Muppets Most Wanted

poster courtesy of IMDB

Plot:

Immediately after their previous movie ends, the Muppets decide to take their variety show on the road and embark on a world tour. In order to promote the tour, they employ the services of Dominic Badguy who, unbeknown to the Muppets, is a criminal working alongside fellow villain Constantine, a Kermit the Frog look-alike. The two are planning on stealing England’s Crown Jewels and framing the Muppets for the crime. Soon Constantine has Kermit shipped off to a Russian prison and takes his place as leader of the Muppets. A dastardly plot and shenanigans ensue.

My opinion:

I really enjoyed my time with Muppets Most Wanted. It’s a fun, lighthearted movie, with tons of lovable characters. This is the perfect movie to uplift your spirits after a long workweek and comes highly recommended.

I missed out on The Muppet Show and the older Muppet movies when I was a kid, but I liked the different muppet characters when they would appear on Sesame Street and various other TV specials, not to mention the Muppet Babies cartoon series (80’s babies will remember this!)

I was actually surprised by how much I enjoyed this movie. After reading a couple of lukewarm articles about the film online, I wasn’t looking for much more than a night out with my friends before going into the theatre. I am glad I did, however, because the film started charming me within the first 5 minutes. I didn’t feel this was quite as good as the previous Muppet movie but that’s a very minor complaint.

The film brought out strong feelings of nostalgia in me, and it holds up against any family movie that has come out of Hollywood in recent memory. The plot was enjoyable and entertaining. I liked the European setting and enjoyed the different actors who performed alongside the Muppets. There were tons of fun celebrity cameos throughout the movie, such as Ray Liotta and Salma Hayek.

Ty Burrell, from Modern Family, is awesome as a stereotypically French Interpol agent. He is partnered with muppet Sam Eagle to investigate the crimes Constantine and Dominic commit. Sam and Burrell are a great pair and I enjoyed every scene they shared. Their partnership/rivalry was one of my favorite parts of the movie.

Tina Fey is enjoyable as a Russian prison guard who keeps Kermit captive after Constantine frames him. Fey and Kermit have great chemistry and it was nice how he brought out her character’s good side.

There are many things I enjoyed about this movie, but more than anything, I loved the light, fun tone and the overall lightheartedness of the whole film. This new series of Muppet movies is such a nice change of pace from all the dark and serious films that come out all year-round. This was the perfect thing to see after the rough couple of weeks I was having. The film really uplifted my spirits and is a great choice for late March and April when very few good movies come out.

I sincerely hope that this movie gets a sequel and the Muppet love train keeps on rolling! If you are a fan of the Muppets, this is a must watch. If you want something lighthearted and fun to distract you from your worries and troubles, you can’t ask for a better choice.

Note to parents:

This movie is appropriate for the whole family.