Movie Review: The Muppets in Theaters Now!

It’s time to play the music!
It’s time to light the lights!
It’s time to meet the Muppets on the Muppet Show tonight!

That was my family’s Sunday night cue to gather around the TV. My brother and I sat directly in front of the TV while my parents lounged on our flowered velour sofa. This was at a time when families actually watched “variety” shows together. I LOVED the Muppet Show and I loved watching it with my family. Fast forward to 2011. Although not so much in the public eye these last few years, The Muppets are still near and dear to my heart. I was thrilled to find out that after 12 years there would be a new Muppet movie! I then absolutely flipped when I found out I had chance to screen it at the El Capital Theater in Hollywood a week before it opened.

Brothers, Walter and Gary get read to take on Los Angeles. Photo courtesy of Disney.

(SPOILER ALERT!)

The Muppets crew reunites after their biggest fan, Walter, visits from Smalltown. Walter joins his brother, Gary (Jason Segel) and Gary’s girlfriend Mary (Amy Adams) on their 10th dating anniversary vacation to Los Angeles but the trio had no idea what was in store for them! While on a tour of the run down Muppet Studios, Walter overhears bad guy, Tex Richman (Chris Cooper) plan to take over the Muppet Theater to dig for OIL! The three Muppet fans seek out Kermit to inform him of Richman’s plans.

Kermit was always the voice of reason – a true leader and he’s no different in this movie. He takes his new friends and his 80’s robot on a road trip (traveling by map!) to find the old gang. Animal is in an anger management program, Gonzo is a successful plumber, Scooter works at Google and Fozzy is in a lounge band called the Moopets (keep an eye out for Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters).

The Muppets get back together with the help of their new friends. Photo courtesy of Disney.

Warm and genuinely funny, this movie is nostalgia at it’s finest and you can expect notable lines from Fozzy, fun routines from Camilla and The Chickens, celebrity cameos and a remake of Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit! I do wish that Pigs In Space made into the film. My favorite Muppet songs are Rainbow Connection and Mah Na Mah Na (they were both songs played at my wedding!) and were highlights for me and my teary-eyed moments. And of course we can’t have a movie that doesn’t touch on the dysfunctional romance of Miss Piggy and Kermit. The musical numbers were actually pretty funny and the storyline was entertaining and easy to follow.

The only element that distracted me was the Muppet’s voices. Henson’s and Oz’s character voices are engrained in my head (“I’ve heard it too many times to ignore it”). I realize that inevitably people (sadly) pass on or change happens but I couldn’t help to focus on that. I believe Gonzo, Scooter and a couple of the others were original acting voices. I also think Walter’s character isn’t as strong as the other Muppets but I’m probably just biased.

This movie is a mixture of past Muppet movies and the Muppet Show. I felt like a kid again and while the grown-up me loved this movie. I’m training my daughter to love the old episodes and movies (LOL)! I’m not sure if she’ll embrace the characters like I did as a child. I am thrilled that The Muppets were brought back to the big screen introducing these legends to a new generation of fans.

Are you in Hollywood? I highly recommend seeing the film at the El Capitan. It’s super cool sitting in the theater that is featured in the movie! Plus my neighbor is in the closing scene! Mah Na Mah Na….

– Tee

Rated: PG
Producers:  David Hoberman, Todd Lieberman
Executive Producers:  Jason Segel, Nicholas Stoller, John G. Scotti, Martin G. Baker
Written by:  Jason Segel & Nicholas Stoller (credit not final)