The Muppets

Yes, Kermit does reprise The Rainbow Connection, surely one of the loveliest movie songs ever and, yes, it still brings tears to your eyes. Happy tears, realizing some marvelous things never change.

More fresh than retro, The Muppets bursts with charm and cheeky humor.

Like Statler and Waldorf, older viewers may kvetch and cavil about the details, but when that red velvet curtain goes up, we wouldn't give up our balcony seats for the world.

The Muppets is a rare family film likely to appeal more to parents than to their offspring.

The musical comedy whimsically and often cleverly revisits the characters, their shtick and and the TV show and movies that made them most famous.

I'm being completely sincere - and entirely complimentary! - when I say that The Muppets represents a career high point for Segel, the comedian who reveals himself to be a whimsical writer, capable singer and dancer and appealing straight man.

Terrified of alienating those who were raised on the originals, The Muppets panders to them instead, constantly blasting or restaging Top 40 hits from the past three-plus decades, continuing the cheap strategy that worked well on YouTube two years ago with the Muppets' cover of "Bohemian Rhapsody."

Lovable The Muppets is a really damn good film with it’s execution of story and nostalgia.

Warm, charming and funny, just like the Muppets I remember from my childhood. I'm not usually one for musicals, but this one - aided by the brilliant combination of fuzzy puppet singers and Flight of the Conchords compositions - hits all the right notes. It's funny without nudging into blue territory, a talent that's growing scarcer by the minute, with a heartwarming reunion story that slowly reintroduces the cast and reminds us why we grew to love them in the first place. Loaded with unexpected cameos and sly winks at the puppet troupe's history, it's clear that a lot of love went into this picture. The screen absolutely resonates from beginning to end. Though I was hesitant to revisit this old territory at first, by the final act I was grinning warmly and nodding right along, utterly entranced. Updated thoughts after a 2018 re-watch: A suitably bright, cheerful revival of the old Muppet franchise, stuffed with cameos and furry puppets, old and new. I really loved this upon my first watch, five or six years ago, but much of the shine has worn off since then. It does manage to modernize the show without losing its spirit, no small task in and of itself, but the ceaseless, overwhelming optimism is lathered thick and I didn't find the soundtrack quite so charming on a second pass. Amy Adams and Jason Segel are the worst offenders here, acceptable enough as small-town sweethearts but disturbingly happy and overacted, prone to drop everything for a song like they're in the process of succumbing to a massive Glee overdose. My boys didn't care for the musical numbers either, but all three of us enjoyed the big, seat-of-their-pants stage production that closes the show. That felt like the most successful interpretation of the old material anyway, a fast-paced variety show that's just as comically chaotic behind the scenes as it is before the audience. Fresh in the sense that they don't make clean, wholesome, feel-good programming like this any more, but it doesn't have a lot of shelf life. One viewing is more than enough.

he's the best friend you could ever have.. The Muppets From all the throwback to all the cameos, The Muppets is a single minded movie that is not only for the kids but for all the fans that grew up watching them.

An enjoyable nostalgia trip made by clearly devoted fans of the original TV series and early movies, but lacking the smartness and the comic density of the original. Kermit's voice is annoyingly wrong, his "acting" consists of incessant mouth contortions, and his character is missing the spine and moral strength that made him a leader a generation ago. Other characters, even Piggy and the human leads, are two dimensional, as though they're playing roles, rather than being, um, themselves. Only the new muppet, Walter, has a real character, but even that is thin. I enjoyed it, as did my 4 year old, but my 7 y.o. was bored, as was my wife, who commented that it's pretty much a girls' movie.

I hate the muppets because of the pig girl. She was disgustin, I hate her with my life. She doesn't leave the lizard alone.