The Simpsons Movie Review
by Adam Weeks
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So, on with the big question – is The Simpsons Movie possibly anywhere near what fans have expected ever since the show began, let alone since the film was first announced?
Well,
if you’re me (and I think most of you probably aren’t – ‘cause… that
would just be strange), the answer is yes – the film does indeed live
up to the hype.
But who am I, particularly as a Simpsons fan?
I’m the kind of fan that rented The Abyss
the first day it came out so I could be one of the first to see this
strange short animated bit that the whole of the U.S.A. was raving
about. I’m the guy that has watched every single episode to date at
least 2-3 times, and enjoyed each & every one of them. I’m the guy
that has listened to every commentary on every season set, and come
back for more. So to set yourself at ease, if you’re a fan like I am, I
think you’re gonna love this movie. If you’re one of those guys or gals
that complains about the drop off in quality over the last few seasons,
this may be the event that changes your mind just a little bit.
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But I digress, after all the rumours and guesses, what is the film actually about?
The Simpsons Movie
plays like any other episode for the first 20 minutes or so – Homer
hurts himself a lot, Bart laughs at him & gets choked, Marge does
her grunting of disapproval, Lisa meets a boy that she likes –
basically typical fare all around – but still very funny.
The
majority of the film starts when Grandpa Simpson has an “episode” in
church, and starts spouting all kinds of biblical foreboding – “Trapped
Forever”, “Beast with a thousand eyes”, and he repeats “ee-ba” over
& over again – you see, the main lake of Springfield is so heavily
polluted that the entire town is warned if dumping in the lake
continues, it will mean catastrophe for everyone (as evidenced by a
Duff Beer summer series concert featuring Greenday).
You’ll know from having seen the previews that Homer is the culprit,
and in a swift move of quarantine, the Environmental Protection Agency,
headed up by Russ Cargill (Albert Brooks summoning “Hank Scorpio” to
the maximum level) places a giant dome over the town of Springfield,
leaving The Simpson family to figure out a way to save them all.
At
any rate, that’s the general set up, and while giving away any more
details would ruin it for the fans, I have to admit that the laughs
came thick & fast throughout the run time, and it absolutely did
the trick in my book. I was surprised to find a lot of things I was
expecting were not a part of the film – especially some of the rumoured
cameos (only two of them listed on IMDB are accurate), and to say that
some of my favourites were mainly background characters is an
understatement – but given that we are talking “THE SIMPSONS movie”, I
guess that’s to be expected.
Anyhow, that’s enough rambling from
me – I really enjoyed the movie from start to finish, and I will
absolutely be seeing it again. Oh, and for those of you who worry that
the only funny bits are the ones put in the trailers so far? You
haven’t even seen the tip of the iceberg.
4.5 out
of 5 The Simpsons Movie
Australian
release: 26th July,
2007
Cast: Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith, Hank Azaria
Director: David Silverman
Website: Click
here.
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