The Simpsons Movie

Voices of Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith, Harry Shearer, Hank Azaria, Green Day, Tom Hanks

Dir. David Silverman
Scr. James L Brooks, Matt Groening, etc

The Simpsons has been running since 1989 and is one of the most quotable, funny and endearing series ever to grace our screens. A movie was a risk and a challenge – could a 22-minute show make the transition to a 90-minute feature film? Simpsons fans had waited more than 16 years for that risk to be taken. Well, was it worth waiting for?

The plot is classic Simpsons – Homer pollutes the waterways in Springfield so badly that the Environmental Protection Agency step in and trap the city under a huge dome. No way in; no way out. Chaos and hilarity ensues. The writers have stuck with the tried and true formula – Homer is at the centre; Homer makes massive blunder; Homer risks losing Marge and the kids; Homer must make amends in spectacular style. There are a few celebrities voices thrown in for good measure and the jokes don’t let up.

I welcome Matt and his mates pushing the boundaries a little in this film also. There were certainly a few jokes that wouldn’t have been allowed to be shown in the tv show, notably a great line by Homer to his pet pig that had me nearly rolling in the aisle.

And while I was thoroughly entertained, and I would sit through this movie again and again, I couldn’t help but feel that it won’t be number one in a list of all-time top “episodes”. Did I expect it to be the best example of The Simpsons I have ever seen? Maybe I did. But how can one 90-minute movie compete with over 400 episodes? The movie certainly did outshine many of the latest seasons of The Simpsons, where the calibre we are used to has dropped a little. But it can’t compete with the Ralph Wigman classic “I Love Lisa”, or the sibling rivalry in “Lisa on Ice”, or Homer facing up to homophobia in “Homer’s Phobia”. And, my all time favourite, “You Only Move Twice” – the ultimate 007 spoof.

If you are a Simpsons fan, see this movie. You won’t be disappointed – it delivers on laughs and you’ll be humming Spiderpig all the way home. But don’t expect it to be the best example of The Simpsons – there’s just too many brilliant memories it’s competing against.

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Homer: No! I love Alaska. I'm never going back to America!