Any Given Sundance (4 May 2008)

Lisa's documentary about her family is accepted into the Sundance Film Festival. However, her family gets upset with her when they discover that the film is far from flattering.

Director:

Chuck Sheetz

Writers:

Matt Groening (creator), James L. Brooks (developer),

Stars:

Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright

Cast

Episode credited cast:
Dan Castellaneta	...	Homer Simpson (voice)
Julie Kavner	...	Marge Simpson (voice)
Nancy Cartwright	...	Bart Simpson / Ralph Wiggum / Nelson Muntz (voice)
Yeardley Smith	...	Lisa Simpson (voice)
Hank Azaria	...	Moe Szyslak / Carl Carlson / Duffman (voice)
Harry Shearer	...	Mr. Burns / Waylon Smithers / Scratchy / Ned Flanders / Lenny Leonard / Principal Seymour Skinner / Otto (voice)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Pamela Hayden	...	Milhouse Van Houten (voice)
Jim Jarmusch	...	Himself (voice)
Tress MacNeille	...	Mrs. Muntz (voice)
John C. Reilly	...	Himself
Russi Taylor	...	Martin Prince / Others (voice)
Karl Wiedergott	...	Additional Voices

Storyline

After Lisa has captured the seamier side of Springfield life on her My Little Sony camcorder for her school video project Principal Skinner encourages her to make a documentary about her family 'Capturing the Simpsons',which is accepted for,and becomes a hit at,the Sundance Film Festival. It also shows the family at their very worst and their pride in Lisa is short-lived. Fortunately so are people's memories in the film world so that Nelson's movie about his sad home life soon replaces Lisa's film as a talking point.

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Plot Keywords:

sundance | film festival | artsy fartsy director | 2d animation

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Genres:

Animation | Comedy | Family

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Certificate:

TV-PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

4 May 2008 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Gracie Films, 20th Century Fox Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Lisa opens a locked audio/video cabinet with a key resembling a Y1 key blank. It is an accurate use as Y1 key blanks are common for cabinet locks.

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Goofs

The 25+ mile long winding road leading to Park City, Utah is non-existent. Park City is easily accessible from Interstate 80 and is far less than 25 miles from it.

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Quotes

Lisa Simpson: I'm making a movie about a very special family.
Bart Simpson: Smithers and Burns?

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Connections

References The Simpsons Movie (2007)

User Reviews

As its year of airing indicates, this is just not very good. Still, it has Jim Jarmusch, John C. Reilly… and Woody Allen!

*Dec/04/09*

Yesterday I tuned the Simpsons on National TV. I saw the last part of that hilarious 1999 episode with Mel Gibson as the guest star and this one (certainly it was a film-related Simpsons night). Frankly, after I stopped to have some great laughs with the last minutes of that mentioned Mel Gibson episode I was ready to change the channel to enjoy the programmed soccer post-season game but then Homer Simpson announced the episode (here after the couch gag, when we see in the TV of the Simpsons the credit of Matt Groening we get to know the title of the episode and is the voice of Homer the one that mentions the title) that was about to begin and I was like "Sundance = the episode featuring Jim Jarmusch! I must check it out".

And it was worth watching but, and unfortunately is a big but, only because of the guest stars. Yes, the plot in this one, Any Given Sundance, is very thin: Lisa finds her passion for film-making and makes a film about her family, which is eventually submitted and accepted in the Sundance Film Festival. The promise is certainly not bad but the plot gets thin and way too conventional once everybody in Sundance sees Lisa's film (the film itself could have been funnier). There's a sort of subplot with Skinner and the Superintendent Chalmers as film producers. It begins in a cheap way: the invention that Skinner is a cinephile. But this thing delivers some good laughs (John C. Reilly tries hard to get a part in one of Skinner's scripts) so is forgivable the random thing of having Skinner as a fan of Ingmar Bergman (and yes, was funny the Oscar joke), but still is, I think, a fine example to point out why this is not a good written episode since it feels forced while we get to the part of Lisa making a film about her family.

This was the very first Season 19 episode that I saw and I get no pleasant surprise since it isn't very funny and aside of some bits (again, mostly thanks to the guest stars) there is nothing memorable here. The presence of Jim Jarmusch was the one and only reason I really wanted to check this episode and fortunately most of his bits are great (the best is the first one with Jarmusch and Homer. And boy, Jarmusch accepted to direct the new Cheaper by the Dozen film!). But for me is the bit with Woody Allen the one that takes the cake as the best joke! Also is great the reference to The 400 Blows... basically great bits like those didn't deserve to be part of a mediocre episode like this one. If you can only watch those bits you will not miss anything.