did anyone else find the simpsons movie too political?

im_ryandick · 07-27-07, 04:17 PM

it wasn't the same simpsons that i've been watching for all these years.
from the opening scene, with itchy as president, i was shocked at how much focus went into left-wing writing and not belly laughs like i had expected.

i was disappointed as hell, and i agree with msn movies 3 / 5 stars.
i hope they don't do the same to the futurama movie.

"i was elected to lead, not read."
come onnnnn.

Groucho · 07-27-07, 04:18 PM

I didn't find it that political at all. The Itchy/Hilary thing was just a throwaway gag.

dadaluholla · 07-27-07, 04:35 PM

If only there was a thread for reviews of the Simpsons movie!

burnside986 · 07-27-07, 05:02 PM

eye c waht u did thar!

im_ryandick · 07-27-07, 05:27 PM

because i'm asking for reviews of the movie, right?

Quote:

Originally Posted by dadaluholla

If only there was a thread for reviews of the Simpsons movie!

Seantn · 07-27-07, 05:29 PM

The reviews thread is a general discussion thread.

PopcornTreeCt · 07-27-07, 09:32 PM

Left-Wing political? Like I needed another reason to skip this movie.

Mr. Salty · 07-27-07, 10:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by im_ryandick

from the opening scene, with itchy as president, i was shocked at how much focus went into left-wing writing and not belly laughs like i had expected.

You have thin skin.

"The Simpsons" has always poked fun at everyone, including whoever is in the White House. The whole appeal of the show has been that it's an equal-opportunity offender.

Seantn · 07-27-07, 10:14 PM

That might be going over the edge a bit. I've never looked at the show and thought of it as being "offensive" to anyone. Maybe they make a few jokes about certain things, but offensive is a pretty strong word.

hardercore · 07-27-07, 10:31 PM

The Simpsons movie was all kinds of awesome, and I didn't feel it went OTT with any kind of poilitical agenda. It took generally good-natured jabs that were designed to draw laughs, not heated debate.

Hokeyboy · 07-27-07, 10:44 PM

I thought lefties were supposed to be the oversensitive ones...

sauce07 · 07-27-07, 11:01 PM

The Simpsons has always poked fun at political situations. Lisa has always been a left wing idealist who cares about the environment just as Homer has never cared about anything (that is until the very last second).
As for the "I was elected to read, not to read" line, this has nothing to do with any current or past president, this is a joke coming from President Schwarzenegger's (!) mouth, not Bush. In 20 years when people watch this timeless movie they will not be thinking that this was made while Bush was in office, they will be laughing at the fact that Arnold Schwarzenegger, the bodybuilder turned action movie star turned gov. of California, was president.

P.S. they will also be laughing at the fact that people wouldn't listen to Lisa about the dangers of global warming.

P.S.S. Lighten up and laugh, it's the Simpsons Movie

UncleGramps · 07-27-07, 11:19 PM

mmconhea · 07-27-07, 11:30 PM

I feel perhaps one would think it was political if they took offense to jokes that our political leaders are idoits... if they were very sensative to that sort of thing... or defensive for some reason... Like if they were one of those people that still think Bush is "just a bad public speaker" and that people that say to the contrary are just liberals bashing the president. Yeah I can see that. But no, it's just a cartoon and they are just jokes. The Simpsons' policical agenda is about as realistic as the Simpsons' skin tone.
The simpsons has always taken shots at presidents: Sr., Clinton, Jr., Ford, Carter.

paradicelost · 07-29-07, 07:47 PM

I haven't got to see the movie yet, but i wouldn't doubt it. People can say "Simpsons just make fun of everyone" and i agree to a point but they make a point to push the limit when it comes to making fun of Bush and other republicans. They crack on conservatives as hard as South Park crack on liberals, though people just notice and bitch about South Park more. Groening hates Dubya, and he has made that very obvious the last 7 1/2 years,especially when he threw that little subliminal "Vote for Gore" on the chalkboard the sunday nite before the election. Don't get me wrong i do like the simpsons and i do plan on going to see the movie and even with the conservative jokes i'm sure I'll laugh my ass off. Kinda off topic and its just my opinion so be gentle with the flaming.

dan30oly · 07-29-07, 08:27 PM

This movie did lean alot towards the left.

