Yellow is good

Rating: 6/10 (30 November 2018)

Well, the title "The Simpsons Movie" is probably the most accurate in film history as of course here we have the big screen full feature film approach to one of the most successful animated series of all time. And even if this 85-minute movie is already over a decade old now, it is from way way after when the series started back in the 1980s. And of course, you will get all the most known characters here from the Simpsons universe. There are some topics here that felt more serious than I expected like Homer's risking of his marriage and family, which admittedly came out of nowhere to be fair with Marge leaving it all behind, even if she did not want to stay in Alaska. Bart gets a little story about being neglected by his dad and looking for solace in Ned Flanders of all people. Yeah well, this did nothing for me to be honest. And the way it gets solved at the very end pretty much shows how insignificant and shallow it was. Lisa gets a little romance story with a musically talented boy, but this one was weak too. Actually it was Milhouse stealing the scene there on more than one occasion. So I would say they key story lines, also the motobike part, are not as crucial or as good as they could, maybe should, have been. What I would have liked instead for example could have been a nice story line with Mr. Burns as main antagonist, but he is almost non-existent here, his one scene with Smithers making gestures is outrageously funny though. The big glass ball around Springfield, well, it is among the better parts of the film I guess and it's fine they included it. But not that great either. The moments when the movie shines are those that are minor and not with big references to the key story. One example would be the hilarious pig (spider pig). Another would be the ways in which Bart's genitals are covered in the most creative fashion really with a nice little reference about censorship in American films. Itchy and Scratchy show up early too briefly, very early in fact, so regardless of which character you like the most, there is one for everybody really that you will enjoy depending on your preferences when it comes to the long-running series. Oh yeah, Side Show Bob was missing right? Shame. I really like him and like I said earlier, he could have been a great antagonist as well. But they did not take the traditional film route here with good vs. evil. Then again can you say Homer is a good character. Well, maybe flawed, but likable, but good? Lisa perhaps is the one who comes closest to goodness. I must say the deep meaning about fathership here, or family life made virtually no impact for me and it was clear that despite all the trademark comedy, the makers also wanted this film to be taken seriously from the dramatic perspective, from the emotional perspective. But for that it is not good enough. It is not better than the series, basically you could say it is 4 tolerable Simpsons episodes put together with a long story line. And as such it works without a doubt. Not Simpsons peak level, not South Park level, but still delivers constantly and consistently laughs from start to finish. I think you may want to give this one a go and give ti a thumbs-up, but yeah this is the kind of film where it is not really necessary to hand out a positive or negative recommendation as everybody who considers watching this one shuld definitely have seen enough Simpsons stuff, enough episodes, to make up their mind themselves. Still I say go for it. Make your journey to Springfield. The comedy is definitely the highlight here and there are almost no moments that felt forced from the fun perspective that it was unfunny or awkward.