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Have yourself a very merry Muppet™ Christmas with this all-new holiday movie starring Kermit™ the Frog, Miss Piggy™ and the whole Muppet™ gang – plus a celebrity cast featuring David Arquette, Joan Cusack and Whoopi Goldberg, with cameos by Matthew Lillard, William H. Macy, Carson Daly, Kelly Ripa, Joe Rogan, Molly Shannon and the cast of Scrubs! ‘Tis the night before Christmas and the Muppet Theater is in danger of being torn down. And when bad goes to worse, Kermit begins to believe the world would be a better place if he’d never been born. But don’t worry! With heavenly help and hilarious send-ups of just about every holiday movie ever made, Kermit and the Muppets discover what matters most is their love for each other.Featuring show-stopping musical numbers like Moulin Scrooge! (starring Miss Piggy as ‘Saltine’), this charming and clever (The San Diego Union-Tribune) holiday classic will have the whole family laughing! more info
I have lost faith in you, Muppets…
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
I always liked the Muppets. I wouldn’t call myself a fan, but I always liked them.
Before this, I had seen four Muppet movies: The Muppet Christmas Carol, Muppets from Space, Muppets Treasure Island, and The Muppet Wizard of Oz. Oz was an absolute disgrace, one of the worst movies I have ever seen. This one may not be on quite the same level of awfulness, but it definitely marks the downfall of the Muppets.
The plot is slapped-together, poorly constructed, and composed mainly of pop culture references. The whole thing is basically a parody of It’s a Wonderful Life, only not touching or thought-provoking or anything, just tacky.
There are unpleasant sexual references throughout the film that serve only to pander to today’s sex-crazed society. It’s sad that the Muppets have sunk down to this.
While The Muppet Christmas Carol will forever remain classic, I don’t think this one will ever go beyond cult status. I watched it once, and do not plan to watch it again, and until Brian Henson comes to his senses, I will stick with the old Muppet material.
Jim Henson must be rolling over in his grave!
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
I DO NOT EVEN WANT TO RATE THE ITEM!!!! A NEGATIVE 10 IS WHAT I GIVE THIS MOROSE PIECE OF HUMILIATION! After watching this movie, I want to cry and then kill myself. There was nothing funny, memorable, or warming about this movie. True Muppet fans will be disappointed and utterly revolted by this film. This was a complete mockery of OUR Muppets and am embarrassed to say I even watched this film. For the record: THE GREEN FAIRY IS NOT JIM HENSON MATERIAL!!! Shame on you for even making this film!!!
A Very Miserable Muppet Christmas
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
I am a big fan of the Muppet Family (Sesame, Fraggles, thee Muppets, Labyrinth, etc.)and so it is without hesitation that I write this review to say this Muppet release is best to be forgotten. Some have been pleased with the newer Muppet releases (Muppet Christ Carol, Muppets From Space) and disappointed (Muppet Treasure Island)… but this release is beyond disappointment or simply a bad movie.
It’s simply inappropriate for a Muppet film.
Fozzie is a pick-pocket, which is sort of funny, but it goes downhill from there. Kermit is furious at everyone and apparently suicidal (screaming “I wish I was never born!” over… and over… and over again…). Miss Piggy is a Call Girl Operator. Peppe gets a permit to open a topless nightclub… and Scooter is an S&M cage dancer. No joke.
Forget about this one.
Disappointing when compared with Christmas Carol
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
This muppet version of “It’s a Wonderful Life” is passable, but if you are expecting the “magic” of the “Muppet Christmas Carol” you will be sorely disappointed. Frankly, we barely laughed at all when watching this movie. Whoppi Goldberg, who is normally a fine actress, portrayed a very contrived and forced rendition of the Almighty and other characters lacked interest as well. I’ve seen other reviewers call this film “boring” and overall, I think I would have to agree.
NOT FOR CHILDREN!!!!
