THE MUPPETS: A Madcap Globetrotting Adventure
- Details
- Category: Film
- Published on Saturday, 03 December 2011 20:12
- Written by Janet Walker
THE MUPPETS, a WALT DISNEY PICTURES film, reunites Kermit, Miss Piggy, Gonzo The Great, and the original bad boy rocker, Animal, after a twelve year absence, in a madcap, wild globetrotting adventure.
THE MUPPETS, produced by David Hoberman and Todd Lieberman (THE FIGHTER/The Proposal), fill the screen with great slapstick comedy and big musical scenes reminiscent of early Hollywood musicals.
Directed by British newcomer James Bobin, THE MUPPETS stars Jason Segal (FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL), Amy Adams (THE FIGHTER/JULIE & JULIA), OSCAR winner Chris Cooper (ADAPTATION/AMERICAN BEAUTY) and Jack Black along with a virtual who's who of Hollywood celebrities who show up throughout the film in cameos and supporting roles.
THE MUPPETS main characters Walter, a nice, unassuming Muppet with a heart of gold and a newcomer to The Muppets family, has lived his life in Smallville, USA, a hundred miles from nowhere town with his brother Gary, a stand-up honest, commit shy guy, played with finesse by co-writer Jason Segal. The two are inseparable. As far as they know they've found their family.
One magical evening, Walter and Gary are watching television when history is made with the introduction of Jim Henson's THE MUPPETS and Walter finds out he's not alone. Even life was better after that evening! There were others like him!
Garyand his long time love, Mary, played by the lovely and versatile, Amy Adams, after a decade together have decided to take a vacation to Los Angeles. Mary, generous and kind, a woman in love, hopes seemingly against all odds that Gary will finally see her as the only one, the one that matters most.
So the three, Walter, Gary and Mary head off to Los Angeles. As the trio tours the broken down former Muppets studio, Walter overhears a sinister plot set in place by the evil Tex Richman, played convincingly by the OSCAR winner Chris Cooper. What follows are a series of misunderstandings, dashed hopes and a fun-filled international journey of discovery.
If The MUPPETS had a single back story it would be Finding Your Urban Family. THE MUPPETS revolve around finding your perfect place, the place where you can call home, of finding the one thing or person that matters more than anything else.
WALT DISNEY PICTURES recently hosted the global media at the historic Beverly Hills Hilton, for the press conferences that included Co-Writer Jason Segal, Amy Adams, Miss Piggy, Kermit and Walter along with THE MUPPETS Producers, David Hoberman, Todd Lieberman, Director James Bobin, Co-Writer and Executive Producer Nick Stoller and Music Supervisor Brent McKenzie.
Having the opportunity to participate in both general media press conference and interviews the following is a transcript.
Janet Walker: This is for Nick Stoller: How did conceptualize the storyline or what was your inspiration?
Nick Stoller: Well, around when Sarah Marshall came out and Jason Segal had a meeting at DISNEY and they were talking about what properties he was into and he said THE MUPPETS and he called me and we very quickly wondered 'Where have the Muppets been?' Where have they been and it seemed like a great opportunity to do a comeback movie and from there it very quickly developed into what makes a group break up what are the kinds of things that a group of friends break up. And it all started from that that kind of idea.
Janet Walker: Hi. This is for Miss Piggy and Jason Segal: As a writer how did you conceptualize the storyline or what was your inspiration? And when you got to Miss Piggy's part how difficult was it to carry through or was she the editor of her part or how often did you have to send rewrites to her.
Jason Segal: Well I'll start. The second part is very delicate. The movie was fairly simple. What do THE MUPPETS do best? They put on a show. I knew ultimately the movie would be about putting on a show. That's the real spirit of THE MUPPETS. They always had a great villain so we thought of TEX RICHMAN the evil oil baron and the once the studio came into our minds it was very simple. Then what occurred to me is that it's been twelve years since THE MUPPETS were on the big screen.
I wanted to acknowledge that this movie would bring them back to the forefront in comedy which is where they belong, like they had been making movies this whole time, grand big dance movies. Song and dance numbers like the old MGM style musicals. So it was about getting THE MUPPETS back together as sort of a metaphor of getting back on the big screen where they belong.
As for Piggy's part she wanted it bigger. I'm not going to lie to you. She wanted a very strange credit sequence. Where we would be introduced and then it would say 'And Miss Piggy' and then that would stay on throughout the entire movie.
Miss Piggy: (Interjecting) But what's wrong with that? I don't remember getting any re-writes. I want to go on the record, probably because I don't read the script. I just show up and people just say their lines and I say whatever comes into my head.
Kermit: (gently explaining) We shot basically around her.
Piggy: (Amazed, looking to Kermit) But I think it turned out good.
As it is said, the course of true love never runs smooth and with the two, Piggy and Kermit, separated by fate and now reunited, finishing each other thoughts. Ah amour! Happy again!
THE MUPPETS features a great soundtrack with a combination of recognizable, toe tapping, hits and new tunes quick to become classics!
THE MUPPETS, a hoot of a good time, entertaining, magical and engaging opens November 23, 2011 everywhere!
