This week it was announced that Ray Liotta – a man who makes his living by taking small parts in disappointing films – has signed up for a role, suggesting that The Muppets 2 will be at least as good as, say, Guy Ritchie's Revolver or In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale. However, his love for the source material can't be denied – he's already tweeted at length about how excited he is, between writing "I am an atheist, please RT" a billion times every single day – and, although his film career isn't what it once promised to be, movies like Ghost Town show that he might still have it in him to be convincingly funny and tender at the same time.īut the worrying portents don't end there. Gervais's involvement seems to stem from an old blooper video of him trading off-colour necrophilia jokes with Elmo on the set of Sesame Street, which suggests that he might take the sequel into coarser territory than its predecessor. Then it was reported that Christoph Waltz would be appearing in Segel's place, which seemed like an act of pure genius – that is, right up until the moment when Waltz dropped out and Ricky Gervais stepped in. But James Bobin would still be the director and Segel's co-writer Nicholas Stoller would still be writing it, so it wasn't all bad. That's a shame, because his fingerprints were all over the first film. So for those days of cynicism and recessions, “’Black Friday Blues," and missing friends, “The Muppets” is the cure this holiday season.It's been common knowledge for a while that Jason Segel – the star and co-writer of The Muppets, as well as the engineer of their return – wouldn't be involved in another Muppets film. James Bobin, the movie’s director, has no hesitation at strumming each viewer’s heartstrings. The movie is packed to the brim with humor, both quick and subtle, for kids and adults. “The Muppets” (rated PG for some mild rude humor) may very well be the happiest film of the year and the best part is, it knows it. And just when you think it can’t get any funnier or touching or nostalgic, the film erupts into a “Muppet Show” finale that leaves you wanting the whole experience to start all over again. In the tradition of old “Muppet Shows” with celebrity hosts, the new film chooses to present its celebrity cameos by hiding Hollywood relics and modern pop icons under blonde wigs and milkman hats. The extent of my Muppet knowledge as a kid was “Muppet Treasure Island” and “The Muppet Christmas Carol." Yet I found this film to do an amazing job of both appealing to longtime fans and saying, “Remember how much fun we used to have!” while welcoming newcomers like the newest Muppet, Walter, and saying, “Come join the show!” Walt Disney Enterprises Chris Cooper is the villain in "The Muppets." So when the panorama shot popped up for the split second on screen, it all happened in a moment of friends trying to come together again and this made me happy - that even Muppets could miss their mates. He finds Fozzie Bear living and performing out of a dive bar in Reno Gonzo the Great a successful toilet seat distributer and Miss Piggy now christened as a top "pig" at Vogue magazine in Paris. ![]() It’s a lesson Kermit was in the process of learning with his old Muppet pals in the film. But this year there was some doubt whether we could schedule the reunion into everyone’s new life. My favorite shot was something that struck a personal chord for me and it was when the Muppets were driving over Donner-Summit Bridge, just outside of Truckee California, a mountain haven where close friends and I annually gather to sled, hike, play cards and carpe diem for a week in the winter. ![]() No, my favorite moment happened when “The Muppet” crew was traveling by musical montage across the United States, gathering all of it’s members together for a “Muppet Show” reunion to raise $10 million to save their old studio from the greedy clenches of Tex Richman, played by Chris Cooper ![]() And it wasn’t amid one of the brilliant sing-alongs written by Bret McKenzie (famous for “Flight of the Concords”) and sung by Amy Adams and Jason Segel. Or during Kermit the Frog’s heartfelt speech. But it wasn’t during one of Fozzie Bear’s jokes about salmonella (Waka, waka, waka). My favorite moment happened about halfway through the new "The Muppets" movie. Guest blogger Jeff Murray gives his review of " The Muppets" (opened November 23 throughout San Diego).
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