A Matinee With Moriarty! THE SIMPSONS MOVIE!

Hey, everyone. "Moriarty" here. I had no idea when I bought my new house where the local theaters were or what screens were in my area. As it turns out, I’m about two minutes away from the Winnetka 21, a monolithic all-stadium place. Knowing that now, I’m planning to make a habit of at least one matinee a week there. I’ve had this conversation with people a lot lately, because I think it’s important: people who work in the film industry should go to the movies more often. And not premieres. And not screenings. And not someone’s private theater in their house in the hills. I’m talking about buying a ticket. Taking your chances. Seeing it with a crowd. You’d be surprised how some people who work in film or who write about film almost never go to the theater unless it’s work. I think that’s a huge mistake. I think you owe it to yourself to experience movies the way the public does. Now that I’m living here, now that it’s so preposterously convenient, I’m going to make sure I make more of a habit of it. If I’m telling other people to do it, I should make sure to do it myself. With that in mind, I made it to the 2:35 screening about 20 minutes early. The lobby was busy, but not crazy. It took me about six or seven minutes to get my drink. I went into theater one, found it about a third full. I sat on the front row of the rear section. One seat by itself. Nice and secluded. The commercials began promptly at 2:35. About eight or nine minutes worth. Then trailers. ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS. DADDY DAY CAMP. GOOD LUCK CHUCK. And then the one surprise of the day... the trailer for Blue Sky Studio’s HORTON HEARS A WHO. Count me in on this one. I’m gobsmacked by how accurate the Dr. Seuss universe appears to be, visually, and I like the gentle eccentricity of the trailer. It’s not a blockbuster trailer by any means... it doesn’t really sell the larger story. It’s just a bit of mood, a glimpse of Jim Carrey as Horton and Steve Carell as a Who. This went from “I think they’re making that but I’m not sure” to “Oh my god, I want to see that now” by the end of the trailer. I’ve been reading Dr. Seuss to Toshi lately, so I’m a fan of his work all over again right now, amazed by it on a number of levels, and as long as this is a respectful dip into the world he created, I’m excited. I hope they get it right. And then... THE SIMPSONS MOVIE. I can’t believe there’s actually a SIMPSONS MOVIE and it’s out and you can pay to go see it and it’s real. THE SIMPSONS has been on the air now for more years than my age when the show began. I was 18 when it premiered; the show has now passed that. It’s an institution. Shows that run that long aren’t even shows anymore. They’re cornerstones of pop culture. They simply exist, constantly turning out new work, but secure in their place in the firmament. I think finally making a SIMPSONS MOVIE took real balls. It would be very easy for this to be a knock-off, something cynical the studio pumped out... but the timing’s all wrong for that. They missed that moment by about a decade. This feels like something else from the moment it begins... ... it feels right. The Simpsons make an effortless leap to the bigscreen, in my opinion. Using a heavy-hitting team of the best writers the series has ever had, this creative team created a movie... a large canvass Simpsons story that does innovative things, that does familiar things, and that reminds us of just why THE SIMPSONS matters in the first place. What more can you ask? The story unfolds exactly like the best stories from the show unfold... unexpectedly. Where the film starts is nothing like where the film ends up. It’s motivated by the characters being true to who they are, and in this film, that gets put to a test that I found quite convincingly written, and surprisingly powerful. There are dozens of little acknowledgements that you’re watching a movie, ways in which the film winks at you, but it still offers up a genuine emotional core. That’s not easy, man. How often do you see a comedy that tries to get sentimental, only to turn to mush? Or how often do you see a genuine moment betrayed by a cheap gag? So often, someone’s strength is either one or the other. Even when Matt Groening was writing LIFE IN HELL back in the underground days, his work managed to be both surreal and insane and rude and shocking and, yet, somehow emotional. He perfectly captured the way children filter the world in a way that really only compared to the work Waterson was doing at the time; no one else in the comic strip world was even close at that time. I’ve always