That being said, that tv series takes shots at everyone and I would estimate that if you took the series as a whole, they probably take an even amount of pot shots at each side.

p.s. I thought the movie was mediocre at best. It felt like one very long super-sized regular tv episode, nothing worth spending $10 on.

BernieStolar · 07-29-07, 09:05 PM

NRA 4ever

Groucho · 07-29-07, 09:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dan30oly

This movie did lean alot towards the left.

Examples?

wildcatlh · 07-29-07, 09:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by paradicelost

I haven't got to see the movie yet, but i wouldn't doubt it. People can say "Simpsons just make fun of everyone" and i agree to a point but they make a point to push the limit when it comes to making fun of Bush and other republicans. They crack on conservatives as hard as South Park crack on liberals, though people just notice and bitch about South Park more. Groening hates Dubya, and he has made that very obvious the last 7 1/2 years,especially when he threw that little subliminal "Vote for Gore" on the chalkboard the sunday nite before the election. Don't get me wrong i do like the simpsons and i do plan on going to see the movie and even with the conservative jokes i'm sure I'll laugh my ass off. Kinda off topic and its just my opinion so be gentle with the flaming.

Erm... did you not watch the show in the mid-late 90s? Do you not remember how much they made fun of Clinton? Do you not remember the "I'm a pretty lousy president" line? Geesh.

Marge: President Clinton?
Clinton: Yeah, hi. I'm here to see Lisa Simpson.
Lisa: [gasps] You read my letter?
Clinton: Much of it, yeah. And those glow sticks were wrong,
very wrong, so I personally overturned the results
of that band contest. Congratulations. [hands Lisa
a plaque]
Lisa: [gasps] Thank you, Mr. President.
Clinton: No, thank you, Lisa, for teaching kids everywhere a
valuable lesson: If things don't go your way, just
keep complaining until your dreams come true.
Marge: That's a pretty lousy lesson.
Clinton: Hey, I'm a pretty lousy president.

Brain Stew · 07-29-07, 10:51 PM

BEFORE I WRITE ANYTHING, I MUST GIVE A SPOILER ALERT. REALLY YOU SHOULDN'T BE READING A THREAD LIKE THIS IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE MOVIE, BUT I AM SURE SOMEONE WOULD COMPLAIN WITH A SPOILER ALERT.

Quote:

Originally Posted by im_ryandick

from the opening scene, with itchy as president

If you want to get technical about it and extend this insane thought process, Itchy was elected due to the forward momentum of being seen an Astronaut/American Hero, when in actually he savagely killed the only other person who went to the moon with him and lied about it. When it was revealed that Scratchy was alive, Itchy then sent the sum total of America's nuclear weapons to kill Scratchy once and for all. So basically, a Democratic president is shown as being a liar, a war monger and against the environment (that many nukes would destroy the moon which would screw up the tides).

So you see after analyzing things way more than the writers did, you can really see the true right wing message.

calhoun07 · 07-30-07, 01:34 AM

The show has always had political humor thrown in the series, and it's clear where Groening's political feelings lean towards.

I think it's just more noticeable in this movie because the jokes are closer together, not randomly spaced out in the series over a number of episodes.

calhoun07 · 07-30-07, 01:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by paradicelost

I haven't got to see the movie yet, but i wouldn't doubt it. People can say "Simpsons just make fun of everyone" and i agree to a point but they make a point to push the limit when it comes to making fun of Bush and other republicans. They crack on conservatives as hard as South Park crack on liberals, though people just notice and bitch about South Park more. Groening hates Dubya, and he has made that very obvious the last 7 1/2 years,especially when he threw that little subliminal "Vote for Gore" on the chalkboard the sunday nite before the election. Don't get me wrong i do like the simpsons and i do plan on going to see the movie and even with the conservative jokes i'm sure I'll laugh my ass off. Kinda off topic and its just my opinion so be gentle with the flaming.

He's also taken a few jabs at Democrats. Like in the episode where Lisa and Bart can't break into writing for Itchy and Scratchy so they use Abe's name. Abe suddenly starts to get a check each week for $800.00. He thought it was from the government and when asked why would the government would give him money for doing nothing he replied, "I thought the Democrats were back in power."

I would suspect that Groening leans towards the Democratic party, but he does throw some good jabs at them too.

RagingBull80 · 07-30-07, 04:25 AM

There are a lot of conservatives on this board.

Chew · 07-30-07, 08:07 AM

I didn't feel the movie was any more or less political than the show usually is.

