Now Playing: "The Muppets" (2011)

I initially thought it was safe to assume that most people knew about "The Muppets" and their television shows and movies. And I made an ass of myself because a friend I took to the movies had no idea about the Muppets at all! Weird kid he is. But then again, I haven’t seen a lot of the Muppets either; I was more of a Sesame Street and Arthur kind of kid growing up. The last Muppets movie I saw was “Muppets from Space” when I was early teens and that never really lived up. Thankfully a new movie was coming out and seeing the enormous cameo guest list, it was an automatic must see from me. Now how much did I love this movie, find out after the jump!

During Gary (Jason Segel), his girlfriend Mary (Amy Adams) and his brother Walter (voiced Peter Linz) trip to L.A, the three visit the original Muppets studio. Walter is their number one fan over the years and is slightly disappointed when the studio he grew up to love is now run down. While exploring he discovers that a rich oil tycoon, Tex Richman (Christ Cooper), is trying to buy out the Muppets name and studio to exploit it for more money. Walter can’t let this happen; he gets in contact with Kermit to get the old gang back together to do one last show to raise $10 million to save the Muppets franchise for good.

The sad state of the old Muppet Studios.

Where do I start with how funny this movie is? I honestly had the biggest grim on my face, even wider than some of the Muppets’ mouths, throughout the whole move while holding my ribs from bursting. It was the combination of puns, Fozzie Bear’s jokes and the pure innocence of it all that made this movie that funny. This movie really released the inner child in me to the fullest. Instead of the 22 year old that drove there, I was the ten year old watching the film.

The musicals are expected in any Muppets production. So it was nice to see a few new ones and a couple of old classics that are dear to my heart. I was pleasantly surprise to see both Segel and Adams have a music number. And most importantly all the songs were toe tapping, head bobbing and all easy to sing along with. If I was to pick a favourite, it must have been either Tex’s rap or the beginning song “Life’s a Happy Song”. And the best part is they are all stuck in my head even after the movie. Though, I admit to yelling Mahna Mahna a few times while leaving my seat.

Did I hear road trip? Essential to all Muppet movies.

The live actors were great they were more than just the Muppets support; they were the chocolate chunks in this Rocky Road of a movie. Just like the Muppets, they were over the top corny and breaking the fourth wall whenever they could. At times they were even as funny as the Muppets. And the cameos! Don’t get me started, I never actually checked out the cast list before the movie. So as these awesome cast members started to pop out, my eyes glistened even more. You might want to skip the rest of the paragraph; I might be spoiling a bit now. But seeing Jim Parson in this movie totally made my night, he was by far my favourite cameo (aside from Dave Ghrol) and I wasn’t the only one. I heard the whole theatre scream when they saw his face. It was magical.

But the Muppets, how could I not talk about them here. They were just like how I remember. From watching Waldorf and Statler heckle every little thing to the meeps from Beaker. Everything was just how it should be. Funny, cheesy and most importantly just a pure fun time that I think a lot of children’s shows are missing nowadays. Now I hate picking favourites but Waldorf, Statler, Bunsen Honeydew, Beaker and Gonzo of course are easily my favourite. Almost everything that they said and did just deliver oodles amounts of happiness to me. And the new Muppet, Walter, wasn’t all that bad. He pulled his own weights and delivered his share of laughs.

Once you get their approval, you did well.

What the movie really captures is the nostalgia, fun and innocence of my youth. I might have liked this movie a bit more than most people, certainly my friends didn’t share the same amount of appreciation I did, but I’m a bit screwy so all is fair. I laughed and enjoyed every part of this movie; there was no part where I was even a bit bored. And thankfully there is enough of a heartfelt story that captures even the manliest men. It’s a family movie that really is for the whole family. I’m sure most adults will laugh as hard as the children will. This is easily my favourite movie of 2011.