Posts: 947 | From: City Island, Bronx, NY USA | Registered: Nov 2010
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Kojinka Sketchette
Smurf
Member # 2365
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posted 07-30-2011 01:25 PM
Hopefully I can see this with my sister who is an 80's kid that grew up with the Smurfs in their peak. I'm sorry to say that my expectations for this film, at least from what I've seen and read, are VERY low. I just want to see it out of curiosity.
I can't rip too much on something that I haven't even seen, but I have a feeling Gargamel will be the only enjoyable parts of the movie for me.
Yes, I enjoy the Smurfs; I wouldn't have joined here if I didn't. I just fear that this movie takes away things about the series that make it so smurfy, and replace it with unsmurfy garbage.
-------------------- The village nutcase.
Posts: 214 | From: EVERYWHERE | Registered: Jun 2008
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Cool Smurf
Super Smurf
Member # 1290
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posted 07-30-2011 03:21 PM
I thought the movie was pretty good. I liked that Vanity was in it.
-------------------- RozStaw57 DeviantArt
Posts: 963 | From: Jacksonville, Florida | Registered: Feb 2006
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BlueTiger10
Super Smurfette / Reporter Smurfette
Member # 3411
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posted 07-31-2011 04:09 AM
In the movie, there's a Basset Hound named Hank who was credited in the movie, as "Elway", the Winslows' dog. Hank reminds me of Goose, Stella's Basset Hound. Here's a photo of Hank's look-alike.
 Goose the Basset Hound
-------------------- Twitter/HubermanProject
Posts: 947 | From: City Island, Bronx, NY USA | Registered: Nov 2010
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Vic George The ND Guy
Super Smurf
Member # 300
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posted 07-31-2011 09:53 AM
I liked how they worked the metafictional lore of the Smurfs into the movie as part of its plot, even though most of the modern world in the movie seems clueless at seeing a bunch of little blue people running around and not putting two and two together. Overall, it was fun to watch and the dialogue was relatively clean. Jonathan Winters did an excellent job with Papa Smurf's voice, certainly not a rehash of Grandpa Smurf's voice. Katy Perry also did well voicing Smurfette. Hank Azaria as Gargamel was fun to watch. I'm glad the showdown at the end of the movie wasn't just Papa Smurf and the few Smurfs that were with him during that time travel trip.
-------------------- VIC GEORGE -- Westfield, MA, USA "Cat and mouse games really aren't much fun for us mouse types" -- Empath from "Empath The Bandit Smurf"
Posts: 4085 | From: Westfield, MA | Registered: Mar 2003
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BlueTiger10
Super Smurfette / Reporter Smurfette
Member # 3411
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posted 07-31-2011 05:36 PM
Smurfs in Japanese!

-------------------- Twitter/HubermanProject
Posts: 947 | From: City Island, Bronx, NY USA | Registered: Nov 2010
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VicyJoe
Smurfling
Member # 3538
Rate Member
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posted 07-31-2011 08:02 PM
According to published sources, "Cowboys & Aliens" and "The Smurfs" each made an estimated $36.2 million in North American theaters.
Posts: 94 | From: Claremont, CA | Registered: Mar 2011
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BlueTiger10
Super Smurfette / Reporter Smurfette
Member # 3411
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posted 08-01-2011 04:11 AM
Well! That's a tie! Maybe I should make a cartoon of Smurfs vs. Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford as Cowboys battling Aliens simultaniously.
-------------------- Twitter/HubermanProject
Posts: 947 | From: City Island, Bronx, NY USA | Registered: Nov 2010
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BlueTiger10
Super Smurfette / Reporter Smurfette
Member # 3411
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posted 08-01-2011 04:43 AM
Here's the American Humane Association's Review on the Smurfs featuring animal action.
Movie Review: The Smurfs The Smurfs Monitored: Outstanding “No Animals Were Harmed”®
Starring: Neil Patrick Harris, Jayma Mays and Hank Azaria Director: Raja Gosnell Producer: Jordan Kerner Screenwriter: J. David Stem and David N. Weiss Distributor: Columbia Pictures Animal Coordinator: Birds and Animals Released: July 29, 2011
After being chased out of their village by the evil wizard Gargamel, the Smurfs must navigate their way through Central Park to get back home.
