Jim Henson's Muppets return for their third feature film, The Muppets Take Manhattan, an enjoyable romp which continues the tried-and-true formula used in The Muppet Movie and The Great Muppet Caper. Kermit the Frog and friends are seniors at Danhurst College, where they put on a hugely successful musical called "Manhattan Melodies." The students at the college are so enthusiastic about the show that the rest of the Muppets convince Kermit that they should take it to Broadway.
The Muppets Take Manhattan
Studio: Sony/Tri-Star
Year: 1984
Rated: G
Program Length: 94 minutes
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 1080p
Languages: English DTS-HD 5.1 MA, Russian Dolby Digital 5.1, French, German, Portuguese, Spanish Mono
Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, German, Portuguese, Spanish, Danish, Finnish, Greek, Hindi, Norwegian, Swedish, Turkish, Chinese Traditional, Chinese Simplified, Korean, Thai
The Program
Jim Henson's Muppets return for their third feature film, The Muppets Take Manhattan, an enjoyable romp which continues the tried-and-true formula used in The Muppet Movie and The Great Muppet Caper. Kermit the Frog and friends are seniors at Danhurst College, where they put on a hugely successful musical called "Manhattan Melodies." The students at the college are so enthusiastic about the show that the rest of the Muppets convince Kermit that they should take it to Broadway. This is particularly appealing to Miss Piggy, because Kermit has promised to marry her once he has made some money. Naturally, once they arrive in the Big Apple they encounter disappointment and rejection, and they are forced to take up residence in storage lockers at the Port Authority Bus Terminal. By September the gang is exhausted and dispirited. Sensing that Kermit is blaming himself for their failure, they decide to find jobs elsewhere and leave their leader to soldier on alone.
Kermit then befriends Jenny (Juliana Donald), an aspiring fashion designer whose father, Pete, owns a diner which is busy in spite of the fact that the waiters are talking rats (the lead rat is named Rizzo, an inside joke which will be lost on younger viewers). Jenny tries to help Kermit find a willing producer for his musical, but unbeknownst to them Miss Piggy has remained in New York because she suspects that Jenny is trying to steal Kermit away from her. The story's arc is fairly predictable, but there are enough amusing bits and bright musical numbers to satisfy both children and adults. Older viewers will enjoy the cameo appearances by Linda Lavin, Liza Minelli, Gregory Hines, Art Carney, James Coco, Brooke Shields, Elliott Gould, John Landis, and in particular Joan Rivers mentoring Miss Piggy in cosmetic sales and Dabney Coleman as a smarmy Broadway producer.
The Muppets Take Manhattan benefits greatly from a surprising number of effective exterior scenes which were shot on location on New York City streets and in Central Park. The film even includes appearances by New York notables such as Mayor Ed Koch and Vincent Sardi, Jr. (the owner of Sardi's Restaurant, where a significant scene unfolds). Fans of the Muppets are sure to enjoy this film. On the other hand, if Kermit, Miss Piggy, Gonzo, Fozzie Bear, the Swedish Chef, et al. are not your cup of tea - well, in that case you probably are not even bothering to read this review.
The Video
The 1.85:1 1080p image is bright, colorful, sharp and highly detailed. Sony has done a typically excellent job of producing a Blu-ray disc which retains a very pleasing and film-like appearance. The film opens with beautiful aerial shots of New York City, the Hudson River, and Vassar College in Poughkeepsie (doubling as the fictitious Danhurst College). There is no evidence of excessive DNR, edge enhancement, or other digital anomalies.
I have seen online comments which claim that shots of the World Trade Center have been scrubbed from The Muppets Take Manhattan. However, I suspect that this may be an urban legend. The World Trade Center is nowhere to be seen in the Blu-ray version, but if anyone knows for sure or has the 2001 DVD available for comparison, please chime in. The DVD was released in the summer of 2001, so there would have been no reason for the twin towers to have been scrubbed from it.
The Audio
The lossless 5.1 DTA-HD MA audio is fine but unspectacular. The sources I checked indicate that the film was originally released in mono, so it would appear that the surround channels have been utilized primarily to enhance the musical numbers. Dialogue is confined to the center channel, and there is a plethora of subtitles available so that viewers throughout the world can decipher what the Swedish Chef is saying.
The Supplements
This is a combo pack which includes a DVD of the feature.
The extras are the same supplements which were included with the 2001 DVD release, and they are close to bare-bones. A 15-minute standard-definition interview of the late Jim Henson includes some insights into how the film was made, and he discusses the vital contributions of writer/director Frank Oz (it was his first solo effort as a director). Henson describes how the group scenes of Muppets were filmed, but it would have been helpful if there were some visuals to actually show the difficulties involved in those shots. In addition to the interview there are a few minutes of "Muppetisms" featuring Kermit, Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear and Pepe.
The Packaging
The Blu-ray disc and the DVD are packaged in a standard-sized Blu-ray keep case.
The Final Analysis
The Muppets Take Manhattan is in some ways a typical "Let's put on a show" musical, but it is imbued with Muppets charm and wit and is supplemented with several fun and energetic musical numbers. There are enough clever bits to keep adults interested and amused, and younger viewers are sure to be delighted from beginning to end.
Equipment used for this review:
Panasonic DMP-BD50 Blu-ray player
Panasonic Viera TC-P46G15 Plasma display, calibrated to THX specification by Gregg Loewen
Yamaha HTR-5890 THX Surround Receiver
BIC Acoustech speakers
Interconnects: Monster Cable
Release Date: August 16, 2011
