Green Day Contribute Cameo Appearance and Theme Song to The Simpsons Movie
I know a lot of people are looking forward to The Simpsons Movie, but I just can’t find it in myself to get excited about it. It’s not just because the show has gone downhill over the years (after all, they brought on board a lot of the original writers for the movie), but rather, I think that the cultural significance of The Simpsons has long since evaporated and I’ve simply grown tired of all the characters. Now here’s another bit of news that’s got me slightly less enthused about the movie: Green Day appear in the film, and also reportedly perform The Simpsons theme song on the soundtrack.
Hey I’ve got nothing against Green Day (I used to be a fan back in the Dookie/Insomnia era) and I don’t know if their version of the theme song will even be heard in the movie. But something about the thought of Green Day starring in a Simpsons feature film just seems so lame — it’s a big marketing move that will immediately date the film, not unlike Macy Gray’s appearance in Spider-Man. Now I know The Simpsons TV show has always featured celebrity guest stars, in the same grand tradition as The Flintstones, and I don’t have a problem with that. It’s tough to come up with 18 seasons’ worth of ideas. But isn’t the movie something that should stand on its own? When you’ve got so many past Simpsons characters to choose from, it hardly seems necessary to devote screen time to a popular band. Am I crazy, or does it bother you as much as it bothers me?
Comments (9)
Green Day??? I didn’t even realize they were still popular. Isn’t putting them in the movie dating it before it’s even out…
And yeah it’s annoying when movies try to attract viewers by using celebrity cameos.
I’ve found that in recent years -along with the less then stellar writing in general – one of their worst crimes is using the pointless gimmick of the ‘popular band’ cameos.
Posted by Croft on June 1st, 2007Do you really believe putting Green Day in there is an attempt to attract an audience? I don’t think so. If that was the case, they’d get a really BIG act to do it.
Posted by Marina on June 1st, 2007Ya I can’t imagine they’re cover of the theme song to be any good, other than that the bands that have been in the simpsons thus far have not bothered me. The classic “Hi, I’m Billy Corgan Smashing Pumpkins,” “I’m Homer Simpson smiling politely,” line is still funny even if it dates it. If Green Day makes fun of their bloated sense of entitlement i think it could be good.
Posted by Mike on June 1st, 2007I’m not a fan of this idea, but for some reason the fact that Green Day has been around for some time now makes it less bothersome than if it were some new band that has only been around for a few years. In my mind Green Day is one of the few bands from the American punk movement that has managed to remain in the public eye a bit, so I’m not sure if it will date the film too much. If it were Fall Out Boy or My Chemical Romance or someone it would be a different story, but regardless of who the band is, I’m not the biggest fan of the idea of them being in the film. Of course, I don’t have much faith in this movie being great anyway, as I agree that the Simpsons hasn’t been good in years. I’ll still see the movie, but I haven’t watched the show with any regularity since about season 10.
Posted by Rian on June 1st, 2007it doesnt bother me at all
1) i’m too skeptical of the movie (even if it is the original writers) for it to make things any worse – in fact if you’ve seen the actual soundtrack listing, the Green Day cameo actually seems GOOD.
2) lets say the original writers do a good job – the original writers’ knew how to handle celebrity cameos, especially the Hullabalooza episode, still a fucking classic.
3) as Rian said, Green Day like it or not arent a fly by night band. I’m shocked Croft actually had to think ‘they’re still popular – i mean damn, green day had like 6 hit songs off their last album spanning almost 2 years. that last album had a huge run… and… again, like it or not, as much as us late twentysomethings remember Green Day as the stoner slacker set who wrote songs about weed, like the Beastie Boys, in the eyes of a lot of people they’ve elevated themselves to a place where they are considered beacons of integrity. hell, to a lot of people they’re just about the new Clash.
4) I… LIKE, Green Day, for some of the reasons I mentioned above. the old stuff was fun and cute but the new stuff i actually find strong with some good barbs that ring more true than, for example, that NOFX ‘fuck bush’ album or many other of the awful anti war songs. i honestly thing Green Day put out a pretty timeless record with their last release. that doesnt mean i care to see them in a simpsons movie, but it does mean i can easily tolerate it if they can have a sense of humor about themselves and how they’ve somewhat of a ’soapbox’ band. Michael Moore made fun of himself well on the simpsons over his politics, i would hope Green Day would be able to do the same.
Posted by Goon on June 1st, 2007I couldn’t agree more, Green Days stopped rocking as soon as American Idiot came out. Now the whole appearance feels like a Backstreet Boys cameo. (although that Homerpalooza episode is awesome, as far as 90’s alt-rock cameos go)
Posted by Jewski28 on June 3rd, 2007this movie is sounding worst and worst, i mean the show hasnt been good since it last appeared on the Tracey Ullman Show. and now they add a guest appearance of Green Day, a band that blows. we will not see me at a showing of this movie.
Posted by Chopper Sr. on June 3rd, 2007NOT TO BE A TROLL, some of the above comments really do remind me of that episode where Homer becomes the voice of Poochie and has to defend the voice of Itchy & Scratchy against a mob of overzealous and irreverent nerds. There’s no need to be so skeptical. Given the outstanding quality of the series, I can’t see any reason to doubt that of the upcoming movie–Green Day or not.
To clarify: Simpsons is as relevant as it has ever been. Of course, almost all long time fans yearn for the old days (maybe season 6 to 10 or so,maybe 12?), and they’re definitely right to an extent in doing so. But the fact of the matter is that whatever decline the show experienced (one that it has been recovering from in my opinion), it has continued to put out quality episodes and remain both entertaining and in touch with today’s world. Everyone loved Family Guy after it was cancelled. And when it came back, around 9:30 that night you could hear the powering down of HDTVs across thge country as if to say, “Man, this is too weird for me.” Adult Swim, perhaps the set of cartoons best tailored for our generation’s sense of humor, will most likely remain that in the long run–that is, tailored for OUR generation. The Simpsons is one of the few shows in my own lifetime that’s been both suitable for the family but not at all nauseating. Furthermore, if you ever counted how many allusions each Simpsons episodes make to film, music, the visual arts, and literature of both today and within the last 100 years (although it is hackneyed, my favorite example is the wheelchair race–I believe between Homer and Jasper–in which they grind wheels Ben Hur style), you’d be surprised how intricately a Simpsons episode is constructed and the ways in which it captures the world of the 20th century and now into the 21st. Long after it’s cancelled, the Simpsons will remain as one those golden programs that enjoy an afterlife of perpetual syndication, and more importantly, the appreciation of millions of people–who look to it not only one of the most well-packed time capsules ever, but also for its endless humor. Don’t hate on it, and trust the writers of the movie to deliver similarly.
And as for Green Day: yeah sounds kinda cheesy, but clearly not a promotional move. Just think about how amazingly well they integrated N’Sync AND Mad TV into the same episode…and they are both the epitome of dated (apologies to Mad TV fans).
Posted by Yeah, whatever on June 15th, 2007Leave a Reply