MUPPETS FROM SPACE Reviewed by Jamie Peck
Rating: *** (out of ****) Columbia / 1:25 / 1999 / G (but contains a strange bit of human-Muppet flirtation) Cast: The Great Gonzo; Kermit the Frog; Rizzo the Rat; Miss Piggy; Fozzie Bear; Jeffrey Tambor; Pat Hingle; Andie MacDowell Director: Tim Hill Screenplay: Jerry Juhl; Joseph Mazzarino
Gonzo for Gonzo? Then you'll absolutely adore "Muppets From Space," this decade's third film featuring Jim Henson's infamously accessible and diverse puppet troupe. But unlike 1992's "The Muppet Christmas Carol" or 1996's "Muppet Treasure Island," both of which felt forced in their attempts to mix classic lit with mad Muppet sensibilities, "Space" cooks up a brand new - and totally timely - premise for our favorite felt friends to joke, mug and flail their way through. It's a worthy successor to 1979's "The Muppet Movie," 1981's "The Great Muppet Caper" and 1985's "The Muppets Take Manhattan."
As for that blue, furry, hook-nosed whatchamacallit called Gonzo, admiring him is mandatory in enjoying this "Space" trip. He - not Kermit, not Miss Piggy - gets the lead role here, his dilemma grabbing the spotlight following a rousing, if out-of-nowhere, opening production number set to the still-hip '70s staple "Brick House." Seems Gonzo, suffering from a huge identity crisis, has been overcome with a question that's also been haunting fans for quite some time: We know Rolf's a dog, Fozzie's a bear and Sam's an eagle, but into what genus and species does the G-man fall? A word of advice: Don't think too hard about the title if you'd like to keep all the related revelations a surprise.
His quest for answers takes him and his Muppet pals through their patented mix of physical comedy, surprise celebrity cameos (like David Arquette as a mad scientist) and pop culture spoofs galore. Streetwise Rizzo the Rat, Gonzo's right-hand rodent, tags along as usual, providing an amusingly sarcastic counterpoint to his frazzled friend's neurotic natterings. Crave new territory? A few neophyte characters receive memorable debuts, including affable grizzly Bobo, a distressingly Andy Warhol-esque butler and a Latino shrimp named Pepe who makes up for his diminutive size with an abundance of sharp barbs.
Predictably, the lone main non-Muppet player - Jeffery Tambor's hammy villain, a shady type out to cage Gonzo for government purposes - is a snooze. And most non-Gonzo old favorites get relegated to supporting subplots, which is the case with one-time Muppet ringleader Kermit and spotlight-hogger Miss Piggy. But the background suits them fine for at least this endeavor. "Muppets From Space" creates such a lively, diverting atmosphere that this potentially faulty switcheroo registers only in afterthought. Any film that pulls off a worth-the-price-of-admission "Dawson's Creek" jab, a Piggy-MacDowell catfight and yet another big musical showstopper in the same 10 minutes can't be too dull.
With a fine balance between mirth and message and relatively few lulls hampering viewer merriment, kids will identify with the alienation themes and relish the silly slapstick while adults are kept amused by parodies of classic sci-fi and the suspicious mentality of the "X-Files" '90s. This means that "Muppets From Space" is truly a family film that fits the classic - but typically over-applied - commendation: Young and old can enjoy it together. Except for those crass, curmudgeonly seniors Statler and Waldorf. They'll heckle anything. Maybe a Muppet retirement community should be in their future.
© 1999 Jamie Peck E-mail: jpeck1@gl.umbc.edu Visit The Reel Deal Online: http://www.gl.umbc.edu/~jpeck1/ "'20 Dates' tells the story of Myles Berkowitz, a man who wants to make a film, and to fall in love. These areas are his ‘two greatest failures, professional and personal,' so he decides to make a film about going out on 20 dates. By the film's end, he has won the love of the lovely Elisabeth - maybe - but his professional life is obviously still a failure." -Roger Ebert on "20 Dates"
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