Not a patch on old Simpsons but oddly enjoyable

Rating: 6/10 (6 January 2009)

Homer Simpson ignores the no dumping in the lake policy and soon he and his family are on the run after Springfield is declared hazardous and placed under a dome.
The yellow American family come to the big screen in one of the most anticipated films of 2007. Despite being up against Transformers, Bourne Ultimatum and Harry Potter the order of the phoenix, the Simpsons Movie still grossed millions all over the globe thanks to its massive fan base and the show itself has now become legendary.
The Simpsons has become bigger than any other TV show and has been showing now for almost 20 years and with all the DVDs, specials and a collection of merchandise that will never end, a film was inevitable.
Sadly the show has hit a slump these last 5 or so years with unfunny parodies of celebrities, predictable slapstick humour and a meaningless narrative.
This picture uses the TV show's recent trends to get its entertainment across. There is plenty of obvious humour such as an Arnold Schwarzenegger President, Lisa's love life and a typical and frankly boring villain.
What is good however is Matt Groening's depiction of real life. He uses real life issues and puts a good spin around them such as advertisement, nudity and a collection of others in the end credits.
Homer's opening line is typical mocking of film life.
Though this film's ultimate goal is to entertain, it is a feel good hour and a half joy ride with occasional moments of old classic Simpsons but majorly lacking a cutting edge style to surprise and shock.
This feels like a stretched episode which you don't get for free. The plot feels ordinary in every sense and the only difference from a normal episode is that these jokes about films make it different from normal sofa views.
If you are currently enjoying current series then you will not be disappointed but if you remember the days when the Simpsons really entertained through a sophisticated story, unsurprising hilarity and a group of real life characters we could all relate to then I am sorry to say this film doesn't have anything to bring that back.
The Simpsons Movie is moderately enjoyable at times, but always predictable with an occasional film joke that was only funny in the cinema.