Les Muppets, le retour

For all of you who are wondering if this will even come close to capturing the magic of the original Muppet movie, I just have one thing to say to you: go see this movie!!!!! I was a little worried myself that this movie would not be great, but tonight, I gave it a chance. And I left with a smile on my face. :) The story is that Gary (Jason Segel), Mary (Amy Adams), and Walter (the new Muppet) decide to take a trip down to Los Angeles; Walter wants to see the Muppet studios, but Mary and Gary are going for their 10th year anniversary of dating. There, they discover the oil tycoon Tex Richman's (Chris Cooper) plan to tear down the Muppet theater. That's when they decide to get the Muppets gang back together, and to put on one last show to raise enough money to save the theater. I'll let you put two and two together now.

Warning: This just might be my longest review so far on this website. That's right: I loved this film so much that I have to ramble on and on about how much I love it.

Let me first start off with the behind-the-scenes work. Jason Segel, I applaud you. You believed in this movie more than anybody else, and it is why they trusted you, my man. Thank you so much for everything you have done on this film; the result is that kids are now laughing at the Muppets, while adults are reminiscing about the old days when Kermit, Fozzie, Miss Piggy, Gonzo, and the rest would come into their TV's and bring laughter into their homes. Both generations are coming out with smiles on their faces. As for the rest of the crew, thank you so much for doing your job right. I am so happy that cgi and 3d was not used here, so thank you for not incorporating those elements.

Now, to the actors (the human actors). Jason Segel and Amy Adams are perfectly corny in this, but it works here, because it's the muppets! Their little story on the side was great; it was not overplayed, it was just right. I won't spoil what this side-story is, but trust me, you'll enjoy it. Chris Cooper was perfectly evil here. I would say that he was one of the most evil characters in the history of the Muppets, but even he gets a song in this movie.

Speaking of the songs, they are all so great and corny here. From the new songs, like "Life's a Happy Song," to the great old ones, like (yes, you are hearing this right) "The Rainbow Connection." They even have the celebrities in this movie singing "Mahna Mahna" in the credits. Loved every bit of it.

And finally, the stars themselves: the Muppets. The trailers did emphasize Jason Segel and Amy Adams, but make no mistake, this is a Muppet film, and the whole entire gang was back. Kermit is still the normal Muppet trying to pull it all together, Fozzie still has a bad sense of humour, Miss Piggy is still very selfish, Gonzo is still trying to perform dangerous stunts, Animal still plays the drums, Rowlf still plays the piano, and all the others are doing their thing. But, let's not forget the newest addition to this wonderful gang: Walter. If you guys are wondering if whether or not he is worth watching, guess what, he is worth it! He is a really likable character, who grew up watching the muppets, and therefore has found them to be his place in life. He is a very nice addition to the family, and I welcome him aboard.

Simply put, I can't stress on how great this film is. Forget about Twilight; The Muppets is where it's at! Everything about this film is great! Honestly, I don't know why Frank Oz said that he felt like this film did not focus on character development of the Muppets. Um Frank, I believe that the Muppets have been around for around 35 years now; I don't think they need that much more character development. Simply put, this movie is great. Kids will love the Muppets, and Adults will remember why they loved the muppets when they were growing up. My only complaint is that this movie should have been longer, but that's barely a complaint, since I enjoyed the movie so much that I will give it a 10/10. That's right, a 10/10 for me! Welcome back, muppets!

I wasn't raised on Barbie dolls, or cartoons. I wasn't in love with Duck Tales or The Secret of Nimh (in fact it scared me senseless), but I was raised to love The Muppets. Fozzie the Bear was a safe old friend who always cheered me up, Kermit was my sense of justice and reason, Miss Piggy was an exercise in the unrestrained Id, Gonzo was something I didn't and still don't understand, but he's blue and adorable! The Muppets are incredibly precious to me. And I just LUCKED out, because the newest Muppet movie was made by a fan who took all of that into account and made a film that just celebrated the glory of the Muppets. Sure there were moments of overkill, sure it sometimes got ridiculous, but The Muppets is about more than just the Muppets. It's about yearning for something pure; something innocent without patronizing its audience. This film was really clever, self aware with a great sense of humor with a giant heart. Definitely see it!

There are very few of us twenty-somethings who grew up without the Muppets. Between Sesame Street, Muppet Show reruns, and videocassettes of the various Muppet movies, we saw these guys all the time. We even had one or two theatrical releases of our own during the '90s. (My personal favorite of those is The Muppet Christmas Carol, which is still annual holiday viewing.) In recent years, since the very underwhelming Muppets from Space, we've seen them pop up now and again, mostly in similarly underwhelming TV projects and in short (yet hilarious!) YouTube videos. I am quite happy to say that, in this newest movie, the Muppets are back in a big way!

