A terrific showcase of America's most valued animated sitcom

Rating: 10/10 (26 July 2007)

The following is a review for the Simpsons Movie. It contains some minor spoilers, mainly in regards to jokes as told from the trailers.
From that true-blue to the tee meaning of a "teaser" trailer from March 31, 2006 with Ice Age: The Meltdown, hearing that the Simpsons Movie was in production was about any fan's wonderful dream. It's what only was thought to be impossible. A feature-length film about the family we all have come to love over the better part of a quarter-decade? Was it for real? Was the rumor that once the movie was announced and eventually released  that the show would be cancelled? Hurray, Yes, maybe  but not at the moment.
..:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /> In the first big-screen adaptation of "The Simpson's" we find the classic American family of The Simpson's knee deep in a big-scale crisis in a small town in ..:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />Springfield. Pollution has become an epidemic in the local lake and Lisa takes initiative
to gain support from the local townspeople to make a change while trying to make a dream come true in having a relationship with fellow supporter and not Bono's kid in Irish kid Colin. But that's not even the worst of the Simpson's problems! The main plot of the story is Homer's inability to realize the before-and-after's of his polluting, his penchant for a pig, and his ever-fading relationship with Bart  who wants to have a positive father figure in his life. And that's not to mention that something that Homer did caused a sort of martial law to be taken on Springfield.
When you think of classic television, you think of the Simpson's. It's the kind of show that everyone in the family can find something to appreciate. From little Sally who likes the funny looking characters, to Davey who likes to see Bart get the best of his dad Homer, to Mom and Dad who like to see real-life arguments fought between and quickly resolved between Homer and Marge. Oh, and yours truly who loves the Comic Book Guy and his obsession with comics. There are so many iconic characters on a show that has reached the peak of superstardom. What more can a show do after almost TWENTY seasons to prove that it is just that good? How about making a movie?
Sounds like a good idea. You've got my bucks right there. All I need to hear is that you've got the entire original cast and you're keeping the Simpson's yellow and I'm in like Flynn. We all know that the average 22  24 minute episode of "The Simpson's" has an A and B plot with sometimes a third to add even more to the general story. But can the show keep an audience in a theatre happy for about an hour and half? My personal opinion would be a resounding yes. Maybe it was the whole idea of seeing "my" show on a three story screen, or maybe it was the ingenious humor, the fact that most of the same writers from the show worked on the script for the movie, but doggonit if I did not laugh harder, more often or longer at this movie than nearly any other episode I've seen. Not once did I feel the story lines were drawn out or to far-fetched (HA-HA!)
The only negative would be that it was not long enough and did not feature more characters! (SEQUEL!) In actuality, there are about 95 original characters featured throughout the film, whether we large and integral roles or just background doing something goofy like Ralph picking his nose. Every minute of this film looked beautiful. Since the television series went completely computer animated a few years back, the movie reaps on the benefits. The animators already have a top-notch structure to reach from and it only looks better here in this feature. There are more and more 3-D elements featured and it just looks wonderful.
It is so hard not to just expel one of the millions of jokes and one-liners featured throughout the movie. This is not one of those movies that suffer a case of "everything funny was in the trailer." It's as packed, if not more, than any normal episode of wall-to-wall irreverent humor and "preaching." There are also those subtle jokes like the Moe's being next door to Reverend LoveJoy's Church and them switching places for a moment, or the ticker advertising for a new show in a movie, or heck, even Itchy & Scratchy doing what they do best. (Here's a hint, it's not chasing dust bunnies.) This movie proves that the show is still a viable commodity. Even if the creators decide to bow out gracefully of a primetime slot for a sitcom, a feature length film every few years or so could still work out very well. The film is fast-paced, incredibly funny, looks great and above all else, has that same heart-warming appeal that that makes the show work so well. It's a truly wonderful addition to one of the most extensive, respected and loved collection of comedy in the history of television and film. If you like the show, you'll love the movie. If you love the show, you'll love the movie. Plain and simple.