The Muppets (2011)

On vacation in Los Angeles, Walter, the world's biggest Muppet fan, and his friends Gary (Jason Segel) and Mary (Amy Adams) from Smalltown, USA, discover the nefarious plan of oilman Tex Richman (Chris Cooper) to raze the Muppet Theater and drill for the oil recently discovered beneath the Muppets' former stomping grounds. To stage The Greatest Muppet Telethon Ever and raise the $10 million needed to save the theater, Walter, Mary and Gary help Kermit reunite the Muppets, who have all gone their separate ways: Fozzie now performs with a Reno casino tribute band called the Moopets, Miss Piggy is a plus-size fashion editor at Vogue Paris, Animal is in a Santa Barbara clinic for anger management, and Gonzo is a high-powered plumbing magnate.

The Muppets have never been something I was interested in. I never wanted to watch them as a kid, and I never really had any longing to see them now. Then the marketing kicked into full gear and did just an awesome job with its constant parodies. It did its job in pulling you in, but I somehow forgot this was going to be a Muppets movie with Muppet problems filled Muppet characters; something I have never found myself enjoying all that much.  

The gang this time around is past their heyday. All spread out around the world living their lives apart, but when the Muppet Theater is about to get destroyed because there is oil under it, an outside named Walter rally’s the troops together to try and save it. The formula is 100% predictable, but that’s now why people go and see this brand. Its for the humor which I thought was absolutely the complete opposite from their parody trailers, and had me practically falling asleep. I am just apart of the audience that doesn’t trigger with this film. I cannot get past a movie where the characters break out in dance and song and then when they are finished, continue along as if nothing just happened. My brain can let a lot of things go in a film, but that is the ONE thing I can’t just let go. That happens way too much for my liking.

With this film, you should be able to walk into it knowing full well if you’re going to enjoy it already. If the previous installments of the Muppets brought joy to you, I don’t see why you wouldn’t have a fun time with this one. If you are like me and have never been a fan, but was intrigued that it may have been something a little different based on the marketing, you will have to be cautious. If you don’t like the first ten minutes, you may as well turn it off because it doesn’t get any different then what you saw. It’s a long one note movie that seems to have a nostalgia factor that swooed the critics into remembering their past, therefor giving it a great review. I simply cannot do that because they were never in my past to begin with. I wanted to love it, but it just didn’t happen.

Overall Score: 4/10