Now for the review:

Who doesn’t like the Muppets? They’re like the Ringo Starr to Looney Tunes’ John Lennon and Classic Disney Animation’s Paul McCartney. Not quite as noted, but still classic and well loved. The Muppet Show is considered one of the best television shows ever made, and The Muppet Movie had been deemed “culturally, historically or aesthetically” significant by the Library of Congress and preserved for all time. After the failure of Muppets from Space, the Muppets were put on a long hiatus. However, the brand name found new life in videos posted on YouTube that quickly went viral, such as the Muppet Bohemian Rhapsody. Which is awesome. See for yourself:

It is thanks to these videos that a new Muppet movie finally escaped development hell and entered production, and the Muppet fans went wild.

So yeah. The Muppets getting a new movie after twelve years was a big friggin’ deal. So was this a triumphant return or a quick cash-in by Disney?

Considering the nature of the film, I will only be reviewing The Muppets solely on its entertainment value and explaining what did or did not work for me. There are no special effects, no deep significant meaning or message behind its plot, and it’s a comedy. There’s really not much to analyze.

The Muppets had return to a format that the franchise desperately needed. It went back to the Muppets’ television roots and paid many an homage to the first Muppet movie. Like any good Muppet movie, this one was a musical. Bret McKenzie of Flight of the Conchords served as the film’s music supervisor and gave us some of the catchiest tunes that many a person would continue humming a week after leaving the theater; along with some of the classic Muppet songs such as “Rainbow Connection” and “Mahna Mahna”. With that said, I did feel that there were songs that were superfluous. Not that they weren’t entertaining, but that they did not contribute as much to the movie as other songs had. One song sung by Chris Cooper’s character especially came right the hell out of nowhere, served no purpose in illustrating character or story, and was never mentioned again…

Once again, I must judge the humor used. And, once again, I have to state comedy is THE most subjective genre in entertainment and I’m just going to have to state my personal take on it and explain why.

The humor was perfect, all the jokes worked. However, they only did because it was the Muppets doing it. The jokes are all very simple and obvious. By that, I mean that the jokes don’t really take chances with themselves. If you expect them to make that kind of joke, they will and you will laugh anyway. Why is that? The delivery of the lines was timed to a tee. The comedic timing could not have been better. They performed and gave the gags exactly how they should have and you laugh because it was done right.

While very typical, the humor felt like something that has not been heard from in such a long time; like it was a breath of refreshing comedy that you’ve long since forgotten yet still appreciated; much like the Muppets themselves. It was almost like the Muppets knew what the audience wanted and they gave it to them.

There are some things that held back the movie, in spite of all the positives mentioned. I’m not sure if I’m the only one who felt this, but the brand new Muppet Walter felt a little like a screen-hog. It was kind of like the writers absolutely loved their new Muppet and wanted him take the spotlight over some of the other classic Muppets, which Walter does as he has a very big subplot in the movie. However, that is mostly just a complaint from an old Muppet fanboy and Walter is still entertaining while giving good jokes. It just seems that he took more than his fair share of importance despite being one of the main characters.

The only real problem thatThe Muppets had was the ending. As much as I wish I could explain why the ending was an issue, I cannot in good conscious discuss it as even saying what’s wrong with it would be a giant spoiler. I’ll just say that the ending will rub some people in the wrong way with the direction they had chose to go in. However, I will say that the part of the ending right before the last bit of it was both heartbreaking and beautifully presented by Kermit. You’re the man, Frog.

In spite of all that, The Muppets was a wonderful family movie. After a twelve-year-long absence, a Muppet movie was exactly what the public needed. It was a throwback to the Vaudevillian days that the Muppets understood so well, and that just made it stand out even. The Muppets did what the Muppets do best: Putting on a show.

For the return of the Muppets, I give a:

4.5 out of 5

Pros:
– The music catchy and memorable
– The humor excellently delivered and paced
– A return to form for the characters
– IT’S THE MUPPETS!

Cons:
– Some songs were a bit pointless and not needed
– New Muppet Walter taking up too much importance away from other Muppets
– The nature of the ending

Recommendation: Must See!

I apologize for how late this review is. College finals take priority over silly Internet reviews. While I admit the movie caters a bit too much to the older Muppet fan, I highly recommend The Muppets. It quite honestly gave me the best movie experience I had last year.

The Muppets was produced by Mandeville Films and The Muppets Studio, and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures.