The Simpsons Movie...was it any good?

“The Simpsons” are an American icon, but much has been made about the perceived decrease in the show’s quality over the last 18(!) years. I suppose this is normal. Most people have a perception of “the good old days” in some way, shape or form. I myself always bemoan the lack of quality music when compared to the variety that made up the musical tapestry that was the 1980s. “The Simpsons,” in spanning 3 decades of poking fun at anyone and everyone, has at times struggled to stay relevant, but in my opinion, the hits far outnumber the misses. My friend Aaron and I agree that, where an episode focuses on Bart, Homer, or Burns, the episodes usually succeed. The weakest episodes are usually Lisa-centric, and I think that the preachy Lisa episodes are the ones that most easily come to mind when one identifies weak Simpson episodes. I, however, have always been a fan. “The Simpsons” debuted during my first year in college. Every Sunday evening, my fellow dorm denizens and I would hunker down in front of the lone TV on the premises (hard to believe that most dorm rooms did not come with TVs back then) to watch “The Simpsons.” At the time, Homer’s character was not even close to being fully realized, and Bart was the real star of the show. Thankfully, the show grew beyond Bart and found its niche poking fun at all of pop culture with a rich cast of characters. Back then, Moe, Barney, Bumblebeeman, Duffman, Burns, Smithers, Carl, Lenny, Krusty, and Grandpa were simply background characters who were there for the sole purpose of being sounding boards for the various Simpson family members. This, however, served the show well because we knew so little about the family itself. Over time, the characters became more fully fleshed out, and the writers looked beyond the family for story inspiration. As the stories focused more on external characters, the supporting cast started to look a lot more interesting than the stars of the show. Of course, Homer could always be looked to for comic relief, and Bart still had his moments, but for the most part, the denizens of Springfield were often more interesting.

I think that “The Simpsons Movie” admirably rectifies that situation and reminds the audience why it is that Marge stays married to Homer. The writers brought it back to basics by having a simple story of Homer royally screwing something up and the family being forced to flee Springfield. During their flight, they uncover a nastier plot (with clues from Tom Hanks, of all people) that threatens all of Springfield, and it is up to the Simpsons to save the day. That, in a nutshell, is the plot. What is missing is the multitude of jokes and clever humor that had the auditorium where I saw the movie in stitches. One watches “The Simpsons” for the clever jokes and comments and the visual gags. The “sketchiness” of the stories works to the writers’ advantage in that it allows them to cram in as many jokes and references as they possibly can. I laughed loudly and I laughed often while watching this film. It was well worth the 18 year wait, and I hope that the writers have another one in them.