Having never seen any of the previous Muppet films (save for
a brief bit of Muppets Christmas Carol
when I was very young), but familiar with the most famous faces among them, I
wondered whether I’d find much to enjoy in a full-length movie about them, and
worried that 107 minutes might be stretching it too far. What a relief it is to
say that Muppets Most Wanted is a
charming little bundle of joy. It’s the sort of film that reminds everyone why
Disney is the great powerhouse for entertainment no matter the age or taste of the
audience (this is coming from an eighteen year-old science-fiction and horror
fan).
The story follows the Muppets immediately following the
events of the last film, the gang deciding to go on tour after meeting Dominic
Badguy (Ricky Gervais). Before long, a criminal frog known as Constantine, in
league with Badguy, has replaced Kermit and is using the tour to further his
own mischievous schemes, with the other Muppets none the wiser.
It really says a lot about the endurance of the Muppets that
the puppets themselves have aged incredibly well since the 1980’s and there
seems to be a conscious decision by the film-makers to make the non-puppet
effects to look as much like the puppets as possible, down to the inaccurate
jerking of Constantine’s legs as he leaps around. The huge array of Muppets are
all brought into gorgeous relief in the colourful cinematography, each still
possessing their own individual characteristics when in the limelight and
blending into a charming menagerie of weird and wonderful creatures when in the
background.
In terms of the human characters, Ricky Gervais is great as
a slimy, sneering secondary villain and Ty Burrell is smirk-inducing as an
Inspector Clueso-esque French detective. A few of Tina Fey’s gags as the lead
officer of a Russian gulag do fall slightly flat but she lends a chuckle here
and there. There is also an extraordinary amount of cameos, from the ‘blink and
you’ll miss it’ (James McAvoy as a UPS delivery man) and some that are even
worked into the jokes (Christoph Waltz performing the waltz). The jokes, both
vocal and visual come thick and fast, and like the best family films, there’s
something for the children and a couple of knowing gags for the adults. The
soundtrack features a collection of catchy and amusing musical numbers,
including ‘We’re Doing a Sequel’ and ‘Something so Right’, the latter of which
involves a duet between Miss Piggy and Celine Dion (a song which actually made
me forgive her for that abhorrence in Titanic).
This is not to say the film is perfect, even at just over
100 minutes it feels a little stretched towards the end and some of the fake
Russian accents feel misjudged at times (especially considering the recent
goings-on in that particular part of the world), but overall, Muppets Most Wanted is a bursting barrel
of bright colours and big laughs, and well worth a watch even if you have no
expectations of what a Muppets movie should be, and a must watch if you have a
love for them to begin with.
4 Stars
4 Stars