Featured Animal Scenes All grounds were inspected for hazards and sets were closed off and secured. Cast and crew members were introduced to the animals and instructed on their proper handling.
Cat And Dog Action: Throughout the film, Gargamel (Hank Azaria) has a pet cat named Azrael, who is seen performing such action as sitting/standing, lying, being held or petted, walking/running, jumping, and climbing. In addition, Patrick Winslow (Neil Patrick Harris) has a pet bloodhound who also performed such mild action as sitting/lying, walking/running, jumping, barking, and being petted. For all of these scenes, trainers used hand signals, clickers, treats, and verbal commands to cue the mild action, which the trained animals were accustomed to performing. All food the animals ate was deemed safe for consumption and takes were limited to prevent overeating. Anytime animals were seen on or near the city streets, either the streets were closed to outside traffic or CGI animals were used. Stuffed animal “stand-ins” were used for most rehearsals, and takes with the live animals were limited. Many scenes were filmed against green screen, and often a combination of CGI elements and actual stunts were used. Azrael’s tail being stomped on was CGI. Whenever Azrael is seen hanging from a cliff, a hiding trainer placed the cat’s front paws on the prop object and then held his waist to make it appear as if he were dangling.
When Azrael emerges from a pond and walks on rocks to shore, this was filmed using a combination of special effects, composite shots, and a well-trained cat being cued to walk from one rock prop to another and then onto a grassy area of the park. Immediately before filming, trainers gently wetted the cat with just enough water to make him look wet, and he was combed/dried after the brief takes. Leashed dogs and their actual owners also milled about in the background during this and a couple other scenes.
Anytime someone (i.e., Gargamel) appears to “throw” Azrael, such as to throw him out of the room, transport him into a portal, or shoo him off furniture, the actor was well-rehearsed to gently “toss” the cat a few inches, either to a costumed trainer/actor or to the padded floor. The action was well choreographed and either exaggerated on camera or enhanced in post production. Stunt pads were placed on the ground whenever needed, and the cat was unfazed by this well-rehearsed action. The man in the alleyway appearing to be attacked by Azrael held the cat securely while pantomiming the attack and moving/falling in a choreographed manner.
Pigeon Action: For the scene in which Smurfs ride on pigeons’ backs in an alleyway, this involved a few trained pigeons whose wings had been clipped (a painless procedure common in domesticated birds) so that they could still fly, but not very far. Trainers took them out of their crate at the last minute and filmed them walking a few feet. The flying portion was entirely CGI.
Production provided documentation for the taxidermy bear seen in the toy store.
American Humane Association also monitored goat action, which was removed from theatrical release but might come back on DVD.
American Humane Association’s On-Set Oversight Find out how filmmakers work with American Humane Association, and get a complete guide to our ratings system.
-------------------- Twitter/HubermanProject
Posts: 947 | From: City Island, Bronx, NY USA | Registered: Nov 2010
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BlueTiger10
Super Smurfette / Reporter Smurfette
Member # 3411
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posted 08-01-2011 11:48 AM
How To Build A Smurf
July 29, 2011, 10:00 AM ET
 A scene from "The Smurfs"
With their tiny bodies and solid blue coloring, the Smurfs would appear to be easy to animate. In reality, Sony Pictures Imageworks, Sony Corp.’s visual effects and character animation company, has been experimenting and working for nearly three years to bring the Belgian cartoonist Peyo’s creations to the big screen as realistic-looking 3-D computer-generated creatures.
After a standard Smurf was created, it was adapted into roughly 36 different models for the film — approximately a third of the 99 Smurfs originally identified by Peyo. Of the 36, only one was created specifically for the film and had no basis in either the original comic strip or cartoon: Gutsy Smurf, who is voiced by Alan Cumming in the film. The animators also give some of the older characters virtual facelifts. In the case of Smurfette, they toned down her stiff, poufy hair into a flatter, more contemporary ‘do.
Smurf designs in place, the team then used a 3-D copier to produce two kinds of Smurf maquettes, or figurines, to be used for rehearsal and framing purposes during the physical shooting of the film. To make the digitally-created Smurfs look more lifelike in the film, Imageworks used a newer technology known as HDRI — or High Dynamic Range Imagery — to accurately capture both the spatial dimensions and a 360 degree view of whatever set the lighters were working on. Specifically, they did so at 26 different exposure levels (f stops) of lighting. (The technique was also used on the film “The Green Lantern.”) To achieve this, the company used the SpheroCam HDR to automatically capture 360 degree spherical images and spatial data with a single scan.
