Twenty years ago I watched The Tracey Ullman Show and a cute little animation came on that was the beginnings of The Simpsons. Had I known then what I know now, that the show would be around for two decades, and by the time the movie edition rolled around I’d be a professional reviewer I’d have smacked myself silly and then asked for more bourbon. Since I was nine I most likely would not have gotten it, but I would have at least tried. This is an extremely roundabout way of saying one very obvious thing: The Simpsons has been on television one hell of a long time. And they’re just making a movie now??
Yes, that’s correct, and I guess I just have to get used to it. It’s hard to remember these days, but there was a time when The Simpsons was controversial simply due to Bart uttering “Eat my shorts.” There was also a time The Simpsons were so popular they were played on the radio with “Do the Bartman.” But The Simpsons are no longer controversial or a cultural force, at least I don’t think they are. I know my friends and I don’t sit around discussing them.
That’s a lot of context for this opinion so let’s get to it already. The movie is a typical Simpsons plot, Homer gets into an imbroglio (I’ve always wanted to just casually throw that into a review) and the gang has to band together to save Springfield. I think all of this info is readily available in the trailer, the synopsis, and the still images so I’m guessing this isn’t breaking news. Now on to the kajillion dollar question: Is it good? Will you laugh? And should you see it?
It is somewhat good; you can tell that based upon the B rating I’d wager. It has a very nice opening 45 minutes; laughs are abundant. It does stumble a bit for the last 40 minutes, coming off as more of an elongated television show than something that needed an entire movie. Many of the popular characters get at least cameos, and Bart, Homer, and Ned Flanders are featured pretty prominently. So I would laud the 15 or so laughs I had initially and knock the overall inevitableness of the plot when it plays out exactly like an episode of The Simpsons.
And therein lays the verdict. Hard-core fans will enjoy this; just as they enjoy the episodic show on FOX. Non-fans will find enough laughs to make the movie somewhat enjoyable, but they won’t leave the theater raving about how awesome the flick was. It’s not as biting or fun as something like Team America, but it’s not as bad as something like Monster House (a true kid’s animation). It’s essentially good, as the show is essentially good, but it’s been far too long since the series started for this movie to explode upon pop culture as it might have in the late 90’s. Nope, The Simpsons didn’t expand their universe with the movie version, they just comfortably relied on the elements that have kept them chugging nicely along for two decades. That’s the reason this film doesn’t get an A, because it went right for the lay-up. They should have at least considered slamming it home.
