Blu-ray Review: Fantastic Release For Joyful, Fun ‘The Muppets’

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CHICAGO – God, I love “The Muppets.” It’s such a wonderful, joyful, fun movie. As someone who is forced to see dozens of family films a year, I can tell you that most of them are not full of joy. They are full of pop culture references and gross-out jokes but they are nowhere near as smart, fun, or fantastic as “The Muppets,” a great movie with a great Blu-ray set that will stand the test of time.

HollywoodChicago.com Blu-ray Rating: 5.0/5.0
Blu-ray Rating: 5.0/5.0

“The Muppets” is pure entertainment that crosses generations. Kids will see a movie with wacky puppets singing and dancing. Adults will see something that taps into a feeling that they may not have even realized they were missing. The Muppets are about so many things missing from today’s family entertainment – creativity, community, imagination, and personal expression. And Jason Segel, Nicholas Stoller, James Bobin, and Bret McKenzie made a movie that didn’t just nostalgically nod to the legendary puppets but proved their relevance in today’s world. I wish “The Muppets” had made more in theaters but it will be watched on endless repeat on Blu-ray and influence future generations like the original movies did so long ago.

The Muppets
The Muppets
Photo credit: Disney

As one would expect from this crew, “The Muppets” is incredibly self-referential (and, like a lot of vaudeville, one shouldn’t forget that the original show and movies were as well). Bringing The Muppets back to life. Segel stars as Gary, the human lead of the piece, brother to one of the more controversial elements of the film, a new puppet named Walter. Now, Walter is NOT a Muppet. In the world of the film, The Muppets exist as a popular entity. They made movies, had a TV show, and were rich & famous. And Walter was their biggest fan. He dreamed of just meeting The Muppets, much less being one.

The Muppets was released on Blu-ray and DVD on March 20th, 2012
The Muppets was released on Blu-ray and DVD on March 20th, 2012
Photo credit: Disney

When Gary and his girlfriend Mary (Amy Adams) plan a trip to Los Angeles, they agree to bring Walter along so he can meet his heroes at Muppet Studios, but they arrive to find it in a serious state of decay. Walter sneaks into Kermit’s former office just in time to hear the evil Tex Richman (Chris Cooper) reveal that he’s planning to buy The Muppets and destroy them. The only thing that could possibly save the legend is to find the gang and get the gang back together in time for a legacy-saving telethon. Part road movie, part stage show, the plot structure of “The Muppets” courtesy of co-writers Segel & Nicholas Stoller is a thing of beauty. It allows the characters we know and love to do what they do best and for the team to throw in an unexpected slew of cameos including Alan Arkin, Emily Blunt, Sarah Silverman, Zack Galifianakis, and the best thing that Jack Black has done in years.

Consistently funny and incredibly re-watchable, I expect “The Muppets” to be one of the most popular Blu-rays of 2012. Someone at Disney does as well, as they have gone all out with their home release, presenting it in a “Wocka Wocka Value Pack” that includes Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital Copy versions of the film along with a digital download code for the soundtrack. It also comes loaded down with special features including deleted scenes, featurettes, all of the hysterical trailers, and a great commentary. The only thing missing? The great “Toy Story” short that was attached in theaters. It’s a minor complaint for a fantastic release.

Special Features:
o Scratching the Surface: A Hasty Examination Of The Making Of The Muppets
o Deleted Scenes
o A Little Screen Test On The Way To The Read-Through
o Explaining Evil: The Full Tex Richman Song
o Unreleased Theatrical Spoof Trailers - And More!
o Audio Commentary - with Jason Segel, James Bobin and Nicholas Stoller
o Disney Intermission - Pause the movie and see what happens!
o The Longest Blooper Reel Ever Made (In Muppet History**)

“The Muppets” stars Jason Segel, Amy Adams, and Chris Cooper. It was written by Segel & Nicholas Stoller and directed by James Bobin. It was released on Blu-ray and DVD on March 20th, 2012.

HollywoodChicago.com content director Brian Tallerico

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

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