Movie Review: The Muppets

The Muppets   $$$

PG

103 Minutes

Starring: Amy Adams, Jason Segel, Chris Cooper
Director: James Bobin

            Gary (Jason Segel) and Walter are brothers. They do all the typical things that brothers do together – except grow up. At least, Walter doesn’t because he’s a muppet. Despite this unexplained oddity in their relationship the two of them are extremely close. Perhaps too close for Mary’s (Amy Adams) liking. Gary and Mary have been dating for the last ten years and she’s ready for a commitment.

            The three of them travel to Hollywood for Gary and Mary’s tenth dating anniversary and during a tour of Muppet Studios Walter uncovers a sinister plot by Tex Richman (Chris Cooper) to buy the studio so that he can get at the oil reserves that are beneath it.

            Obviously, that just won’t do. Gary and Mary, led by Walter seek out Kermit The Frog and warn him of Richman’s evil plot. Together they hit the road hoping to put the band back together. Once assembled, they plan to hold a telethon and raise enough money to buy the studio themselves and save the wonder that is muppetdom.    

            It seems to me that lately Hollywood relies on recycling old stories, old shows, even old games in order to come up with their next batch of films. I groaned when I heard that they were redoing Footloose. I thought I had slipped into an episode of the Twilight Zone when I saw the trailer for Battleship. But while I sat watching The Muppets I thought, “If were going to have more of something, then it should be this.”

            I’m a long time fan of the muppets and this was my favorite so far.

            Amy Adams is one of the reasons that I liked this film so much. (Just one.) She has a presence that lifted the scenes that she appeared in. Her “Me Party” solo was the highlight of the movie for me.

            Even without Amy this is one the muppets finest moments. I feel that they successfully hit the appropriate emotional chords in this film that were overly cheesy in their previous efforts. Are they has-beens? How do you define success? How do you define happiness?

            Maybe I’m just too big a fan of cheese to know better, but I liked the messages they presented here. I laughed and I felt better about myself after seeing the movie. How can you beat that?

       
         
            I thought The Muppets was a solid 3. The material is good. I’m split on the acting; Amy was awesome, Jason Segel did a reasonable job, Chris Cooper makes a great bad guy, and the muppets – well, they’re the muppets. As far as messages go, I’d be happy to let my children watch this a couple of hundred times and learn that they only need to be a success in the eyes of their loved ones.

            Nothing in the film screams out to be seen first run, or at the biggest screen in town, but it definitely should be seen in a theater. Seeing it at a matinee seems about right for this movie. If you’re taking the kids (I didn’t) then a discount theater may be the way to go – not because it isn’t good, but because it will give them a chance to see it big and loud at a reasonable hit to their parent’s pocketbook.

   

            Randy’s Rating System

$$$$   = Full Price    See this movie right away and pay full price, it’s worth it.

$$$     = Matinee      Catch this as a matinee or other discounted showing.
$$        = Discount     Wait until this movie reaches a discount theater near you.
$          = Rental         Wait until this movie reaches your local video rental outlet.
0          = No Sale       Don’t see this movie at any price.