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
We didn’t even make it to the end of this movie. Horrific scenes for children, such as beer-bonging egg nog, Kermit frozen to death, emergency room resuscitation, Frog Legs restaurant being observed by a horrified Kermit, and sexual trash talk to mention only a few offensive scenes for as far as we got before I threw this movie in the trash. What were they thinking? Not even funny for adult Muppets fans.
Not Child Friendly
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
This is probably my own fault, as I don’t remember the muppets being so incredibly unfamily friendly. I was appalled at the references to sex as well as language such as “lets beat him up”, and a fight scene between the movie’s “villian” and Ms. Piggy. Even from an adult perspective, the jokes were not funny and somewhat offensive. The role they give to Whoopi as “the boss” (aka God) was very offensive towards the Christian belief of God. I would not recommend this movie to anyone.
I’ve finally warmed up to this one!
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
While I still can’t see giving it four stars as a lifelong Muppet fan, it at least merits 3 and a half. “It’s a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie”, from 2002, is (or was, rather) an all-new, feature-length Muppet TV movie that may not compare to any Muppet bigscreen outing but is still very entertaining and far better than the more recent and mostly botched “Muppet Wizard of Oz”. The film is basically a modern Muppet take on “It’s a Wonderful Life”, a holiday classic that I consider to be possibly the greatest movie ever made. While preparing for their big Christmas show, the Muppets find they are in danger of losing the Muppet Theater (meant to be the same one from the old Muppet Show) to the new owner if they can’t make a big payment by midnight on Christmas Eve. They do their best to earn the money by putting on a major show, and we see the expected collection of amusing cameos in the process by stars one wouldn’t get overly excited about, but when it seems the Muppets’ big debt will be paid off in time to the villainous Rachel Bitterman (hilariously played by Joan Cusack), everything is spoiled by Fozzie’s failed attempt to turn over the money. Cue Kermit’s “I wish I was never born” moment, and David Arquette as a charmingly naive angel who wishes to help the beloved frog out. Of course, we then get to see how disturbing the world would be if Kermit was never born, most specifically the lives of our favorite Muppet characters.
For all its shortcomings (weak replacements for the original Muppet voices, springtime scenes in Heaven that ruin the Christmassy mood of the film, a sappy song called “Everyone Matters” that makes one long for more traditional Christmas carols, an edgy “Scooter as a cage dancer” gag that is a bit too disturbing, attempting to do too much with too little a budget, Whoopi Goldberg), “It’s a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie” manages to serve up some gentle laughs throughout and Joan Cusack and David Arquette are a delight. Alright, Whoopi’s not too bad either, and even William H. Macy makes an appearance! Bottom line, this is actually a rather enjoyable Christmas movie and I’m happy to own it. Sure, I’d like to have an uncut version of “A Muppet Family Christmas” even more, but it seems like an uncut version of that one will never come out, and don’t get me started on the finally released, highly edited version of “The Christmas Toy”.
“It’s a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie” is presented in its original, fullscreen ratio and has a nice little bunch of extra features. You get the amusing interview “Inside Pepe’s Studio”, in which Pepe the Prawn, who has a significant role in the film, interviews director Kirk R. Thatcher. There are also some fun bloopers and deleted scenes, and a lot of trailers for other family films on DVD. Muppet Bios, which in this case are really just “fun facts” like imaginary favorite films and such, are also included. “It’s a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie is not going to top something like “The Muppet Christmas Carol” if you find yourself trying to decide between the two, but it’s a fun, modern Muppet holiday film nonetheless, and at least “It’s a Wonderful Life” tributes are a little less common than “A Christmas Carol” remakes (don’t get me wrong though, I LOVE a good Scrooge flick). Plus, you’ll have great fun spotting all the tributes to other Christmas stories too, not to mention tributes to the original “Muppet Movie”.
