Smurf You!

Before I begin here I would just like to send out a disclaimer. The following article is going to include some harsh language; so if you never heard or seen the word fuck before... well you have now.


Are children movie's really aimed at children? Sure the whimsical humor and bright-colored animation are defiantly a draw, and in a way its not the actual movie that is the problem. A good kids movie has a little bit for everyone; of course the kids have plenty to enjoy but the parents/adults should also find some entertainment value. Mature themes and tones are common in kids movies. Last year's Toy Story 3 is arguably the pinnacle of animated mature movies, and it did it through its strong narrative and characters. A lot of these themes are to deep and mature for kids to understand. This maturity causes a huge audience of teenagers and full grown adults to flock to the theaters. If an animated movie wishes to draw in an adult audience this is how it should go about it. Sadly though certain modern day movies believe they can draw in more adult audience through other means.


Advertising is a tricky business, especially when it comes to movies. The creation of tag lines, posters, flyers, and even TV spots are all a tricky thing to create. A common method advertiser use is word play, or taking a pop-culture reference and slightly altering it. Many children movies decide to use their advertising to try and be "mature" or "edgy" to draw in the older crowd. This is not mature it is immature. It is obvious that this advertisement is not aimed at the kids but for the adults, and for that it raises the question: Do parents really want to bring their kids to a movie when the ad's tell them to go fuck themselves?


Three examples come to mind when I think of that question: Shrek Forever After, The Smurfs, and Alvin and the Chipmunks the Third. Each on of these movies uses word play to their advantage to try to drag more people to see it. Below are poster's for each movie I mentioned above to show off what I have been talking about.

Why am I being told to fuck myself by chipmunks? Why are the Smurfs asking where the hell are they? Does Rumpelstiltskin really not know where his bitches are at? Do parents really want their children to see movies with such immaturity and desperation to attract an audience? There is no problem with a children's movie to have something for everyone; in fact I encourage it. But that something should be in substance not advertisement. What these movies are doing (or did in the case of Shrek) is disgusting. I actually can not even tell who these ad's are intended for. If you want to see a movie with your kids that has something for you as well take them to see Winnie the Pooh, or hell show them Toy Story 3 again.