Homer Simpson & Co finally arrive to the big screen
A moment longawaited for many of us has finally arrived: The Simpsons Movie is premiering at local cinemas this Thursday. The first to see the biggest animated blockbuster of the summer were the citizens of Springfield, Vermont, where it premiered July 21. The city was chosen from 16 other Springfields in the US, receiving the most votes as the original Simpsons’ town.
The creation of a film version of any hit TV series is always a risky business. While it is sure to be anticipated by all its eager fans, satisfying the expectations of the viewers, who have spent years watching every single episode, may not be that easy. Stretching the usually 20-minute episode into 90 minutes is only part of the job – it also requires a cohesive plot that should touch upon much more than just the usual day-to-day lives of the characters. “Beavis and Butthead do America” and “South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut” managed the task quite well, turning out to be interesting even for those who hadn’t seen the original episodes of the animated series. “The Simpsons,” however, have been around longer than either of them – 18 years on air and 400 episodes – and their audience is accordingly many times bigger. However, it looks like fans won’t be disappointed after all. Starting with an “Itchy & Scratchy” skit that sets the apocalyptic theme for the movie, the plot mainly revolves around Homer’s idiotic behavior (as usual), which leads not only to the estrangement of his beloved son Bart, but also to the polluting of Springfield lake. The town is declared an environmental disaster and is set to be destroyed, while the population turns against Homer Simpson, the sole reason for their misfortunes, and the entire Simpsons family is forced to flee. Just like the TV series, the film is full of references to popular films, including “Titanic,” “Night of the Living Dead” and Al Gore’s “Inconvenient Truth,” as well as celebrity guest appearances by Tom Hanks and punk rockers Green Day, among others.
The characters of America’s most famous dysfunctional family first appeared as a short included in “The Tracy Ullman Show” in 1987, invented and drawn by Comic Artist Matt Groening, and officially debuted in December 1989. “The Simpsons” have been driving America crazy ever since, parodying the lifestyle of Middle America, and culture and society as a whole. Having won a great number of TV awards, the series was named the 20th Century’s Best Television Series by Time magazine in the December 31, 1999 issue and currently remains the longest-running sitcom and animated program in America.
A major hit around the world, “The Simpsons” reached Ukraine only a couple of years ago, shown on the music channel M1. One of the reasons the sitcom gained instant popularity was great dubbing – the bright, recognizable voices and jokes were adapted to local realities. In the Ukrainian translation of “The Simpsons Movie” some changes were made: The voice of Homer is not played by Yevhen Malukha, but by Mykola Lutsenko (Weatherman Mykolyna Pohoda) and Lisa is voiced by Kateryna Kachan, while Marge and Bart are played by the same actors as in the Ukrainian TV version Iryna Doroshenko and Anna Levchenko. “I can’t believe we’re paying to watch something we could see on TV for free!” Homer exclaims in the movie. But of course, we certainly will.
Various cinemas. See Movies for more information.