The movie starts by introducing us to a new Muppet, Walter, and his strangely human brother Gary. Gary has planned a trip with his girlfriend, Mary, to Los Angeles, and he is taking Walter along to visit the home of his heroes, Muppet Studios. They find the studio to be in disrepair, and hear of an evil plot to destroy it. Can the Muppets, and everything we hold dear about them, be saved? To get my one complaint out of the way, I do feel that this movie was a bit rushed in places. I wanted more time with these awesome characters, and it did feel as if they were trying to get from one place to the next a bit too quickly.

That said, I spent nearly the entire movie with a smile on my face. These are the Muppets that I grew up with, doing what they are best at doing, with that gently edgy humor at which they have always excelled. While there are some moments that are very touching, it is mostly very funny, with lots of nods to The Muppet Show and The Muppet Movie. While new little Muppet fans should enjoy this, it will be much more meaningful to those who have a history with Kermit and Co.

Clearly made with love for Jim Henson and his creations of fur and felt, The Muppets is the most delightful movie I've seen in theaters this year.

The Muppets may quite possibly be one of the best movies of 2011. I don't just mean that as a fan. The Muppets had everything spot on – it was clever, entertaining, adorable, heartwarming, and absolutely hilarious. The magical thing though is that The Muppets pleases everybody -- average moviegoers and Muppet purists alike, and that I believe is its greatest triumph. On one side is a modern comedy, chock full of hysterical celebrity cameos and pop culture references. And on the other side is a nostalgic throwback to the Muppets era. Those who remember the old series will unquestionably find delight in seeing their favorite puppets reunite for another big show, literally.

Funnily enough, the movie treats the Muppet characters as if they were real life actors, with The Muppets shows and movies being their past careers. The Muppets haven't seen any action in years (a fact also true in real life), and each muppet has taken his/her own path in life with varying degrees of success. When crisis arises, the old troupe is forced to find each other and give it another go.

It is all weaved through a fascinating metanarrative that begs the question, what happens to the Muppets when they aren't The Muppets? After all this time away, can The Muppets make a comeback through a reunion and relive their former glory days? – a question ultimately answered by the movie itself.

The film opens with a common puppet named Walter, whose childhood consists of watching The Muppets and dreaming of joining them. His older brother Gary (Jason Segel) extends the invitation to come with him and his girlfriend of 10 years Mary (Amy Adams) to Los Angeles so that he can visit the Muppet studio. Much to his disappointment, the Muppet theater is abandoned and Walter even overhears an oil tycoon's (Chris Cooper) plot to tear down the place. Walter and Gary quickly seek out Kermit the Frog to reunite the Muppet crew and remedy the situation, but all the while Mary is upset that the turn of events is ruining her 10 year anniversary with Gary.

As you can imagine from the premise alone, the movie is a tribute to the Muppets in every sense. It travels respectfully through the old Muppet history, and relives it instead of trying to replace it. In fact, seeing how each one branched off from the group like members of an old band and "grew up" gave, I would say, substantially more character to each Muppet than they ever had before. I think fans will agree that this is the best possible way the muppets could have returned.

Simply put, I can't imagine anyone with a heart not enjoying this film. There's something in it for everybody, especially if you're in the mood for laughter and catchy musical numbers. The creative humor was a breath of fresh air. There is plenty breaking of the fourth wall and oh so much of that lovely deadpan irony and absurdist humor, reminiscent of old comedies like Airplane! The audience in the theater was cracking up almost every other moment, myself included. And while humor is its strong suit, the movie is also an incredibly heartwarming tale of friends that go their separate ways but are still connected through their hearts. Moviegoers and Muppet fans alike, go see this movie!

9/10

Warm, charming and funny, just like the Muppets I remember from my childhood. I'm not often one for musicals, but this one - aided by the brilliant combination of fuzzy puppet singers and Flight of the Conchords composition - hits all the right notes. It's funny without nudging into blue territory, a talent that's becoming more scarce by the minute, with a heartwarming reunion storyline that slowly reintroduces the cast and reminds us why we grew to love them in the first place. Loaded with unexpected cameos and sly winks at the troupe's long history, it's clear that a lot of love went into the making of this picture; the screen positively resonates from beginning to end. Though I was hesitant to revisit this old territory at first, by the final act I was grinning warmly and nodding right along, utterly entranced.