‘Bob’s Burgers’ Fans, Especially, Will Want To Tune In to This Incessantly Clever Movie

If you’re in need of an indicator of why “The Bob’s Burgers Movie” is a classic comedy, consider this: It’s burdened by a plot.Some clarification is in order. “Classic,” in this sense, isn’t about cinematic magnitude so much as the longstanding tradition of filmmakers making the necessary accommodations to tell jokes within the context of a story.The plot of “The Bob’s Burgers Movie,” in so many words, isn’t an integral component of the comedy so much as an armature into which the comedy is wedged. The movie has less in common with organic masterpieces like “Steamboat Bill Jr.” or “Horsefeathers” than it does with the compromises typical of the films of Abbott and Costello, Martin and Lewis, or any number of graduates from “Saturday Night Live.”Loren Bouchard, who co-directed the movie along with Bernard Derriman, and Nora Smith, who co-wrote the script with Mr. Bouchard, acknowledge as much. About three-quarters of the way through the film there is an extended scene in which the convolutions of the plot — something about an unsolved murder tied to a will, its beneficiaries, and urban renewal — are enumerated at length in a musical number. If you need explication, simply do it with a postmodernist tip of the hat.Then there’s the fate of Bob’s Burgers itself — not the long-running animated television series, but the working-class greasy spoon that serves as its setting. A loan payment is due, and the bank gives our heroes seven days in which to pay up before proceeding with eviction. If that weren’t enough, a cavernous sink hole has opened directly in front of the restaurant, thereby forestalling potential business. Therein lies the dramatic crux of this cartoon.Already, too much time has been spent discussing the forest and missing the trees. If “The Bob’s Burgers Movie” isn’t necessarily as satisfying or concise as a stray episode of the television show, it is, nonetheless, an incessantly clever entertainment.It helps if you’re familiar with the main players. The Belcher family consists of the long-suffering Bob (H. Jon Benjamin), his perpetually optimistic wife, Linda (John Roberts), and their three children: Gene (Eugene Mirman), Louise (Kristen Schaal), and Tina (Dan Mintz). There’s also Bob’s best friend, Teddy (Larry Murphy), a working stiff possessed of a perpetual 5 o’clock shadow and an ever-present gray beanie.These are comic creations of a high order, helped immeasurably by the talent giving them voice. Reams of praise have been devoted to Mr. Benjamin’s sardonic deadpan, and all of it is deserved. “Bob’s Burgers” is unimaginable without his deft sense of timing and froggy baritone. Special mention should be made of Mr. Mintz — or, rather, Tina. This adolescent young woman, saddled with nerdish tendencies and overwhelmed by sexual passion, is among the most indelible characters in popular culture. How can you not love a milquetoast who is a hot mess of contradictory impulses?Among the funniest moments in “The Bob’s Burgers Movie” are when Tina is undergoing stress and begins to emit her trademark groan — a gravely monotone whose emotional character carries more weight and depth than is typical of most mainstream Hollywood products. Mr. Mintz for best supporting actress, anyone?“The Bob’s Burgers Movie” is resolutely 2-D in its animation, though there’s a fulsome sense of, if not reality per se, dimension and texture. The lighting throughout the film is amplified for both comedic and dramatic effect. The scene in which the Belcher family is momentarily buried alive is especially nuanced in its use of value and atmosphere.Less time could’ve been spent on the Fischoeder family — a trio of ancillary characters voiced by Zach Galifianakis, Kevin Kline, and David Wain who are, alas, pivotal to that aforementioned plot — and more musical numbers would’ve been welcome. As it is, these latter are marvels of precision, having been choreographed and orchestrated with hilarious invention. They’re reason enough to plunk down your hard-earned dollars for the amiable shaggy dog story that is “The Bob’s Burgers Movie.”

‘Bob’s Burgers’ Fans, Especially, Will Want To Tune In to This Incessantly Clever Movie

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