Film Review- "Muppets Most Wanted"

Muppets Most Wanted
Directed By James Bobin
Starring Ricky Gervais, Tina Fey, Ty Burrell, and The Muppets

As the newest installment in the Muppet film series begins (quite literally where The Muppets left off), Kermit and the gang sing a song about sequels, stating "Everybody knows that the sequel's never quite as good." I'm inclined to disagree to some extent. Muppets Most Wanted is a great film, but it doesn't match the standards set by The Muppets.

The gang sets off on a international tour through Europe, spear-headed by their new manager Dominic (Gervais). Kermit starts to feel overshadowed by Dominic, and of no use to his friends. It's then that the criminal mastermind Constantine, who bears a striking resemblance to Kermit, switches places with our hero. Kermit is believed to be Constantine and is thrown in to a Russian Gulag, run by the sweet but strict officer Nadia (Fey).

Constantine takes Kermit's place among The Muppets, fooling (mostly) everyone. It is then revealed that Constantine and Dominic are in cahoots, planning to pull of a grand string of heists throughout Europe, and place the blame on The Muppets. That's when Sam The Eagle and Interpol officer Jean Pierre Napoleon (Burrell) come in to track them down. The race is then on for Kermit to get back to The Muppets and set everything right.

It's not the most original story, and the "crime" angle causes older fans to draw comparisons to The Great Muppet Caper, but when you put The Muppets into a story like this, that makes it even better. The movie is the hilarious, filled with the type of jokes and gags you'd expect from The Muppets. The songs are catchy, "We're Doin' A Sequel" and "The Big House" in particular.

The performances…I mean I don't think we have to discuss the performance of The Muppets. They can do no wrong. Ricky Gervais does great, playing second bannana to The Muppets most of the film. He doesn't overshadow them, but he does enough to earn his spotlight. Tina Fey is wonderful as always, and her scenes with Kermit are fantastic. Ty Burrell is hilarious, and every minute him and Sam The Eagle are on screen is terrific. The cameos this time around are great, with some really great names popping up for a few seconds and getting laughs of their own.

Now unfortunately, the problems with this film are ones it isn't in control of. Muppets Most Wanted has two things working against it: timing and nostalgia. Being released right after the big comeback that was The Muppets is tough. It doesn't have "The Muppets are back! We haven't forgotten about them!" emotions to, for lack of better words, convey or manipulate. Don't get me wrong, Most Wanted is as touching and heart-warming as The Muppets get, but there's no way it could match the last tear-jerking five minutes of its predecessor.

If a few more years had passed since The Muppets was released, perhaps Most Wanted would have faired better with the critics. On the other hand, you could argue no matter when the next Muppet movie came out, it was always going to be compared the the one(s) that came before it. Perhaps they didn't go "big" enough, following so closely to the plot line its predecessor established, and a more "specific" story like The Muppet Christmas Carol or Muppet Treasure Island would have been better suited this time around.

But it isn't really fair to judge a film based on its predecessor, wether it's a direct sequel or not. This isn't the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it's The Muppets. As a stand alone film Muppets Most Wanted is a perfectly fine, enjoyable film. Personally I will always enjoy The Muppets more, but Most Wanted will definitely has enough rematch potential that it'll earn a spot in home video collections for years to come.