Tuesday, November 29, 2011

It's Time To Light The Lights

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I should probably plead a conflict of interests here, when trying to write a review of The Muppets, because in all honesty I started crying about five minutes into the movie and I barely stopped until the end. As we watched the new muppet Walter's eyes light up the first time he saw The Muppet Show on TV and he understood a part of himself, a way that he belonged, through it, forget about it I was a goner. Even writing about it right this minute my eyes are filling up! It's impossible. Impossible. The Muppets mean to much to me and the movie captures enough of their magic to just make me the mushiest of mushes, unable to make words work.

I'll rattle off a quick couple of criticisms just to get them outta the way and pretend I'm being level-headed - the movie's a little bit long. It could've cut out some of Jason Segel and Amy Adams, who were totally adorable but fuzzed up the focus too much. The voices were just a smidge off - the absence of Jim Henson and Frank Oz was noticeable. And I kept wishing they'd integrate the Muppets into the dance numbers a little bit better - whenever there were wide crowd shots all of they were completely AWOL, which was weird.

Okay fuck that noise, I loved it. It got so much right - the triumph of decency and friendship and thoughtfulness over cynicism and greed; the new songs were catchy (although bless them for giving me my "Rainbow Connection" moment); and the rag-tag slapped together aesthetic fit the world to a tee. It felt like they were putting us on a show, and they did, to my heart's delight and my tear-ducts woe.


Sidenote: Did anybody else get a "Once More, With Feeling" vibe from it a few times? It felt Jossy to me here and there - especially the early parts in the small town. Which leads me to Oh my god have Joss direct the next one!!!
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2 comments:

Jasper said...

Yes! When the townspeople collapsed after Segel, Adams and Walter left on the bus, I totally thought of OMWF.

My breaking point was a few minutes before the end, when the Muppets all walk out of the theater to find...

I couldn't hold back the tears anymore.

Anonymous said...

IT WAS GREAT! WAA