When I was younger, my family had an old VHS tape my parents had recorded of, "The Muppets: A Tribute to Jim Henson," that aired on CBS during November sweeps in 1990. This one-hour special honored the legendary genius, puppeteer, and innovator behind the Muppets, Sesame Street, and Fraggle Rock, amongst other things, who had died only months earlier of a strep infection. The tribute was a mix of old footage from past Henson programs and films, interviews with colleagues plus, a continuing skit where the Muppets tried to plan a tribute to Henson without knowing who he was.
The mood was appropriately somber with testimonials from the likes of Carol Burnett, Harry Belafonte, and Steven Spielberg waxing poetically about Henson's creativity, his artistic pursuits as a storyteller, and his integration of education into children's television programming. But, despite these moments of sobriety, the Muppet characters themselves, with their whoopie cushion jokes, delightful plays on words, and silly musical numbers, were not letting any amount of melancholy or sadness spoil the pursuits Henson had for his singular creations--to laugh, sing, be silly, and simply, just make everyone happy.
Writer/star Jason Segal ("Forgetting Sarah Marshall," TV's "How I Met Your Mother") hasn't forgotten this same joy and this same exuberance when creating his own film titled simply "The Muppets." Unlike in the most recent cinematic, Muppet efforts ("Muppet Treasure Island" or "Muppets in Space"), where the film relied heavily on a high-concept, this film goes back to the old-fashioned "put-on-a-show" style movie.
The show in question is a benefit concert for the Muppet Studios which, unless they raise the money, will be taken over by an evil oil baron (played with reckless abandon and obvious fun by Chris Cooper). Segal plays Gary, who along with his girlfriend Mary (Amy Adams), and his Muppet brother Walter (a gaga fan of the Muppets), travel across the country to Hollywood, see the dilapidated studio, and then try to get the gang back together for one last event.
High Shakespeare it most certainly is not, but it doesn't matter because between the new original songs (written by Brit McKenzie of "Flight of the Conchords" fame), the great running gags, and the verve from the lead actors (Amy Adams!!) as well as the celebrity cameos the film delivers exactly what it's supposed to.
But that's also the problem. There's nothing new, nothing fresh. There's nothing as startlingly perfect as Kermit singing "The Rainbow Connection" at the beginning of the first film or a cameo as well played as Orson Welles or Steve Martin. Yes, a running gag involving how the Muppets are has-beens is funny and has good mileage for jokes, but it can't be the whole film. I wish Segal would have pushed for a more original way to tell the same story. Everyone was obviously apt to do, and the songs (especially "Life is A Happy Song" and "Man or Muppet") are as catchy as ever, but the film as a whole feels just rather flimsy.
Gripes aside, I don't think it's possible to leave the theater with anything less than a smile on your face. You go to the theater for 98 minutes, smile, laugh, and beam from ear-to-ear; can you possibly do better than that? It's been twelve years since their last film, and more than anything I'm just so glad there's a whole generation of kids and families that can get excited and be happy to see the Muppets on the screen. Grade: B
This was definitely on my "must see" list, mostly because of how much I enjoyed the Muppets when you were just a little boy! Actually, because of the joy I saw in you and your siblings while watching the Muppets. And, even though your review could not post an A for this movie, the smiling from ear to ear and feel good emotions viewing it will bring, will be worth the trip down memory lane. MOM (and I'll probably even cry - no surprise to you, right!)
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