The Gang's All Here: The Muppets Movie

The other night I took a walk down memory lane. The vehicle was The Muppets, a surprisingly good movie musical about the things that get left behind in our rush to be grownups. The gang was all there –Kermit, Miss Piggy, Fozzie and Animal. And by the time I heard the bom bom bom of The Muppet Show theme song, I had already been transported well back into my childhood. How many movies these days allow us to live out our nostalgia intact, without ruining the very essence of the thing we miss? These muppets haven’t been dumbed down or tampered with or coaxed into playing some saccharine version of themselves. They may be a little older, a little banged up, but as soon they appear on screen its clear they have the same charming presence and quirky personalities as they did in their heyday.

The power of seeing your childhood victorious on screen can be an easy thrill, but it doesn’t have to come cheap, and with this film it sure doesn’t. Witty and at times venturing into the absurd, this muppets film is pure theatrical showmanship with a tinge of mania and desperation. What if Kermit doesn't succeed and the muppets lose their theater? The same fear is present for the filmmakers, who have been given the burden of one last chance to see if there’s still any love (or money) left in these characters. Fortunately, in Nicholas Stoller and Jason Segal’s deft hands, there appears to be life after death. They take a risk with Chris Cooper rapping, and with the chorus of chickens singing a G-rated version of Cee-lo Green's Fuck You, but both gambles turn out to integrate seamlessly into the fabric of what Muppetdom and this film are all about. The muppets live for the pure joy of entertaining and their happiness is infectious. I found myself wiping many tears of laughter and delight from my eyes and already making promises to myself to come back to see it again.