Viewed in
2012
Formats
HDTV
Premise
Kermit and Fozzie play news reporters sent off to London to find a stolen necklace.
Loved
John Cleese scenes, first two songs.
Liked
Snappy pace and comedy.
Thoughts
Overall, it was fun and snappy. The comedy frequency was pretty high, with a strong mix of self-referential, fourth-wall breaking, satirical twists on cliches, and a dash of vaudeville. My favorite was a gut-busting sequence in which Miss Piggy sneaks into the mansion of a stuffy rich man, played hilariously by the great John Cleese. A perfect blend of Monty Python and Muppets.
Aside from Cleese, I also very much enjoyed Charles Grodin's over-the-top performance as an obvious sleaze-ball. As for cameos, Peter Ustinov and Oscar the Grouch took the crown.
Sonically, three songs shined memorably. The first two were absolute masterpieces of fun and musicality. I also adored the sweet "The First Time You See Her" and Miss Piggy's fantasy (a Busby Berkeley send up). While the song wasn't that great (in fact I already forgot it), there was a number in the park, in which I was floored to see muppets riding bicycles, legs and all. I'm assuming some great puppetry and expensive rotoscoping to make that magic happen.
If I had to nitpick, I thought the plot wasn't well executed. The characters went to London, but after some b-roll of famous landmarks and using a couple of British actors, it seemed like the entire film forgot where they were. Also, aside from Cleese and Grodin, the rest of the human characters were forgettable.
Despite watching it three decades later, The Great Muppet Caper still held up very well, thanks to memorable songs and jokes that stood the test of time.
