'The Simpsons,' Embiggened
You don't have to be an obsessed, Lenny-quoting, die-hard fan of the TV show to appreciate 'The Simpsons Movie,' but it could help.
By Eric Alt with additional reporting by Kelly Borgeson
The Springfield townspeople are out for blood — Simpson blood — after Homer triggers a catastrophe that affects the entire populace.
Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox
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(posted 07/17/07)
The longest running sitcom of all time, animated or otherwise. A cultural touchstone that has changed our language ("D'oh" is now listed in the Oxford English Dictionary), our fashion sense (remember the Bart Simpson "Underachiever" T-shirt fiasco?), and even our political views (check out aliens Kang and Kodos and their "Operation: Enduring Occupation" from Treehouse of Horrors XVII). In short, it is one of the greatest television shows of all time.
Which, of course, now means absolutely nothing. Because on July 27, The Simpsons will finally make the leap to the silver screen. It's one of those moves that's both exhilarating and terrifying to fans. How can a single movie possibly top 18 years of hilarity? Will something that's funny for 30 minutes be irritating after an hour and a half? In short, will this destroy the Simpsons legacy or cement it?
"It means," says long-time executive producer and writer Al Jean, "we really want to work hard not to let [the fans] down."
Their first task, of course, was crafting a story that made sense for a viewing experience that is, to borrow a rival animated movie's phrase, bigger, longer, and uncut. Explains Jean: "The one thing we did not want to do is make it look like three episodes strung together. We wanted to do something that really took 90 minutes to tell. I think it's safe to say that this is a story that merits big screen treatment."
And it's not like they haven't put in the work. The cast originally agreed to do a movie back in 2001, but a script didn't get underway until 2003. Four years and Killy McGee–knows how many rewrites later, and the jokes have been polished enough for the film to finally be screened.
Jean and the rest of the minds behind The Simpsons Movie are less-than forthcoming when it comes to what, exactly, this big-screen-worthy story is all about (Jean points out that a lot of the story points floating around the web — including one about Bart losing his virginity — are either outright lies or fake "planted" rumors). What we can glean amidst the speculation is that Homer accidentally pollutes the water of Springfield, forcing the residents to evacuate. He then, of course, tries to make amends, and the expected hilarity ensues.
Ever helpful, Jean can only confirm what we already know: "The only thing I can tell you is we've seen Homer dumping a silo of pollution into the lake, we've seen a mob about to kill the people in town, and we've seen Homer whipping dogs in a frozen wilderness. Those [scenes] are all in the movie."
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