The plot is right out of the television series of the same name. On vacation in Los Angeles, Walter, the world’s biggest Muppet fan, and his friends Gary (Jason Segel) and Mary (Amy Adams) discover the nefarious plan of oilman Tex Richman (Chris Cooper), to raze the Muppet Theater and drill for the oil conveniently discovered beneath the Muppets’ studio.
To save the Muppet studios the Greatest Muppet Telethon ever has to be put on the to raise the $10 million needed to save the theater, Walter, Mary and Gary help Kermit reunite the Muppets, who have all gone their separate ways: Fozzie now performs with a Reno casino tribute band called the Moopets, Miss Piggy is a plus-size fashion editor at Vogue Paris, Animal is in a Santa Barbara clinic for anger management with his guide Jack Black playing himself, and Gonzo is a plumbing magnate.
Segel and Adam’s bright eyed enthusiasm is ideal for a rosy Muppet musical. Cooper’s rap is a surprise in such an uncharacteristic role with a maniacal laugh on call. Black’s resistance as a celebrity host will keep you laughing.
This motion picture is a try at rebooting the franchise more than a decade after they made their last screen appearance, Muppets in Space. Fortunately Jason Segel as he calls himself a great Muppet fan co-wrote and co-exec-produced The Muppets. The film brings back everything that made the old series wonderful and presents it to a new generation of Muppet fans, unfortunately whom were not present at the screening. The screening was almost totally composed of longtime fans of the Muppets.
Just as with the earlier, classic Muppets incarnations, the film is filled with a range of all-star cameo appearances, from James Carville to Selena Gomez to Neil Patrick Harris to Mickey Rooney. The adults will love them and the self-aware Muppet follies. Puns also were originally flying at the rate of one every page and finally one every three pages of the script. Look for bears to be a prominent feature of the puns.
Executive producer,co-writer-actor Jason Segel, co-writer Nick Stoller, director James Bobin and producer Todd Lieberman were also longtime fans of the Muppets which at times caused conflicts in what they were doing. They looked at the Muppets thru the eyes of themselves as children and not the eyes of adults like they were when they started the production. Segel told us he broke down in tears when he met Kermit for the fit time.
They didn’t even realize till they saw Kermit that he was only two feet tall. When you’re a child inches away from a television set the characters look much bigger to you. Then they found out what it was like working with up to 70 of the Muppets at one time, as each Muppet is a puppet, needing a puppeteer.
Would we pay to see the movie? If I had children most certainly! Would we watch it on television? Yes we would, absolutely. We intend to purchase the DVD when it comes out because we have an inkling of what will be on it from what we heard in the screening from panel Q&A.