The Muppet Movie (1979)
I’m sorry if you were expecting to find a big, meaty review of “The Muppet Movie” complete with pictures, quotations, bibliography, and a salad bar, but this is all I’ve got. You’re just going to have to settle. Poor baby.
It’s safe to say that any fan of the Muppets will enjoy this movie. It’s also a good bet to say that any self-respecting fan of the Muppets has already seen this movie, as it came out in 1979. That’s beside the point. But what if you aren’t a Muppet fan? Will you be lost in a vast sea of esoteric Muppet-isms or confused by unfamiliar faces and inside jokes? Of course not. That is, you won’t unless you have been living under a rock for the past few decades and have never heard of Kermit the Frog or the Muppets before. Even then, you’ll probably be okay as long as the idea of humans interacting with puppet animals doesn’t get to you, and if it does, then you probably should be living under a rock. Isn’t it nice how everything works itself out in the end? Personally, I’m not an ardent fan of the Muppets. The bulk of my Muppet knowledge come from having enjoyed a few episodes of “The Muppet Show” here and there, constantly watched the “Muppet Babies” on Nickelodeon in my younger years, and gone on the “Muppets in 3-D” ride at Disneyworld numerous times. But I still managed to enjoy the movie.
To overview quickly, the movie chronicles the adventures of Kermit the Frog from his home in a swamp in the south to Hollywood, California where he hopes to achieve his dream – the ability to make thousands of people happy through his talents of song and dance. In other words, it is the tale of the beginning of the Muppet Show. Along the way Kermit runs into many future friends, like Gonzo, Fozzie Bear, Miss Piggy, Rowlf the Dog, and the rest of the Muppet clan. He also runs into the bad guy of the movie, a restaurant owner who hopes to use Kermit as a salesfrog in his commercials.
The songs in the movie (yes, it’s a musical) are great. One of my favourite songs in everdom is Kermit the Frog singing “The Rainbow Connection” at the beginning of the film. The other songs could all be crap and I would still love the music in this film because I love that single song so very, very much. Thankfully the other songs are not all crap (though don’t expect musical masterpieces in every number). They all tie into the story nicely, and none of them seem forced for any reason. The puppetry is wonderful; of course this is to be expected from the master Jim Henson. As far as the human acting goes, it is adequate, but leaves a lot to be desired. In fact, this is probably the biggest weakness of the film. The movie succeeds as a comedy, and while I felt it wasn’t as funny as it could be, the hilarious cameos interspersed throughout the film (Steve Martin as a waiter or Mel Brooks as an eccentric scientist are among the best) certainly helped the film out quite a bit. And the moral of the story – that you should hold fast to dreams and follow them with all your heart – while nothing new, was fleshed out wonderfully and left me feeling fulfilled at the end of the movie.
A good, solid film, “The Muppet Movie” comes recommended from me. While you shouldn’t expect a cinematic masterpiece, trust that you’ll be entertained for a few hours. It’s a colourful, lively, well-made film with its fair share of flaws; however, it’s also got a strong fun factor and brand of oddball classic humour that easily outweighs these flaws. I give it a 7/10, but a very strong one.
97 min with Jim Henson as Kermit the Frog, Rowlf the Dog, and Dr. Teeth; Frank Oz as Miss Piggy and Fozzie Bear; Dave Goelz as Gonzo; Jerry Nelson as Floyd Pepper; and Charles Durning as Doc Hopper.
7.8/10
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