The Muppets stars Kermit The Frog, Miss Piggy, Gonzo the Great, Fozzie Bear, Jason Segel, Amy Adams and a host of other timeless Muppet characters. The film follows Gary (Jason Segel) and his brother Walter (voiced by Peter Linz) as they work with the Muppets to try to prevent Muppet Studios from being torn down by oil tycoon Tex Richman (Chris Cooper). The Muppets need to raise ten million dollars to save the studio. The only way to raise the money is to have the Muppets put on one last show. Walter insists that Gary help save Muppet Studios. Gary’s girlfriend Mary (Amy Adams) assists in his quest to save Muppet Studios, but all of the focus and effort interferes with Gary and Mary’s relationship.
The Muppets was written by Jason Segel and Nicholas Stoller and was directed by James Bobin. Jim Henson, as most people know, was the creator of the Muppets and writer for The Muppet Show—a variety show that introduced the world to the our favorite Muppet characters. For me, the Muppets have always represented one thing—hope. The characters always seem to be sending the subtle message that if you believe in your dreams, you can make them a reality. All of the characters in The Muppets have dreams they wish to accomplish. Fozzie wants to be funny, Gonzo wants to be a great magician and Miss Piggy would love to be a brilliant actress who is rich and famous. All of these characters work in this film because they continue to do what they did decades ago—support each other’s dreams.
The main issue I had with this film is that the villain Tex Richman really wasn’t very much of a threat and as such didn’t strengthen the story. The songs of the film were either relevant to plot points or were songs from classic performances on The Muppet Show and prior Muppet movies.
One cinematic trick that was repeatedly used in the film was the breaking of the fourth wall. Breaking the fourth wall means that the characters are speaking directly to the audience about things currently occurring in the film. I really enjoyed the Muppets use of this tactic, which never became stale or old for me. All of the characters in the film were exactly as I remember them, which is a very good thing. I went into the film afraid that the filmmaker and screenwriter were going to try and update the Muppets for a new generation and, luckily, everyone involved in the production of this film knew that the personalities of these characters were, and still are, timeless.
This film is not only a very fun time at the movies but also a love letter to all of the characters Jim Henson created almost 40 years ago. Mahna Mahna. Welcome back, Muppets. You were dearly missed.
5 stars