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Saturday, February 27, 2010

Robert's Movie-Pick of the Week: The Muppet Movie (1979)

With the Muppets you never know what to expect! Sometimes you will see singing vegetables, or you might see a band of crazed 70’s hippies literally sing a house down! If you ever wondered how this neurotic bunch of fluff conquered America, this movie is a must-see. Here, you will learn how Kermit and his friends started out. From his lowly start as an unknown frog in a pond, the viewer follows Kermit’s slippery road to success as a big time show biz celebrity. In the prelude to the film, we start out watching the Muppets running amock at the prescreening of their film. When all of those hyperactive Muppets finally settle down, Kermit commands them to roll the film:

One f(r)oggy day, a Hollywood talent agent comes to Kermit’s secluded swamp and shows Kermit an advertisement in the newspapers by World Wide Studios (WWS). WWS is in desperate and dire need of frogs wishing to become rich and famous. Kermit then sets out to Hollywood with his green heart set on fame, fortune, and being able to make millions of people happy. Kermit soon meets up with Fozzie Bear, a fame-seeking stand-up comedian who, instead of getting applause, gets jaws! Despite Fozzie’s ostensible lack of talent, he and Kermit strike a deal for an act. Sooner or later, they would become very close friends for the rest of their trip to Hollywood - indeed, for the rest of their lives. Not long after their acquaintance, Kermit and Fozzie encounter Doc Hopper, self-proclaimed President of Doc Hopper’s Fried Frog Legs. Gulp. This man wants Kermit to perform in his television commercials and offers him $500. Kermit, disinclined to sell his soul or legs, refuses Doc Hopper’s offer and leaves in a hurry. But, Doc does not give up easily... Kermit and Fozzie soon meet up with Gonzo, Rolf the Dog, and the lovely Miss Piggy in between several precarious encounters with Doc Hopper and his men - including one where Doc Hopper hires a German scientist to brain-wash Kermit into doing his commercials. Lucky for Kermit that Miss Piggy has a black belt in karate! Pow. After Doc’s many failures in catching Kermit, our villain hires a deadly professional frog killer to hunt poor Kermit down! When the Doc’s timid assistant learns of this, he turns on the Doc to warn Kermit and his friends. But Kermit knows of what comes next. I will only say that we have on our hands a classic show-down!

After watching this hilarious movie, I cannot help wondering if some scenes were deleted from the film. For instance, Kermit never asked Rolf the Dog to join the trip to Hollywood - Rolf just showed up. Also Miss Piggy’s brief disappearance in the film could have been better explained. Despite these jumpy edges, however, with a cast of some of the most celebrated movie icons of silver-screen history – including Steve Martin, Mel Brooks, Orson Welles, Richard Pryor, Bob Hope – as well as catchy songs, funny and witty dialog, and a good moving story The Muppet Movie is a must-see for any movie lover. Directed by James Frawley and released in 1979, this film is Muppet entertainment at its best!

Movie ratings - on a scale from 1-100: Robert Steven Mack 95/100, Alex Mack 95/100, Diana Mack 82/100; average Mack family rating: 90.6/100

Copyright 2010 by Robert Steven Mack (with special thanks to my mother Diana and father Alex for their assistance in editing)

1 comment:

  1. Thank you for your insightful summary, research, and analysis. You are quite a little movie expert, and I cannot wait to read your next book and movie review!

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