The Simpsons Movie

In a sense, it's just more of the same but Matt Groening's big screen Simpsons adventure is still an undeniably funny and snappy satire. The show makes its leap to the big screen by setting itself up as a send up of all things cinematic, taking on the mock format for a bid budget blockbuster and then stuffing it with goofy gags and lowbrow hijinks along with the patented Simpsons sense of sly wit. Key topics for mockery here are the mundane state of TV and media and the mounting atrocities of environmental politics. Even with all the little doses of social commentary, the film still comes of as all in good fun. The main plot centers around a government plan to contain the despicable levels of pollution in Springfield. Like most Simpsons stories what starts out small gradually escalates with more and more little additions and tangents tacked on. In the end, this is really just a jumbo-sized episode of the FOX TV series with slightly grander ambitions and a teeny bit more twisted heart. Nonetheless, the iconic show more than ably transforms itself into a feature-length romp. After being on the air for 18 years, the show has still not yet dried out of its freshness due mostly to the fact that its thin conceit has been flexible enough to allow the show to remain vital and contemporary with each new year. It's still razor sharp and biting as ever.

Grade: B+