2011 Muppet movie that can't be called The Muppet Movie because there already is a movie called thatRating: 15/20 (Emma: 18/20; Abbey: 19/20)
Plot: The aptly-named Tex Richman is about to buy the land upon which sits the former Muppet studios because he wants to drill for oil there. When Gary, his girlfriend Mary, and his little felt brother Walter find out while vacationing in Hollywood, they find Kermit to let him know and help him reunite the Muppets for a telethon to raise money to save the studio. Those curmudgeons who always sat in the balcony crack wise.
I have to get this out of the way before I type anything else--I've always loved the Muppets and probably always will. I love them unapologetically and unconditionally. If Scooter bounced over to me and hit me squarely in the groin with a baseball bat, I would grimace and fall down writhing in pain and ask, "Scooter, what was that for?" but it wouldn't keep me from loving the Muppets. I think it's the texture of their "skin" that I like so much. And it looked great in this movie--you could see the felt, and all the colors of these colorful characters, especially when they filled the screen with their movements all at once, just hit my nostalgic sweet spot and made the child within me giggle. I don't want to go on and on about the material Muppets are made of; I'm not a pervert or anything.
This really is a movie that's all about nostalgia. I can't imagine a fan of the brilliant television show or the other movies hating this despite some flaws. It's true to the original stuff and, at least I think, the overall vision of Jim Henson. There's some self-referential stuff peppered in the script and a fan favorite song playing over the closing credits. All of the characters show up except for that John Denver Muppet, and the new character, though possibly guilty of being a little on the bland side, is just too likable not to like a little bit. Really, I wanted to give Walter a noogie. Not that I'm a pervert or anything. It was great seeing all the characters in something a little more traditionally Muppety than the parodies they've appeared in more recently. The start of their big show with their theme song nearly jerked tears from me!
The humor's also slap-happy meta-, and Muppet-esque, and although Muppet-esque humor probably isn't for everybody, I laughed more during this than I've laughed at anything for a long time. I laughed like a little boy, too. I laughed at Muppet teeth, a robot offering Tab and New Coke, Swedish Chef subtitles (and that "Say hello to my little friend" reference was so funny), a human replacement for Animal in Fozzie's Moopet band (Dave Grohl, the first of two Nirvana references), Punch Teacher, Tex's unlikely and surprising burst into a rap song, hip-hop Fozzie's "Wakka Wakka," and the barbershop quartet version of "Smells Like Teen Spirit" which was about the best thing I've ever heard in a movie and my new second movie scene that takes place in a barbershop. That's right, Chaplin still has the top spot.
This is a Muppet musical, and I actually enjoyed the songs. There was one nice nod to a song from an earlier movie (I won't give it away, but it has to do with rainbows and connecting) that was beautifully done, sonically and visually. The duet about being a "Muppet Man" or a "Manly Muppet" managed to be both touching and hilarious.
Jason Segal and Amy Adams were both potentially bothersome, but they were fine here. I enjoyed Segal especially with this wide-eyed "Holy cow! I'm in a freakin' Muppet movie!" look that he had throughout this thing. You expect and at times put up with all the cameos, just like you kind of have to wade through a few terrible jokes to get to the really funny parts. The story was ok but predictable, but there were an awful lot of side plots. So many stories! This also almost overflows with themes, and although a lot of those themes really connect, it almost seems too ambitious at times.
Still, I'm not complaining about anything I saw here, and I was enormously entertained by this. And I am thrilled that this Muppet comeback wasn't completely screwed up.
6 comments:
dead on bro. i gave it a 14. the muppet man song won the oscar. the guy that did all the music was one of the stars from flight of the conchords. a show you need to see. the movie also had kristen schaal my new crush, that makes any movie an instant 10 at least.
the only thing i am able to watch jason segal in is freaks and geeks but he didnt annoy me as much in this. the girl was in psycho beach party(which you need to see) i thought she was great in this.
greatest thing about the muppets: the moppets
I also was a big fan of The Muppet Show when I was a teen. Your review was right on. It is very nostalgic (when the three each do a bit of the opening theme I got a tear) while adding new twists without ever going too far. I really enjoyed Chris Cooper as the bad guy (his unapologetic rich man song should be the Republican convention theme music, and I loved the menacing laugh bit), while the movie reminds us of why we liked the wide range of muppet characters so much. The characters and the film have an innocent charm and humor that make me hope there are more to come. It was the first time my children really appreciated the muppets, and like the movie, that makes me smile. Also a 15.
You lied to me, Rio Blanco...You told me there wasn't a "Wakka Wakka" in this thing.
Segal's ok on the 'How I Met Your Mother' show...before this, I don't think I liked him in a movie.
I've seen 'Flight of the Conchords'...not bad.
And there wasn't a single "fuck" in this movie. I don't know what you're talking about.
Cory, glad my nieces-in-law enjoyed this. And I lost it when he busted into that rap song...that really shouldn't have worked. It should have seemed like a cheap way to get a laugh, but it was just so good.
well the chickens didnt sing the lyrics they just said "bach bach bach". if fozzie said wakka wakka i was able to successfully block it frommy memory
This was a really sweet-natured movie. It stole my idea for fart shoes, though.
"Wakka wakka" is one of my favorite things to say in my classroom after one of my attempts at humor falls flat. I'll do like a jazz hands thing and say, "Wakka wakka wakka!" I can't believe you missed the hip-hop Fozzie saying "Wakka wakka" though because that was hilarious. It was a gangsta wakka wakka.
Sorry to hear about the fart shoes, Matt.
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