THE SIMPSONS MOVIE
A film review by Steve Rhodes
Copyright 2007 Steve Rhodes
RATING (0 TO ****): *** 1/2
Okay, I've got to confess upfront that I am one of the two or three people
in America who have never seen "The Simpsons" TV series. And why would I?
No longer having a youngster, why would I bother? Well, as it turns out, I
appear to have been missing something quite delightful, assuming it is
anything like the hilarious THE SIMPSONS MOVIE, one of my more pleasant
surprises of this summer movie season.
Sure, the film is silly -- really silly, but it's a whole lot of fun. Most
of all, the characters are as likeable as they are funny, and the dialog is
downright delicious. There are enough great lines in the movie to fill a
small joke book. Politicians could do worse that trying to reassure
potential voters with the movie line, "If you're going to pick a government
to trust, why not this one?" How's that for a catchy campaign slogan?
Of course, the star of the show is Homer Simpson (voiced by Dan
Castellaneta), the lovable and outspoken head of the Simpson family. Julie
Kavner voices Homer's wife Marge, Nancy Cartwright is the voice of Homer's
son Bart, and Yeardley Smith voices daughter Lisa.
The film is filled with environmental and other politically incorrect jokes.
The president of the country is Arnold Schwarzenegger (voiced by Harry
Shearer), who is a take-charge guy not afraid of making decisions -- even if
he has no information and is picking options entirely at random. "I was
elected to lead, not to read," he explains.
Environmental Protection Agency Head, Russ Cargill (voiced brilliantly by
Albert Brooks), knows just how to control the president so that he makes
only the decisions that Cargill wants. The EPA is featured prominently in
the story, since the Simpson's hometown of Springfield has to be completely
covered by a dome. I'll let you find out why.
Part of the humor comes from slapstick, but it's done particularly well.
One memorable sequence has Homer attempting to hammer a nail into his roof.
While trying hard not to hit his thumb, he hits himself in the head instead.
Another time, he irritates his wife because of the tracks Homer's new pet
pig makes on the ceiling in the Simpson's home.
Sometimes the humor comes from simple sight gags. One of my favorites
happens on an observation point where we get to see the famous spot in the
U.S. where four states meet. In case you've forgotten your geography, we're
told that they are Ohio, Nevada, Maine and Kentucky. You might want to make
a note of that in case you're ever on a television quiz show.
Finally, there is a video game shown in the film that you might want to put
on your shopping list -- Grand Theft Walrus.
THE SIMPSONS MOVIE runs 1:27. It is rated PG-13 for "irreverent humor
throughout" and would be acceptable for all ages.
My son Jeffrey and his girlfriend Yasmin, both 18, gave the film a very
enthusiastic ****. Jeffrey said that the movie was true to the series while
still being very creative and introducing lots of new material. He thought
the jokes were great, but the movie was very sweet too. Yasmin said it was
a classic Simpsons' comedy that was never overdone or overplayed.
The film is playing in nationwide release now in the United States. In the
Silicon Valley, it is showing at the AMC theaters, the Century theaters and
the Camera Cinemas.
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