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After 18 seasons on the air, Homer and Marge Simpson and the rest of their dysfunctional little family have built quite an impressive fan base—even, you could say, an obsessive fan base. So there’s no doubt that millions of Simpsons fans will head out to the theaters this weekend to see the long-awaited, ridiculously-hyped Simpsons Movie. And, fortunately, they won’t be disappointed.
In their first feature film adventure, the Simpsons face the end of Springfield as they know it—and (no surprise) it’s all Homer’s fault. Despite the incoherent warnings from Grampa Simpson about a “twisted tail,” Homer decides to adopt a pet pig. When the giant silo of pig crap that he keeps in the back yard fills up, Homer lazily dumps it in Lake Springfield—which was already so polluted that Lisa finally managed to convince the city officials to put up a barrier to keep people from dumping there. The latest pollution is the last straw for the US government—and President Arnold Schwarzenegger decides to trap the entire city of Springfield inside a giant dome.
When the other citizens of Springfield discover that Homer’s to blame for the dome, the Simpsons become fugitives. But even with Homer Simpson out of the way, Springfield’s problems have only just begun.
The Simpsons Movie is exactly what you’d expect it to be. It follows the same familiar formulas found in a regular episode—only expanded to fill 87 minutes instead of 22. So you’ve got a whole bunch of random events (like Bart accepting Homer’s dare to ride his skateboard naked through town, which eventually leads to Homer’s decision to bring home a pet pig) leading to the main plot of the story (Springfield being trapped under a giant dome). In the process, Homer screws up, Marge puts up with it, Lisa tries to save the planet, Bart causes trouble, and Maggie once again proves that she might just be the smartest one in the family. Fans of The Simpsons have pretty much seen it all before (though Matt Groening and his army of writers still manage to pull a few surprises out of their hat)—but, somehow, it’s still funny, even after all these years. It’s random and silly. It’s wonderfully irreverent (even going so far as to open the movie by ridiculing fans for paying money to see something they see for free on TV every week). And there are all kinds of inside jokes and pop culture references and appearances from well-loved minor characters.
One word of warning, though: don’t expect The Simpsons Movie to be a giant Simpsons reunion. This isn’t a series finale, in which every character comes back to say good-bye. It’s more like an extra-long episode—with a few new characters and a few old favorites. So if your favorite minor character doesn’t get a major role this time around, you can always hope for a sequel—in another 18 years or so.
So is The Simpsons Movie funny? There’s no diddly-oubt about it. Granted, it doesn’t necessarily capture the Simpson family at their most hilarious, but—after almost two decades and hundreds of brilliantly hysterical episodes—that’s a tall order to fill. While it may not be quite at the same level of hilarity as some of my all-time favorite Simpsons episodes, though, there are still plenty of wildly funny moments—and the story’s pretty good, too. You don’t even have to be an obsessive fan or a master of Simpsons trivia to enjoy it. So head on down to your local theater, smuggle in some donuts and a couple of cans of Buzz Cola, and prepare for plenty of laughs.