On a final note, it’s true that in the attempt made here to be modern, edgy, and adult enough to reach today’s audience, the humor lacks much of the innocence that made the Muppets so well-loved, and at times the edginess goes too far. This is something the current stewards of “The Muppets” need to correct, and simply using them to promote Disney Channel shows isn’t acceptable either. However, if you know the Muppets, you know they’ve always been a little edgy and folks shouldn’t be expecting Sesame Street here. I can understand being a bit put off and disappointed in the direction some of the jokes take both here and in other recent uses of the characters, but parents often overreact as well. Yes, the Muppets do need to get back on their game and it CAN be done, but this film is still enjoyable entertainment around the holidays that is mostly suitable for anyone.
When are the Muppets not the Muppets? When they’re in this movie.
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
The Very Muppet Christmas Movie suffers from “trying too hard” syndrome. It’s as though they tried to make this movie “current”, instead of just letting it be charming because it’s the Muppets.
Some of it works:
* It has some nice star cameos that are well integrated with the Muppets.
* Some of the little physical jokes are classic Muppets.
But a lot of it doesn’t work…
* Dave Goelz and Frank Oz didn’t do their original voices, so a vast majority of the characters have different voices. Kids won’t notice this, but adults and fans of the original Muppets will find this pretty distracting.
* Some of the humor tries to be “modern”… jokes about strip clubs, a male character turning everything a female character says into sexual innuendo, a Muppet shrimp that jokes about “how I like my women”, Scooter working as a cage dancer in a nightclub, etc. My kids and I watch the Simpsons, so I’m no angel, but these jokes feel really odd here.
* Too many “current” jokes, like Bunson Honeydew working on “Windows”, which is a grease pencil on a glass window.
So if you’re looking for the next Muppet Family Christmas (sadly out of print on DVD and going for $100+ on Amazon) or Muppet Christmas Carol (a classic), you will be very, very disappointed.
This is a better one to catch on TV than to buy…
What did I just watch?
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
Scooter in leather hot pants gyrating in a cage at a rave, while Sam the Eagle trips out on X and plays with glow sticks. Animal doing a two-story beer bong while lying on his back. A gay dance instructor pig slapping Kermit on the behind and telling him he has a “nice tush”. Pepe the Prawn getting a license to turn the theater into a topless dancing joint…
This is one of the most bizarre things I have ever seen. I would have thought it was someone doing a parody of the Muppets if I didn’t know any better. For some reason, someone decided the Muppets needed to go “dark and edgy”, and the result is “It’s a Very, Very Muppet Christmas Movie”.
The story is a basic twist on “It’s a Wonderful Life”, with Kermit driven to the point of despair by money problems and losing the lease on the Muppet Theater. In a classic George Bailey scene, he screams at all of the assembled Muppets, asking them how they can be so happy in such dismal circumstances, then storms out into the snow…of course, down comes the inept angel (David Arquette) sent by God (Whoopi Goldberg) to show Kermit what the world would be like if he had never been born, only some of what accounts for the scenes mentioned above, but also includes Ms. Piggy as a crazy cat lady who makes her living by….”acting” on the telephone.
Some things just don’t need to be “dark and edgy”, and The Muppets falls into that category. . On top of the weird storyline, the voice acting is not done by the “classic” puppeteers, and every now and then a character’s voice changes mid-scene. If you have any kids, just don’t get this. Get the perfect The Muppet Christmas Carol instead. If it ever comes out on DVD, John Denver and the Muppets: A Christmas Together would be even better.
Maybe “It’s a Very, Very Muppet Christmas Movie” can be appreciated on some sort of hip-neo-post-modern-ironic level, and maybe someone can see something here to enjoy. If you are a Star Wars completest, Yoda make a very brief appearance, and there are a few jokes that work. Me, I was just sad watching it, and seeing how far these beloved characters have fallen.
Good for kids
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
This is a good movie for my kids! I love this movie!! A kiddy version of It’s a Wonderful Life.