The Muppets: Movie Review

Cast: Jason Segel, Amy Adams, Kermit, Walter, Fozzie, Animal, Gonzo, Swedish Chef, Miss Piggy, Waldorf and Statler, Rashida Jones, Chris Cooper, Jack Black

Director: James Bobin

After 12 long years away, the Muppets are back.

But in a world where TV has moved on and the Muppets are no longer cool, they've become obsolete.

Except to Walter (a Muppet himself and brother of Jason Segel's Gary) who idolizes them still after discovering them when he was young.

So when Gary and long time girlfriend Mary (Adams) decide to go to Hollywood to celebrate their tenth anniversary, Walter is taken along too - and discovers that evil businessman Tex Richman (Cooper) wants to tear down the Muppets studio and mine for oil.

Walter takes the news of this to Kermit - and his greenness decides to get the gang back together and raise the cash they need to buy the studios back.

However, a major spanner's in the works because none of them are still in touch - will they be able to put aside their differences and find it's time to play the music, it's time to light the lights; in short, will the Muppet Show ever go on again?

The Muppets is perhaps the best Muppet film ever.

Heartfelt, humorous, hilarious and wholesome, it's a welcome journey back into the nostalgia and the brilliance of Jim Henson's creatures.

There's a simplicity to the story which is just charming and will reduce you to a dewey eyed sense of yesteryear. There's also a brilliance around the jaunty songs which pepper the flick; some have an almost Flight of the Conchordianesque feel (no surprise given Bret McKenzie and former FOTC showman James Bobin are involved) - and every single one of them a bright showtune, bathed in lyrical brilliance and clever lyrics.

The Muppets is a self knowing film; it mocks what they've become but never in an overly knowing way; it's a sly wink to the sophisticated audiences these days but one which really does make you remember how brilliant these guys were back in the day. And how brilliant they are once again.

At its very core, this is another chance to see the Muppets do their weekly show which so enriched our younger years, with its music hall sensibilities and its corny gags. They take on the bad guys too and an array of guest stars drop by - the majority of whom have made their showbiz names since the lights went down on the Muppets' weekly show. Sure, it's probably nostalgia which is giving this its wondrous feel and maybe it's aimed more at the adults than the kids, but it works so, so well that you can't help but crack a huge beaming smile and shed a joyful tear at how funny, clever, bright and engaging this film is.

Quite simply, as we head to the end of 2011, The Muppets is an unmitigated joy, a welcome return to form and easily the most spectacularly heart warming family film of the year.

The Muppets: Movie Review - Rating: