The Simpsons Movie - B-

In Theatres. 87 Minutes. PG-13.

As the longest running comedy in TV history, The Simpson’s place in pop culture now supercedes all but the most famous films. Considering this, I couldn’t help but wonder what (outside of money) would possess Matt Groening (the creator) and Co. to make a movie version. Given the endless creativity the writers have displayed over the years, I’d hoped it was because they had some fresh ideas on how to fill 89 minutes of big screen without making an 89-minute version of a 22-minute TV show. My hopes were in vain.

The plot (and this should be a warning) is a green-friendly, tree-hugging campaign to take care of the world. I’m actually fairly green (ideologically, at least) myself, but I’m already sick of this story-line. Springfield, (pick a state), is the most toxic city in the US, and, Homer Simpson, with the help of an (oddly disappearing) pet pig, pushes it over the top. The U.S. Government determines to seal in the problem by putting a giant glass dome over the top of the town, trapping the inhabitants. Chaos ensues.

It’s not that this film isn’t funny. It is very funny. The opening segment, an Itchy and Scratchy Movie, made me laugh uproariously. As did the always dependable church scene, this time dealing with the notion of prophets and what we’d do if one actually spoke to us. Very nice. In fact, you’d be hard-pressed to find more laughs in the theatre this year (outside of Knocked-up). The problem is that it’s not really a movie. It feels like those one-hour “Friends” episodes that everyone got excited about, but just seemed to drag on and on in the watching. The plotline of The Simpson’s Movie might be able to sustain 45 minutes, but the rest is gerrymandering and pointless plot twists to fill time. Pay ten dollars and catch it for an hour and a half of laughs or Netflix any disk from any season in the growing Simpsons library and get as many laughs with good pacing and without the pro-environment preaching. B-