Movies: The Simpsons Movie

The marketing hype for "The Simpsons Movie" has approached iPhone-like levels in the past. Everything from 7-11s to websites to the Fox network itself has been turned into an organ of the gigantic Fox ad machine. Though my Grandma is peacefully resting through the last few days of her life, I just had to take a break with my family and see a movie, and it turned out to be Simpsons time.

The last few seasons of the Simpsons (okay, the last five or six seasons) haven't been very good. I think the show jumped the shark around Season 9, and my favorite episode remains "Itchy & Scratchy Land" for its brilliant send-up of modern amusement parks. Unlike many TV-show-turned-movies, however, "The Simpsons" is still popular and is still running, so any kind of big screen adaptation has different goals in mind.

Viewed in this light, the movie isn't disappointing. Sure, it feels like a 90-minute long episode of the show, and yes, the animation tends to use a whole lot of CGI. But the story is suitably epic, there are a number of chuckle-inducing bits (especially the full choral version of "Spider-Pig"), and everyone can leave the theatre happy if not satisfied.

Rating: 7/10