The Muppets

About a year ago was when I first saw that Jason Segel was coming out with a new Muppet movie and I was equal parts anxious and excited. While the Muppet show was before my time, I’ve always been a big fan, with Muppet Christmas Carol being far and away my favorite. The Muppets really haven’t had what I would consider a good film since Kermit and Michael Caine teamed as Bob Cratchit and Scrooge nearly 20 years ago. Since Muppets from Space and Muppet Treasure Island were well below the gold standard of Muppetry, I hoped Segel’s project would revive the Muppets, rather than driving a final nail into the coffin.

After seeing it this morning, my god what a rebirth.

Jason Segel and The Muppets

Segel’s script is perfect because it has the Muppets put on a show, which is really what the Muppets are all about. Segel’s character, Gary and his brother Walter (who nobody realizes just happens to be a Muppet) vacation to LA with Gary’s girlfriend Mary, played by Amy Adams (in a much different role than Charlene Fleming from The Fighter). On a tour of the abandoned Muppet Studios, Walter overhears Tex Richman’s plan to tear down the studios and drill for oil. To save the theatre, they start by tracking down Kermit and convincing him to put the old gang back together for one more show to save the theatre.

The macro story at play here is that there are, and always have been Muppet fans sitting out there waiting for someone (a fellow fan, as it turned out) to bring back everything that we once loved about the Muppets, individually and as a group. A huge Muppet fan himself, Segel inserts his character and Adams’ character into the movie to start, but then wisely backs them out so that the Muppets can take over the show. Walter joins on as the Muppets prepare for a final show with Jack Black playing host rather reluctantly.

As they rehearse and plan for their show, celebrity cameos, a critical element for a Muppet movie, abound. Some of them are extended as Rashida Jones (The Office, Parks & Rec) plays a TV executive who reluctantly allows the Muppets telethon to happen and some cameos last only one line, but Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother)nails that one line, which might be the best line of the entire movie. I can’t really explain how Jim Parsons’ (The Big Bang Theory) cameo fits in, but it’s dynamite. And if Zach Galifinakis is not “Hobo Joe” in every Muppet movie going forward, I’ll be disappointed. Muppet cameos abound as well, as every Muppet I knew was involved, as well as plenty that I had forgotten about. Jason Segel’s checklist of Muppets to include was more extensive than I would have ever imagined.

But what truly makes a great Muppet movie is the music, and it is phenomenal in the most recent installment. “Life’s a Happy Song” is the true breakout song, and several hours after the movie I’m still humming it. It’s so catchy they used it on two separate occasions and it didn’t feel recycled at all. “Man or Muppet” eases some humor back into the movie when the movie hits an emotional high point. Another emotional moment comes as Kermit sings in reminiscence of his old Muppet Show pals “Pictures In My Head.” Even though we religiously watch Muppet Christmas Carol every December 24, Jason Segel made me fall in love with the Muppets all over again.

Non-Muppet fans probably won’t find the movie probably as fantastic as it actually is, but for the millions of Muppet fans out there, and I’m convinced there’s one deep in everybody, this film is a breath of fresh air and the beginning of what I hope is a new era of Muppet relevance. The movie is a shot in the arm, and fan’s loving tribute and hopefully the springboard for sequels-yet-to-come.

And now I’m off to find video of each and every Muppet Show episode, even if I have to Travel By Map to find them.