The Muppets are returning to the big screen with Muppets: Most Wanted, a sequel to 2011’s critical and box office smash The Muppets, or, as it’s humorously put in the film’s brilliantly meta opening number – the seventh sequel since their original film in 1979. But who’s counting, right?
The film stars the Muppet gang alongside Tina Fey (30 Rock), Ty Burrell (Modern Family) and Ricky Gervais (The Office) – not to mention a slew of cameos and special guests. Gervais plays Domonic Badguy, who books the Muppets on a tour of Europe as a cover for some “bad guy” activities. In the action that ensues, we see Kermit replaced by a doppelgänger (frustratingly unbeknownst to the rest of the Muppets) and sent off to prison in Russia where he meets Nadya (Fey), a guard who convinces him to stage a prisoners revue, while the rest of the gang are duped into following the doppelgänger – the number one criminal mastermind in the world – and Gervais on a typically Muppet adventure, all the while being chased by Jean Pierre Napoleon (Burrell) and Sam The Eagle, from Interpol and the CIA respectively.
The film does notably arrive on screens without the same excitement and fanfare that came with their first return to our screens in 2011. Months of clever marketing, trailers and the spirit of nostalgia, not to mention heavy critical praise, buoyed the last film to a worldwide tally of US$165 million, which is impressive in any genre, let alone that of puppetry. They even won an Oscar (for Best Original Song)! But with Most Wanted, the buzz just doesn’t seem to be there. They reference this several times within the film; that the sequel is never as good as the first and so on. But with the same director (James Bobin) and one of the same writers (Nicholas Stoller), who is joined by Bobin in the writers chair, replacing Jason Segel, there’s no reason it shouldn’t be. It even picks up from the minute the last film ended.
Like the first, it’s chock full of cameos, has a strong script and some fantastic musical numbers, thanks to the return of Flight of the Conchord’s Bret Mackenzie as the film’s musical director, so to speak. There’s honestly not a bad note in the film, and there are plenty of laughs.
So why isn’t the buzz there? Well, for starters, it’s difficult to sell a film for kids starring Ricky Gervais and Tina Fey, alongside a list of cameos that will only mean something to the older guests in the theatre. See Danny Trejo for starters, who continually proves himself as a highlight of the film amongst the prison scenes, which are by far the highlight of the film. But if a young kid knows who Trejo is, their parents probably aren’t doing the best job…
While the humour and the cameos do lend themselves to an older crowd, the storyline does not. It’s all a bit silly and childish, from Gervias’ sinister “Badguy” to the doppelgänger proving a bit more frustrating than entertaining. I mean, really, only one Muppet picked up on that? I know they’re just puppets, but that’s a bit ridiculous! Reading this you might say, “oh this is just a kids movie! Don’t read too much into it!” And I guess that’s my point. The balance is just a bit off. Unlike the last film, the balance between kid-friendly comedy and adult-suitable humour hasn’t quite been achieved, and ultimately it all comes off feeling a bit off-kilter.
But by no means is Most Wanted not enjoyable. I had a grin on my face from start to finish. Ultimately, though not as good as its predecessor, The Muppets: Most Wanted will be fun for the whole family, and that’s all you can ask for from a Muppets movie. Unfortunately, as the last film set the bar impressively high, the film is likely to disappoint some, but in many ways this is a return to the more classic Muppets form. Nothing to shout to the hills about, but a fun ride all the same.
Review Score: THREE STARS (OUT OF FIVE)
Muppets: Most Wanted arrives in Australian cinemas tomorrow, April 10th. And get to the cinema early to see a Monsters University short film courtesy of PIXAR!
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