RichC2 · 07-30-07, 08:37 AM

I've seen far more political episodes. There were a couple political slaps here and there, but it was about par for course for The Simpsons, and I found it to be a pretty equal offender.

(Paraphrasing Sideshow Bob as he gets arrested) "I'll be out of jail and on the streets in no time! You can't keep the democrats out of the white house forever!"

(Paraphrasing that entire episode where the Simpsons become convicts and go to france) "Fuck the gov't!"

07-27-07, 04:17 PM	#1
im_ryandick Banned Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: southern CA Posts: 446	did anyone else find the simpsons movie too political? it wasn't the same simpsons that i've been watching for all these years. from the opening scene, with itchy as president, i was shocked at how much focus went into left-wing writing and not belly laughs like i had expected. i was disappointed as hell, and i agree with msn movies 3 / 5 stars. i hope they don't do the same to the futurama movie. "i was elected to lead, not read." come onnnnn.

07-27-07, 04:18 PM	#2
Groucho DVD Talk Hero Join Date: Mar 2000 Location: Salt Lake City, Utah Posts: 46,700	I didn't find it that political at all. The Itchy/Hilary thing was just a throwaway gag. __________________ Panda Killers? Xbox Live: Runner Groucho PSN: RunnerGroucho

07-27-07, 05:29 PM	#6
Seantn DVD Talk Limited Edition Join Date: Dec 2001 Posts: 5,526	The reviews thread is a general discussion thread. __________________ "Why don't you get a blog where you can tell others to get a blog?" - Parcher

07-27-07, 09:32 PM	#7
PopcornTreeCt DVD Talk Legend Join Date: Feb 2004 Posts: 15,204	Left-Wing political? Like I needed another reason to skip this movie. __________________

07-27-07, 10:14 PM	#9
Seantn DVD Talk Limited Edition Join Date: Dec 2001 Posts: 5,526	That might be going over the edge a bit. I've never looked at the show and thought of it as being "offensive" to anyone. Maybe they make a few jokes about certain things, but offensive is a pretty strong word. __________________ "Why don't you get a blog where you can tell others to get a blog?" - Parcher

07-27-07, 04:35 PM	#3
dadaluholla DVD Talk Limited Edition Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Wilmington, OH Posts: 5,274	If only there was a thread for reviews of the Simpsons movie!

07-27-07, 05:02 PM	#4
burnside986 Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 320	eye c waht u did thar!

07-27-07, 10:31 PM	#10
hardercore DVD Talk Special Edition Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Berkeley, CA Posts: 1,500	The Simpsons movie was all kinds of awesome, and I didn't feel it went OTT with any kind of poilitical agenda. It took generally good-natured jabs that were designed to draw laughs, not heated debate. __________________ Top 10 Films of 2009 \| 1. Inglourious Basterds \| 2. Up \| 3. (500) Days of Summer \| 4. The Class \| 5. The Hurt Locker 6. Funny People \| 7. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince \| 8. District 9 \| 9. I Love You, Man \| 10. The Hangover

07-27-07, 10:44 PM	#11
Hokeyboy DVD Talk Limited Edition Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Fort Lauderdale, FL Posts: 6,106	I thought lefties were supposed to be the oversensitive ones... __________________ This guy of all people. Hokeyboy, one of the most ignorant, thoughtless posters I've seen on here. I've seen your act and it isn't good. -- bootsy Hokeyboy is like, the biggest douche of the year! -- gglass4269 He's probably a very well paid anticop douche, thank you very much. -- CaptainMarvel

07-27-07, 11:01 PM	#12
sauce07 DVD Talk Gold Edition Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Oak Hill, VA Posts: 2,159	The Simpsons has always poked fun at political situations. Lisa has always been a left wing idealist who cares about the environment just as Homer has never cared about anything (that is until the very last second). As for the "I was elected to read, not to read" line, this has nothing to do with any current or past president, this is a joke coming from President Schwarzenegger's (!) mouth, not Bush. In 20 years when people watch this timeless movie they will not be thinking that this was made while Bush was in office, they will be laughing at the fact that Arnold Schwarzenegger, the bodybuilder turned action movie star turned gov. of California, was president. P.S. they will also be laughing at the fact that people wouldn't listen to Lisa about the dangers of global warming. P.S.S. Lighten up and laugh, it's the Simpsons Movie __________________ I'm cool, live with it PSN - sauce07 Wii - 5690-8135-6143-5486 DVD Aficionado My Countdown Counting down to: Phish @ JPJ Arena 12 days 23 hours 46 minutes

