Review: The Muppets

Feelin’ bad? Had a rough few days? Need a bit of a pick me up? Then my friend look no further than the excellent Jason Segel and Nicholas Stoller penned The Muppets. Obviously if, like me, you have a very strong emotional and nostalgic connection to the Muppets then chances are it won’t be a hard sell getting you to go and see this. That being said even if you are indifferent to the Muppets this is well worth seeing. It is quite literally everything you could want from a good old fashioned fun family film.    

The Muppets must’ve been quite a hard sell. It’s been 12 years since we last saw Jim Henson’s beloved creations grace the silver screen in Muppets in Space. Aside from repeat viewings of their finest work (The Muppet Movie, the Muppet’s Christmas Carol, the Muppet’s Treasure Island. (that was an entirely unnecessary list wasn’t it?)) and certain Muppet alumni’s continual appearance in pop culture they’re not exactly relevant anymore. Or at least that's how a studio like Disney would see it. It would be an easy nostalgic pitch but would a new Muppets venture be able to appeal to its target audience, a youth more used to crisp Pixar animations, fat suits and loud noises. Luckily the studio’s trust in Jason Segel and James Bobin pays off as we are left with a truly enjoyable, glorious, fun filled romp that more than appeals to Muppet aficionados and newcomers alike. The film tells the tale of two brothers, Gary and Walter. They're are as alike as two peas in a pod, best friends for life, they do everything together even to the point that they wear matching pyjamas and attend the same scout troupe. It’d be hard to tell them apart if one wasn’t a 6 foot plus human and the other an insecure 2 foot high Muppet. On a special anniversary trip to Los Angeles  Walter stumbles across the awful fate of the beloved Muppet’s studio, its ground are to be sold to an evil Texan oil baron and tore down destroying the memory of those once adored Muppets. Cue the desperate pleas of a reunion, the road trip and good feelings aplenty. Oh and Kermit’s 80’s robot.

The film toys gloriously with its genre conventions just as the Muppets have done so brilliantly since their inception be it the decision to cut out a long journey by travelling by map or the time saving decision to pick up the rest of the gang using montage, the film plays with its own silliness throughout never feeling the need to be anything other than what it is, a Muppet’s movie. Everything is in place, Fozzie’s bad jokes, Miss Piggy’s pomposity, Animal’s animalistic nature "In control", Gonzo’s chickens and suits and all the rest. This however leads me to my main/only criticism of this fine film. Where the frig was Rizzo? I love that rat; he is amazing yet was barely given a second of screen time. I don’t know if Segel has a problem with rats or couldn’t think of any jokes for Rizzo that would beat the excellent jelly beans gag in Christmas Carol but he was sorely missed, by me at least.

The musical numbers, penned by Flight of the Conchords’ star Bret Mackenzie, are brilliant. Yes they are noticeably absent in the film’s second half but it’s at that point that there is a concerned focus on story meaning that songs aren’t needed. Sure a typical musical has songs all the damn time but what this film does so gloriously is say to hell with these conventions and utilise music, song and dancing when it serves a purpose and aids the story. And I for one really like that. The songs tread a glorious line between the hilarious, the sad and the catchy. Even songs that have undertones of sadness and heartache are handled with humour and levity. That being said, songs like Man or Muppet and Is there more I could’ve done show a depth of feeling and emotion that are so oft lacking in contemporary family flicks.

The Muppets is a finely tuned balance act. It is a classic example of just how good a family film can be, funny, sad, clever, heart-warming, nostalgic but not too pandering and a truly enjoyable way to spend 90 minutes. Plus Camilla the Chicken’s final musical number is a thing of true beauty. 

Joe Thinks: All in all I'd agree completely, what I would say is that I found the start with Segal and Adams kinda creepy, It's unsettling to see people that happy. I suppose that says a whole lot more about me than it does about this film! I would say that you should see this with as many like minded people as possible so afterwards you can text them with such classic quotes as "Not now 80s robot" and "*Maniacal laugh" (Also well worth the price of addmission just for the glorious new Toy Story short Small Fry, Tae Kwon Do fo' life. Four Stars.

SO