Been a while since doing one of these huh? After a month of doing nothing but talking superhero shows (Still have plenty more to say on that btw). So, let’s get back into talking about other stuff I like, let’s talk about yet another one of my all time favourite films.
The Muppets was directed by James Bobin and stars Jason Segel and Amy Adams as Gary and Mary, a couple who go on a trip to Los Angeles with Gary’s brother Walter, both being massive fans of The Muppets growing up, hoping to see where they are now. But, much like in the real world, The Muppets popularity has faded over the years, and now they’ve all gone their separate ways, with plans to demolish their old studio. So, it’s up to Gary and Walter to bring The Muppets back together for a reunion show, in hopes to bring The Muppets back to the limelight.
There’s nothing I love more than a good meta-story, ones where once you contextualize it, you suddenly appreciate it all the more, and this film is a perfect example of that. It’s not exactly a subtle film in it’s message, but that’s because it’s also not a secret The Muppets are not as popular as they used to be, and they don’t pull punches in this film, they show just how bad it has gotten for The Muppets as a brand, and how their numbers are so low they’re not even considered profitable anymore. So the show they’re putting on the prove they’re still worth the attention is really just subtext in the greater Muppet brand and this film is that brand’s attempt to show to the world why anyone loved The Muppets to begin with, and why they’re still loving today. Because people did used to love The Muppets, heck, they were on top of the world, celebrity cameos, half a dozen movies, a TV show, everyone knows The Muppets and has been exposed to them at some point in their life. However, that doesn’t make this one of them nostalgia bombs that Hollywood loves to make, where they just reference things you used to love instead of giving you something new. They do make callbacks to their more popular material at points, but it doesn’t overshadow anything, the focus is still on giving people new material to show why they’re worth still loving, not something to remember loving.
This can all be summed up in my favourite line in the film, and one of my favourites in any film, during the song ‘Pictures in my Head’ “Could we do it all again? Make them laugh like we did then?”. That’s actually quite a heartbreaking line because of how many times that does happen, how many aging comedians lose their touch as the years go by, or how things entertained us as children we find aren’t as funny when we grow up. It’s never a good feeling, and like I said, this film is honest about where they stand with the world, and how hard it’s going to be to prove their worth a second look. How do I know the film succeeds there and it’s not just nostalgia? Because honestly, I don’t have that much of a connection to The Muppets. I was certainly aware of them, and I’m sure I was exposed to them a tad when I was a little kid, but before seeing this film, I could name maybe three of the Muppets? But throughout the film they made me understand where they were coming from, and in their attempts to rebuild a connection with their audience, they built their first connection with me. I grew attached to these characters, I wanted to see them succeed in both the film and in life, which since the release of the film has had…mixed results.
This is why I think it’s important that they saved the big ‘Rainbow Connection’ until the end of the film. The biggest song from The Muppets franchise and the one that everyone (Even I) knew and heard. They could have easily used this upfront, but instead they waited until they had earned it, when you had already fallen in love with these characters again, and then finally they gave you that wave of nostalgia, showing The Muppets at their best. This was the moment they had most definitely won everyone over. This wasn’t just an entertaining throwback to a piece of your childhood, this was an emotional connection built with you, and then followed instantly by the best piece of fan service ever. The Muppets, lose, their attempts to save the studio are foiled and they’ve hit rock bottom, but they’re together and willing to build themselves back up, even if no one will give them a chance. They open the doors and see hundreds of adoring fans outside, cheering for them, because yeah, everyone loves The Muppets, I don’t think it’s physically possible to hate The Muppets. This film reminded you why you loved The Muppets, and the end there represents every single person in the audience who had reconnected with this franchise.
To top off all off with the sprinkles of this movie would be two elements, the comedy and the music. The comedy is very clever and whitty like The Muppets should be, with a lot of 4th wall breaking, silly puns and visual gags. While the music is charming, catchy, equally funny, and was actually the first ever Muppet film to win best original song at the academy awards.
There’s something charming about this old school style of storytelling, and shows the power of storytelling, how even though The Muppets are not meant to look real, we’re always fully aware that they’re just foam and strings with people out of frame controlling them, we somehow still get sucked in, we get fooled and we just see the characters. You never think there’s someone moving Kermit the Frog, you see Kermit the Frog. I remember in an interview they did for this film with Kermit and Piggy-because yes, that’s how big these characters are, they actually had them doing interviews-and the host joked about how he kept looking in their eyes expecting a response.
This is what The Muppets can do, they can take simple materials, put it together with a great cast, great crew making a truthful, funny and charming movie and take both classic fans and new fans and make a superb movie that truly makes you fall in love with this franchise, whether it be for the first time or the millionth time, and that is why it deserves to be seen as one of my favourite movies.
-Danny
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