Fifteen Years On, The Simpsons Movie Is Still An All-Time Great
Animated movies seem to be perpetually stuck in a weird place in our culture. For pretty much anyone of any age, animation is part of our most formative media experiences. The most successful animation classics have been passed down through generations, and are still enjoyed by adults and children alike. However, animation is still looked down upon by some people, and a lot of the overall progress has been made by the ‘90s-era birth of ‘adult animation’ breaking new ground. The Simpsons was chief among them and, 15 years on, it’s time to reflect on how The Simpsons Movie came to be one of the greatest animated films of all time.
The respect offered to animation varies wildly. The first animated film nominated for Best Picture came all the way back in 1991, but following Beauty & the Best, we had to wait another 18 years for our second nominee, 2009’s Up. This was followed by Toy Story 3 just a year later, and it seemed like animation had made a breakthrough. Unfortunately in the 12 years since, we’re batting at zero again.
Related: The Simpsons: You're All Wrong About Lisa Goes Gaga
No one is claiming that animated movies should get a token pick every year, but are we really claiming Frozen didn’t deserve a shot in 2013? Into the Spider-Verse in 2018? That at last year’s ceremony when Don’t Look Up was one of the ten nominees, Encanto wouldn’t have been far more fitting? 2021 was a strong year for animation, with Encanto, Raya, and The Mitchells all worthy winners of the Best Animated Feature award (which eventually went to Encanto), and yet while presenting the award the Academy decided to mock the very idea of animated movies as an annoyance adults tolerate for the sakes of their children.
This is why I think it’s so
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