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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Friday, December 21, 2007

'The Simpsons' just as funny in feature-film length

By Susan King
Los Angeles Times

Hawaii news photo - The Honolulu Advertiser

Homer Simpson causes an ecological disaster after he adopts a pig in the "The Simpsons Movie."

20th Century Fox

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Fox's long-running animated favorite "The Simpsons" joined a short list of TV series — including "McHale's Navy," "The Munsters" and "The X-Files" — that were still on the air when they made their leap to the big screen. And "The Simpsons Movie" (Fox), which arrived Monday on DVD, proved that audiences would pay more than $10 a shot to see the characters they have been watching gratis for the past 18 years.

The film, which is nominated for a Golden Globe, earned about $500 million at the box office. And though it's broader in its humor than the TV series, there are plenty of laughs in this environmentally themed satire, which finds Homer causing an ecological disaster after he adopts a pig.

The commentary tracks — one with "Simpsons" creator Matt Groening, producers James L. Brooks, Richard Sakai and Mike Scully, director David Silverman and voice actor Dan Castellaneta (Homer); and another with several animators — are funny, but the rest of the extras (deleted scenes and promos) will leave "Simpsons" fans wanting more.

John Carney wrote and directed the lovely Irish drama "Once" (Fox), which received the World Audience Award at Sundance in January. Glen Hansard, who was in "The Commitments," stars as a Dublin street singer who meets a Czech immigrant (Marketa Irglova) while performing one night. The cast makes beautiful music together.

The underrated "Stardust" (Paramount), which was released in the summer, is an uneven but often magical tale based on Neil Gaiman's fantastic fable. Charlie Cox plays a young man living in an English village, circa the 19th century, who actually meets and falls in love with the human incarnation of a star (Claire Danes). Extras are pretty slim, with a gag reel, deleted scenes and a perfunctory "making of" short.

"Deep Water" (IFC) is the stunning British documentary from directors Louise Osmond and Jerry Rothwell that chronicles the sad story of Englishman Donald Crowhurst, an amateur sailor who in 1968 entered the first solo, nonstop, round-the-world boat race. Extras include profiles of the other men who entered the race and interviews with Crowhurst's widow and two of his children. Particularly chilling are excerpts from Crowhurst's audio tapes that were found in his deserted boat.

ALSO NEW

"Blade Runner" (Warner): This exceptional four-disc set features Ridley Scott's "final cut" of his 1982 sci-fi classic, as well as the original release version, the international version and the 1992 "director's cut." It also includes a tantalizing three-hour-plus documentary on the film with rare production footage, deleted scenes and interviews with Scott, stars Harrison Ford, Sean Young, Rutger Hauer and Joanna Cassidy, and informative featurettes.

Scott introduces the beautifully restored "final" version and supplies terrific commentary, but the disc also includes two other worthwhile commentary tracks: one with executive producer and screenwriter Hampton Fancher and co-writer David Peoples, producer Michael Deeley and production executive Katherine Haber and the other with visual futurist Syd Mead, production designer Lawrence G. Paull, art director David L. Snyder and special photographic effects supervisors Douglas Trumbull, Richard Yuricich and David Dryer.

"Balls of Fury" (Universal): Witless comedy penned by Thomas Lennon and Robert Ben Garant, who also directed, about a former child pingpong prodigy (Dan Fogler) recruited by an FBI agent (George Lopez) to infiltrate the world of extreme table tennis. Christopher Walken supplies a few moments of levity as the evil kingpin who operates the table tennis tournaments. Extras include typical behind-the-scenes shorts.

"Bring It On: In It to Win It" (Universal): The 2000 theatrical cheerleading comedy "Bring It On" was enjoyable fun. And the title must have a solid following because the film has spawned three made-for-video sequels, including "In It to Win It," a thoroughly torpid comedy. It's a very loose takeoff on "Romeo and Juliet" and "West Side Story" — without the suicides and murders — about two members of rival cheerleading squads falling in love at cheerleading camp.

"The Mod Squad: Season 1 Vol. 1" (Paramount): Totally groovy and absolutely solid trip back to hippie-dippy days of the late 1960s and early '70s. Aaron Spelling and Danny Thomas were the producers of this entertaining ABC detective series that featured Michael Cole, Peggy Lipton and Clarence Williams III as troubled youths given the opportunity to avoid jail if they become undercover cops.

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