Consequently, by applying that spatial data and lighting to the digital elements — namely the animated Smurf characters — the computer-generated figures are more smoothly integrated into the live-action film. The technology also helped speed up the workflow: instead of the usual three or four days usually needed for the process, it only took Imageworks about a day or two.
http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2011/07/29/how-to-build-a-smurf/
-------------------- Twitter/HubermanProject
Posts: 947 | From: City Island, Bronx, NY USA | Registered: Nov 2010
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Squeaky Smurf
Hering Smurf
Member # 2416
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posted 08-01-2011 05:18 PM
Whoa!! Smurfy thanks for showing the links, Blue Tiger, you're great! ![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
-------------------- Keep on always smurfin'!!
Posts: 7470 | From: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | Registered: Jul 2008
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ClumsyRules
Smurf Movie CGI Character Designer
Member # 3377
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posted 08-02-2011 11:38 AM
Yes, great research, Alisa!
-------------------- CGI character designer for "The Smurfs" (2011) and "Smurfs 2" (2013)
Note: These are my own thoughts and opinions. They do not represent the opinions of Sony, Lafig, K Ent. or anyone involved in the making of the Smurf films.
Posts: 69 | From: Los Angeles, CA | Registered: Oct 2010
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Rocker Smurf
Smurf
Member # 3178
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posted 08-02-2011 12:54 PM
So Harrison Ford wasn't too happy about the fact that his wife paid to take their son to see The Smurfs, while he got to see Cowboys & Aliens for free. On last night's episode of Conan, he talks briefly about the battle the two movies faced last weekend, and then at the end of the video, he rips the head off a Papa Smurf plush. Despite his rather un-smurfy behaviour, this is still quite an entertaining video to watch.
 | Harrison Ford ripped the head off a Papa Smurf doll on last night's edition of Conan.
The Cowboys & Aliens actor took out his frustration on the blue creature after host Conan O'Brien highlighted the rivalry between Ford's latest blockbuster and the 3D family movie. | "We didn't tie, we beat them. By almost a lot of money," Ford said of the box office clash, noting that his wife Calista Flockhart and son went to see The Smurfs.
He added: "My wife took my son to see The Smurfs. He got into [Cowboys & Aliens] for free, early, and so she took him to see The Smurfs. We're going to try and get [the money] back." |
Harrison Ford on Conan - Papa Smurf
-------------------- Smurf yourself a smile and have a smurfy day!
Posts: 217 | From: Smurfy old England | Registered: Apr 2010
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BlueTiger10
Super Smurfette / Reporter Smurfette
Member # 3411
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posted 08-02-2011 01:07 PM
Well, Gee, thanks ClumsyRules!
-------------------- Twitter/HubermanProject
Posts: 947 | From: City Island, Bronx, NY USA | Registered: Nov 2010
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Vic George The ND Guy
Super Smurf
Member # 300
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posted 08-02-2011 01:41 PM
Harrison Ford in...
INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF SMURFS!!!
-------------------- VIC GEORGE -- Westfield, MA, USA "Cat and mouse games really aren't much fun for us mouse types" -- Empath from "Empath The Bandit Smurf"
Posts: 4085 | From: Westfield, MA | Registered: Mar 2003
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BlueTiger10
Super Smurfette / Reporter Smurfette
Member # 3411
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posted 08-02-2011 04:31 PM
Ooohhhh!!! Rocker, how can Harrison Ford do this?! Cruelity to stuffed animals!
-------------------- Twitter/HubermanProject
Posts: 947 | From: City Island, Bronx, NY USA | Registered: Nov 2010
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Squeaky Smurf
Hering Smurf
Member # 2416
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posted 08-02-2011 05:01 PM
This requires a certain (smurfy) revenge... ![[Frown]](frown.gif)
-------------------- Keep on always smurfin'!!
Posts: 7470 | From: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | Registered: Jul 2008
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Squeaky Smurf
Hering Smurf
Member # 2416
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posted 08-02-2011 07:58 PM
I've just watched the video. Terrible! Perhaps this guy shall have to smurf Mr. Ford in his proper place... 
-------------------- Keep on always smurfin'!!
Posts: 7470 | From: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | Registered: Jul 2008
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