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Men In Black 3

It’s not a sequel that needed to be made, but thanks to the charm of its leads and a tone that harks back to the wit and humour of the original, it’s a pretty enjoyable trip.

Bel Ami

The excellent female support cast saves this patchy effort, which is let down by its leading man and a flat screenplay.

The Dictator

A disappointing, often repulsive and mean-spirited mess of a film with seemingly only one real criterion on its agenda: to shock and offend.

The Woman In Black

Packed with atmosphere, this old-fashioned but deftly told ghost story delivers ample chills and thrills.

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The Muppets (Film)

by Joshua Blackman | January 09, 2012 11:56 | Edited January 09, 2012 11:57

It’s not perfect, but it’s a pretty irresistible trip down memory lane, which offers up charm, wit and nostalgic joy in spades.

After an ingenious marketing campaign featuring trailer parodies of The Hangover Part II and Green Lantern, Kermit The Frog, Fozzie Bear and the irrepressible Miss Piggy are back with their particular brand of optimism and subversive humour after a twelve year cinematic absence. The result is an adorably nostalgic trip down memory lane that should melt even the coldest of hearts.

 

Thanks largely to star, co-writer, and renowned puppet-aficionado, Jason Segel, the film is aimed primarily at fans of the six Muppet films and their original 1976 TV series. That's fine, since even with a script overflowing with ideas and character plotlines - and a tone that borders precariously on fan service - the film has charm, wit and joy to spare. This is even evident in the filmmaking and fourth-wall breaking narrative, which sees the gang, now disbanded, reforming for a live telethon in an effort to save their dilapidated LA studio. That studio is about to be demolished by a villainous billionaire played by Chris Cooper, unless The Muppets can raise $10 million by week's end.

 

The original characters are joined by Walter (a puppet and die-hard Muppet fan), his "brother", Gary (Segel), and Mary (Amy Adams). The Segel/Adams will-they-or-won't-they-get married plotline seems like a distraction, but the luminous Adams does her Enchanted-flavoured best in the catchy song-and-dance numbers, many of which were contributed by Flight Of The Conchords' Bret McKenzie.

 

More successful is anything to do with Kermit or Animal, while a gaggle of celebrity cameo appearances help iron out the rougher bits (Emily Blunt is hilarious in a brief reprise of her bitchy-secretary role from The Devil Wears Prada). The film falls short of greatness on its own terms - it's too indebted to audience nostalgia for that - but as a revival album, it provides the necessary sentimental kicks.