believed that the magical alchemy of THE SIMPSONS came from combining the sensibility of Groening with the wisdom of James L. Brooks. Every other genius who has worked on the show (and I believe there have been several) has been working in reaction to those two strong polar creative forces. I’ve seen some complaints that we don’t get a lot of supporting cast in this film. I think that’s sort of inaccurate to say, though. There are quite a few supporting players in this film. Almost everyone we’ve ever met in Springfield shows up somewhere. Now, admittedly, most people don’t get a lot of screen time, but this is a story about the Simpsons first and foremost. I want the family to be front and center. I don’t want them marginalized in their own film. I think the rest of Springfield all manages to make an impression at one point or another. I laughed out loud for most of the film. I’m delighted by how non-stop funny it is. Sometimes there are big set pieces, sometimes it’s simply good strong character writing or sly verbal exchanges, but the entire film had me laughing, reacting. And one reason I’m glad I saw this with the crowd I did is because they were into it. They were with the film all the way through. Everyone reacted to different things. Some of the biggest moments got deservedly outsized reactions, and some lines had maybe one or two people in the whole place laughing, but it was a kick to see what people responded to with this one. It’s fun because we all love something different about THE SIMPSONS at this point. If you’re a fan of it, I’m sure you’ve got specific scenes or jokes or characters or images that define why you are a fan. A lot of what I really respect and enjoy about the show is represented in the approach they’ve taken to putting this together, and realizing that... the creeping sensation of watching someone get something exactly right... is one of this summer’s most pleasant surprises. Albert Brooks has always been a valuable resource for James L. Brooks, and his past appearances on THE SIMPSONS are among the show’s best loved moments. He has a major role here as Cargill, a douchebag of epic proportions, carved from the same stuff as great movie douchebags like William Atherton in GHOSTBUSTERS or... well... William Atherton in DIE HARD... officious and slimy, a naked toady with no redeeming qualities. It’s a nice Albert Brooks performance because he’s able to make sure Cargill is a giant prick without playing him as overtly evil. I have to admit, I was worried about this character more than any other, since he’s basically a device, an invention just to kick the story into motion. But rest assured, Brooks makes Cargill an unforgettable scumbag, blissfully vile, almost jolly about mass murder. The film looks fantastic on the bigscreen, and I love the look of the world in scope. Hans Zimmer’s score manages to evoke both Danny Elfman and Alf Clausen without simply ripping either one of them off. And the voice credits are, across the board, top-notch. Special mention has to be made of Julie Kavner. I alluded earlier to her big scene, and I won’t ruin it, but I’ll just say that she broke my heart. I’ve always thought that the thing that makes her work as Marge so powerful is the same thing that makes Yeardley’s work as Lisa so great... absolute sincerity. Decency. It’s the thing that a show like FAMILY GUY can never do since it’s just about getting the crassest laugh possible... it’s the thing that most wise-ass animated comedy can’t do because it keeps real emotion at arm’s length... there’s such depth of spirit here that it makes all the lunacy that much richer. I know I’ve been vague about plot here, but that’s because there’s no point describing the plot of THE SIMPSONS MOVIE. It’s as pointless as trying to describe the actual jokes. Suffice it to say, this is 100% pure SIMPSONS straight from the tap, and it put a huge smile on my face for hours after it was over. I look forward to watching it again and mining for even more jokes, things I’m sure I’ll be discovering in subsequent looks at it. I’ve got a busy weekend of posting before I leave the country on Monday morning for another set visit, so I’ll cut this short. I’ll start running these “Matinee With Moriarty” pieces every time I go to this theater, sometimes for opening weekend, sometimes for something that’s been out for a while that I missed. With this one doing as well as it is so far this weekend, I’m curious to see if you guys had good luck with your crowds like I did with mine. My guess is that people are there to share this one and enjoy it, and that can be a lot of fun.

Drew McWeeny, Los Angeles