July 28th Log

THE SIMPSONS
2007, David Silverman, United States
1st Viewing, Theater

The long-awaited Simpsons movie finally arrives!!! The film opens with Homer telling the audience we are suckers for paying something we can watch for free on television. This sets the tone for the entire film, which is essentially an hour and half long version of a great Simpsons episode. If you are a fan of The Simpsons, you will love this. As far as I’m concerned The Simpsons is the best and most important television show in the history of television. I found the film to be non-stop laughs. The focus is primarily on The Simpson family, leaving some of the many great supporting characters as minor parts, but nearly everyone from the show makes an appearance at some point. The film effectively defines each character of the Simpsons, a timeless and universal family living in a timeless and universal American town (Springfield): Marge as the busy and nervous but patient mother/wife; Bart the juvenile troublemaker son; Lisa the politically conscious yet hopefully romantic daughter; Maggie the quiet, skilled, and easily influenced baby that unnoticingly gets the family out of jams; and of course Homer, the often lazy, thoughtless father/husband who is always causing problems for the family and the town yet is lovable for his equal flashes of reliability and values. The Simpsons Movie draws out each of these Simpson traits so perfectly while displaying the films trademark witty and hilarious comedy with touching family values. Always politically aware, The Simpsons Movie captures the shows importance as a social icon. Here the movie uses a narrative plot to center itself around two essentials of The Simpsons: politics and religion. While the show (as well as this movie) has always had fun taking its clever little shots at religion and the church, ultimately The Simpsons supports the importance of faith and spirituality within the family. This is where the quintessential morality of the show lies, and the movie absolutely captures this in a non-stop laughs film that celebrates the beauty and timelessness of American televisions greatest show.