At the risk of getting all Comic Book Guy on the matter:
I will not make a movie without a good story to tell.
I will not make a movie without a good story to tell.
I will not make a movie without a good story to tell.
I will not make a movie without a good story to tell.
I will not make a movie without a good story to tell.
I was deeply disappointed in The Simpsons Movie. It wasn’t bad so much as flat. For every laugh out loud moment there were two moments that felt recycled and downright tired.
Homer’s selfishness and thoughtlessness almost dooms his marriage? Been there.
Bart rejects Homer in favor of a stronger father figure or more positive role model? Done that.
The Simpsons acquire a new/unusual pet? Do the names Santa’s Little Helper, Stampy, Laddie, or Mojo mean anything to you?
The Simpson have to escape Springfield one step ahead of a person/group? All this plotline did was make me wonder where the hell Sideshow Bob was. They have the opportnity to tell the quote ultimate unquote Simpsons story, and they leave out Bob? For shame!*
Homer is dragged into a spiritual/vision quest in order to find the clarity/redemption he need to do the right thing? It was funnier when Johnny Cash was his spirit guide.
A Simpsons movie should have been epic. Granted, if you look to the box office returns, it didn’t need to be epic to get the job done, but without a good reason, why make the transition from television to film? Don’t get me wrong; seeing Homer and Marge and all of the rest of Springfield rendered in a richer color palate with a sharper resolution was nice and all, but the results just scream “wasted potential” to me.
For that matter, President freakin’ Schwarzenegger? Why? Did the producers think audiences wouldn’t be able to infer the connection between the Governator’s Springfield doppelganger Ranier Wolfcastle and the real thing? Was this supposed to be some kind of half-assed attempt to plant the seed for the constitutional amendment required to pave the way for a Schwarzenegger presidency? Curse you and your manipulative perfidy, Rupert Murdoch!
