It's Just Movies

— by ADAM DALE —

The Muppets have been entrancing kids and audiences the world over since the mid-’50s when Jim Henson created them. Since then, they have appeared in nearly a dozen movies and countless television specials. “The Muppets” is the first theatrical release for all of our puppet friends since Disney bought the franchise in 2004.

In the film, we are introduced to a new Muppet Walter, and his big brother Gary (Jason Segel). Walter is the biggest fan of the Muppets and has dreamt of meeting them his entire life. When Gary is taking his girlfriend Mary (Amy Adams) on a trip to Hollywood, he surprises Walter and takes him along. This starts them off on an adventure to find the Muppets, who have been out of the limelight for years, to reunite them all for a benefit to save the Muppet theater from being sold to a greedy and maniacal tycoon, who plans to demolish the historic buildings to make way for something more profitable.

Well, we have some new clips for you guys that show some of the journey and the obstacles they must overcome. In true Muppet fashion, the clips are filled with silliness, music and the patented Muppet humor. Take a look at these seven clips that spotlight the start of the journey all the way up to preparing for the benefit.

In this first clip, we see Walter and Gary discussing Gary’s trip to Hollywood when he surprises Walter with a ticket to join them. Walter is obviously an avid fan of the Muppets and we also can conclude from the fact that they share a room that they are very close and maybe even a bit immature. I love the joke at the end of the clip made by Walter.

This clip, titled “Everything,” is the very first musical number in the film and sets the tone for what is to come for those that might not be familiar with the Muppets. I love this song because it truly shows the happiness and generally positive outlook that these characters possess.

In “Idea,” Gary, Walter and Mary have arrived in Hollywood and are trying to find Kermit to warn him about the plan to buy and demolish the Muppet theater and just when you think Walter is having a stroke of genius, they go a completely different route.

When this dynamic trio finally reaches Kermit the Frog’s old mansion, it is locked up tight and seemingly abandoned. Walter has the great idea for Gary to throw him over the fence, this does not work out so well since security is tighter than they would have imagined. It is a good thing Walter is a Muppet, otherwise the situation could have ended up a lot worse!

In this clip, called “Montage,” we see exactly that. After the gang picks up a few of our main Muppet pals, they save time by picking up the rest using a montage. During the montage, we get to see what the Muppets have been up to since they stopped performing together. Their jobs are actually quite fitting and some are pretty funny. They acknowledge that they are doing a montage and it’s that playing to the audience that makes this silliness so much fun.

In the absence of the Muppets, a tribute band called the “Moopets” has capitalized on the past fame of the group. When the “Moopets” want to be a part of the benefit show with the Muppets, Miss Piggy arrives just in time and proves that she is the one true Miss Piggy who cannot be replaced. We get to see the attitude, gumption and true glamour that is prevalent to Miss Piggy and no substitute could ever dethrone her.

In this final clip, television executive Veronica (Rashida Jones) is asking a frantic Kermit the Frog about which celebrity he has gotten to host the benefit show. He seems to think he could do it himself, but she doesn’t believe he is a celebrity after all of the years out of the spotlight. With such a rushed schedule how can Kermit possibly find a true celebrity before the show starts in 12 hours?

These short clips don’t show us much interaction between the Muppets and their new human friends or many of the musical numbers the movie boasts, but what they do show us is the classic Muppet mentality, tonality and general happy nature of the film with some witty humor thrown in.

The characters alone are a major nostalgia and reminiscent of so many childhood memories for many people, reason enough for some to head to the theaters.

It appears this film will resonate with fans of the classic Muppets show will enticing kids and new fans alike. The collaboration between adored characters mixed with major stars like Jason Segel and Amy Adams is bound to interest movie-goers of all ages to see this funny family film this holiday weekend.

Are you a fan of the Muppets and will you see this movie in theaters?

“The Muppets” is rated PG for mild rude humor and hits theaters Nov. 23.

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