Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for The Simpsons season 36, episode 3, “Desperately Seeking Lisa”
AlthoughThe Simpsonsseason 36, episode 3 is undeniably original, the outing also keeps a longstanding series trend alive by deriving inspiration from one legendary director.The Simpsonshas always borrowed from movies. FromRaiders of the Lost ArktoWestworldtoPsycho, the show has parodied countless classics over the decades. Ironically,Many classic movies remind viewers ofThe Simpsonssince the show’s parodies have become as iconic and memorable as the original movies themselves.The Simpsonsseason 36, episode 3, “Desperately Seeking Lisa,” keeps this trend alive by once again referencing the work of a particularly iconic filmmaker.
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The animated sitcom, The Simpsons, has become a bona fide pop culture icon in its nearly 40 years on the air, and now it has been renewed again.
Martin Scorsese is one of the pre-eminent voices in American cinema. Over the decades, his output has become synonymous with movies that gain both critical acclaim and mainstream recognition, with classics likeGoodfellas,Taxi Driver,Raging Bull, andThe Wolf of Wall Streetwinning over critics and viewers alike.The Simpsons’ greatest movie parody ever, season 5, episode 2, “Cape Feare,” spoofed Scorsese’s 1990 remake of the 1962 suspense thriller with shot-for-shot veracity. 31 years later, “Desperately Seeking Lisa” once again draws inspiration from Scorsese’s back catalog, and this is far from the first time the show has done so.
The Simpsons Season 36 Has The Show’s Fifth Martin Scorsese Parody
The Simpsons Has Spoofed The Cinematic Icon Numerous Times Before
Although “Cape Feare” is the most deservedly celebrated of the show’s Scorsese spoofs,The Simpsonshas parodied Scorsese’s work five times now. First, there was season 3, episode 4, “Bart the Murderer,” a spoof ofGoodfellaswherein Bart began working for the mob. WhileBart’s age never changes inThe Simpsons, this episode treated him as a junior version of Henry Hill whose errand-running for Fat Tony gradually introduced him to the criminal underworld. In a hysterical twist, it turned out that Fat Tony and his associates weren’t quite tough enough to stand up to Principal Skinner.
‘Desperately Seeking Lisa” marks the show’s fifth full-length Scorsese spoof.
17 years later, season 19, episode 13, “The Debarted,” parodied Scorsese’s 2006 Oscar WinnerThe Departedwith another Bart-centric plot. This time, Bart befriends a new kid played by Topher Grace, unaware that this troublemaker was secretly a mole for Principal Skinner and Superintendent Chalmers. After that, season 22, episode 9, “Donnie Fatso,” spoofedGoodfellasagain, alongside a few scenes fromCasino. Although the episode’s name and informant plot line were borrowed from director Mike Newell’s 1997 hitDonnie Brasco, the frequent nods to Scorsese’s crime classics were hard to miss. Thus, ‘Desperately Seeking Lisa” marks the show’s fifth full-length Scorsese spoof.
How The Simpsons Season 36’s Scorsese Homage Compares To “Cape Feare”
Desperately Seeking Lisa Is A Looser Scorsese Homage
Although theLisa-centric plot of “Desperately Seeking Lisa”does parody Scorsese’s 1985 masterpieceAfter Hours, the episode’s story is a looser, less faithful riff than “Cape Feare.” “Cape Feare” recreated specific shots fromCape Fearand shares an almost identical plot, although the episode’s villain is Sideshow Bob rather than Robert De Niro’s chilly Max Cady. Where that earlier episode featured full-on recreations of specific scenes, “Desperately Seeking Lisa” instead borrows its broader plot and themes fromAfter Hours. The dark comedy follows a mild-mannered office worker who ventures into Soho on a disastrous date.
InMartin Scorsese’s most underrated movie, Dunne’s character moves from one awkward encounter with pretentious artists to the next until, thanks to a string of unfortunate misunderstandings, a mob of locals is chasing him from the artsy neighborhood. As morning nears, he is magically transported back to his office a changed man. In “Desperately Seeking Lisa,” Lisa befriends a group of pretentious artists, only for them to frame her for theft. As the night wears on, she ends up chased out of the neighborhood and transported home on a balloon of Joan Didion, in a story that clearly parrallelsAfter Hours.
Why The Simpsons Parodies Martin Scorsese So Much
Scorsese’s Outsized Influence On Cinema Makes Parodies Inevitable
The reasonThe Simpsonsparodies Scorsese so often is that he is a titan of American cinema, so it would be hard for the show to avoid referencing his movies. Scorsese is widely recognized as one of the most influential living directors, and his biggest movies have plenty of famous moments that viewers are sure to recognize. WhileThe Simpsons season 36 premiere’s “Series finale’proved that the show can be deliberately weird and meta, the series is typically aimed at a mainstream audience.
Episode Season and Number
“Bart the Murderer”
Season 36, Episode 3
After Hours
As such, Scorsese movies offer perfect fodder forThe Simpsonsto parody. They are typically serious in tone but with enough levity to make parody possible. They are not only famous, but also have a distinct and recognizable enough aesthetic for viewers to know who the show is parodying. Scorsese provides the show with movies that are both interesting enough to spoof and memorable for viewers to recognize the parody, meaningThe Simpsonsoften returns to the director’s work.
