Movie Review - "The Muppets" (2011) ***1/2 (***** for sentimental value)

     Well, it feels good to be back reviewing movies on the blog. I've missed this the past few months. Hopefully I won't have any more long lapses and I hope you the reader finds something here that will have you coming back for future installments. For my first review of the blog reboot, I decided to go old school in a way. I'm one of those people who is very attached to his childhood. Quite often, I like to go back and revisit things that were popular when I was growing up. One of those things that I fondly remember is The Muppets. I grew up watching The Muppet Show on television, saw all of the Muppet movies when they came on television, heck I even became a huge Muppet Babies and Fraggle Rock fan. I just loved all things Muppets. I think it's safe to say that Muppets creator Jim Henson is behind only Star Wars creator George Lucas in shaping my childhood pop culture memories. So about a year ago when I first heard that a new movie was being made featuring the Muppets, I knew that was something I wanted to see. While I love the Muppets, the movies have been a bit hit or miss. My favorite is probably The Muppets Take Manhattan but the most recent film, Muppets From Space, was a bit lacking I thought. That being said, I was looking forward to this new installment with great anticipation.

     The Muppets stars Jason Segel and Amy Adams (absolutely beautiful as always, if I do say so myself), as Gary and Mary, a happy couple who has been dating almost 10 years yet still haven't gotten engaged, to Mary's disappointment. Gary has a brother named Walter, the world's biggest Muppet fan. Gary surprises Walter one day by inviting him on a vacation that he had planned with Mary to Los Angeles. Gary says they can stop by the Muppet Studios while visiting L.A., which obviously excites Walter. Upon arriving, the trio learn a harsh reality. The Muppet Studios are worn down and a rich, oil tycoon named Tex Richman (Chris Cooper) is planning on buying the studios and tearing them down because he suspects oil is underneath the foundation. Walter learns that the only way to save the studios from the nefarious Richman is to come up with $10 million quickly. Walter, Mary and Gary come up with a plan to reunite the Muppet gang and have a telethon to raise money so they can save the studios. They visit Kermit to pitch the idea but he is down on it because the gang has all split up and went their separate ways because the Muppets are no longer important to anyone. They do eventually get Kermit to agree though and soon all of our favorites; Fozzie, Gonzo, Miss Piggy, Animal and the rest are back at it. Can they pull off a good show and raise enough money in time, or will evil Tex Richman get the last laugh? (maniacal laugh)

      So, is The Muppets a great movie? Yes....and No. From a story standpoint, I wasn't really invested. It's not like we don't know how it's going to turn out or anything. The acting is fine, nothing to write home about. Segel, Adams and Cooper all do good enough jobs, and there are a ton of cameos to look for throughout the picture which was a lot of fun. But this movie works simply for sentimental reasons. The characters could have been on screen reading the phone book and I would have had a smile on my face. It's just fun seeing Fozzie try to crack a joke. Or Piggy, being as sassy as ever. One of my favorite touches was seeing Animal in anger management class, now that's good stuff. By the time we get to a singing of "Rainbow Connection", I'm completely hooked and the smile won't leave my face. I may have even had a tear well up in my eye a time or two. The movie works tremendously in that sense. I specifically made a mental note to watch the children in the audience, to see how they reacted to this movie. While there was some rustling and fidgeting during the first 45 minutes or so, by the end of the film, you couldn't hear anyone talking or moving in that theater, the kids were hooked on the screen. That warmed my heart more than anything. The Muppets brought a lot of joy to people in my age range, I think some of you are probably smiling right now reading this, you know who you are. But this movie will allow the Muppets gang to reach a new generation of children and with some of the trash out there these days, that can only be a good thing. We need more of the Muppets.