07-27-07, 11:19 PM	#13
UncleGramps DVD Talk Ultimate Edition Join Date: May 2000 Location: Jersey represent! Posts: 4,084	No. __________________ Xbox Live GamerTag: UncleGramps PS3 ID: UncleGramps Wii Code: 3155 5265 7877 7786 8-Bit Brigade \| Brigadier Broadcast - The 8BB Podcast

07-27-07, 11:30 PM	#14
mmconhea DVD Talk Ultimate Edition Join Date: Sep 1999 Location: Rochester, NY USA Posts: 4,176	I feel perhaps one would think it was political if they took offense to jokes that our political leaders are idoits... if they were very sensative to that sort of thing... or defensive for some reason... Like if they were one of those people that still think Bush is "just a bad public speaker" and that people that say to the contrary are just liberals bashing the president. Yeah I can see that. But no, it's just a cartoon and they are just jokes. The Simpsons' policical agenda is about as realistic as the Simpsons' skin tone. The simpsons has always taken shots at presidents: Sr., Clinton, Jr., Ford, Carter. __________________ Waterfalls & Photography Niagara Falls

07-29-07, 07:47 PM	#15
paradicelost DVD Talk Special Edition Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: Louisville, Kentucky Posts: 1,301	I haven't got to see the movie yet, but i wouldn't doubt it. People can say "Simpsons just make fun of everyone" and i agree to a point but they make a point to push the limit when it comes to making fun of Bush and other republicans. They crack on conservatives as hard as South Park crack on liberals, though people just notice and bitch about South Park more. Groening hates Dubya, and he has made that very obvious the last 7 1/2 years,especially when he threw that little subliminal "Vote for Gore" on the chalkboard the sunday nite before the election. Don't get me wrong i do like the simpsons and i do plan on going to see the movie and even with the conservative jokes i'm sure I'll laugh my ass off. Kinda off topic and its just my opinion so be gentle with the flaming. __________________ http://jase991.dvdaf.com/ Last edited by paradicelost; 07-29-07 at 07:56 PM.

07-29-07, 08:27 PM	#16
dan30oly DVD Talk Special Edition Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 1,334	This movie did lean alot towards the left. That being said, that tv series takes shots at everyone and I would estimate that if you took the series as a whole, they probably take an even amount of pot shots at each side. p.s. I thought the movie was mediocre at best. It felt like one very long super-sized regular tv episode, nothing worth spending $10 on. __________________ BlueRae-DVD own: 177 (+ 68 on order) Former HD-DVD supporter own: 155 HD-DVD R.I.P. 1/4/08

07-29-07, 09:05 PM	#17
BernieStolar Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2000 Location: carmichael, CA, USA Posts: 400	NRA 4ever

07-30-07, 01:34 AM	#21
calhoun07 DVD Talk Legend Join Date: Oct 2001 Posts: 12,813	The show has always had political humor thrown in the series, and it's clear where Groening's political feelings lean towards. I think it's just more noticeable in this movie because the jokes are closer together, not randomly spaced out in the series over a number of episodes. __________________ You can only please a woman with a dick made out of chocolate that ejaculates money.-Rhemus Windowless vans do NOT have candy, only rape.

07-30-07, 04:25 AM	#23
RagingBull80 DVD Talk Special Edition Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: West of the Fields Posts: 1,409	There are a lot of conservatives on this board. __________________ "Through fields of Cattle. Through fields of Cane." D V D S

07-30-07, 08:07 AM	#24
Chew DVD Talk Legend Join Date: May 1999 Location: South of Titletown Posts: 15,826	I didn't feel the movie was any more or less political than the show usually is. __________________ XBL Gamertag: chew1138 PSN Gamertag: chew1138

07-30-07, 08:37 AM	#25
RichC2 DVD Talk Legend Join Date: May 2001 Posts: 11,164	I've seen far more political episodes. There were a couple political slaps here and there, but it was about par for course for The Simpsons, and I found it to be a pretty equal offender. (Paraphrasing Sideshow Bob as he gets arrested) "I'll be out of jail and on the streets in no time! You can't keep the democrats out of the white house forever!" (Paraphrasing that entire episode where the Simpsons become convicts and go to france) "Fuck the gov't!"