Muppet Movie

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Movie
German title Muppet Movie
Original title The Muppet Movie
Country of production UK ,
USA
original language English
Publishing year 1979
length 97 minutes
Rod
Director James Frawley
script Jack Burns ,
Jerry Juhl
production Jim Henson ,
David Lazer
music Paul Williams
camera Isidore Mankofsky
cut Christopher Greenbury
occupation

Muppet Movie is a 1979 puppet film based on the television series Muppet Show . It begins and ends with the fictional premiere of the film, to which numerous Muppet characters appear.

action

At the beginning of the film, Kermit the Frog is sitting in a swampy landscape singing the song The Rainbow Connection when an agent happens to pass by in a rowboat. He is enthusiastic about Kermit's talents and encourages him to go to Hollywood to become famous there. Kermit is enthusiastic about the idea and is on his way.

During the trip he met the comedian Fozzie Bär , the band Dr. Teeth & The Electric Mayhem, the stuntman Gonzo and his girlfriend Camilla and the piano-playing dog Rowlf who join him. At a fair, Kermit meets the newly crowned beauty queen Miss Piggy , who falls in love with the frog and from then on tries to conquer his heart.

But there are also dangers lurking on the way to Hollywood. Doc Hopper, the owner of a Frog Legs restaurant chain, is determined to win Kermit as a mascot and advertising character. Together with his assistant Max, he makes several unsuccessful attempts to catch the frog, including the German scientist Professor Max Krassmann and the "Frog Killer" Snake on him.

Finally, Kermit and his companions reach Los Angeles and penetrate into the office of the producer Lew Lord. He agrees to fund a film about the adventures of the Muppets, which is titled The Muppet Movie .

background

Muppet Movie is the first of seven feature films that were made based on the Muppet Show by 1999 . Many of the dolls were controlled by Jim Henson , the series creator, and Frank Oz .

For the opening scene, in which Kermit is sitting in a swampy landscape, Henson spent several days filming in a steel container under water. Fozzie Bär's Studebaker was remotely controlled by a short guy who was in the trunk of the car and was able to watch the road on a monitor. When this monitor failed, he received his instructions over a radio. In some of the crowd scenes, directors John Landis and Tim Burton were among the up to 150 puppeteers.

The shooting lasted a total of 87 days. Muppet Movie celebrated its world premiere on May 31, 1979 in Great Britain and was released in West German cinemas on June 12, 1980. The film is dedicated to the puppeteer and ventriloquist Edgar Bergen , who made a brief guest appearance and died during the production phase. He is considered Jim Henson's greatest role model.

Celebrities who make a short appearance in Muppet Movie include Dom DeLuise as agent, Milton Berle as Mad Man Mooney, Mel Brooks as Professor Max Krassman, James Coburn as owner of El Sleezo, James Frawley , director of the film, as waiter , Elliott Gould as presenter of the beauty pageant, Bob Hope as ice cream seller, Madeline Kahn as guest at El Sleezo, Carol Kane as "Miss", Cloris Leachman as secretary, Steve Martin as waiter , Richard Pryor as balloon seller, Telly Savalas as guest at El Sleezo , Scott Walker as Snake and Orson Welles as the film producer Lew Lord. In his last film appearance, the comedian Edgar Bergen can be seen with his hand puppet Charlie McCarthy as a judge at the fair. The character Bibo from Jim Henson's other program Sesame Street can also be seen. The name of the film producer Lew Lord is a reference to the producer of the Muppet Show , Lew Grade .

Soundtrack

  • The Rainbow Connection
  • Movin 'Right Along
  • Never Before, Never Again!
  • Can You Picture That?
  • I Hope That Somethin 'Better Comes Along!
  • I'm going to go back there someday
  • America
  • The Magic Store

The song The Rainbow Connection by Paul Williams and Kenneth Ascher reached number 25 on the Billboard Hot 100 in November 1979 and has since been featured by Sarah McLachlan , Dixie Chicks , Justin Timberlake , The Carpenters , The Pussycat Dolls , Me First and the Gimme Gimmes , The Dresden Dolls , Willie Nelson , Jason Mraz , Deborah Harry and covered in 2018 by Rolando Villazon .

criticism

For the lexicon of international film , Muppet Movie was a "[l] adorable cartoon, the appeal of which suffers somewhat from the many musical interludes."

Awards (selection)

Oscar 1980
  • Nomination for Best Song (The Rainbow Connection) for Paul Williams and Kenny Ascher.
  • Nomination in the category of best film music for Paul Williams and Kenny Ascher
Golden Globe Awards 1980
  • Nomination in the category of best film song (The Rainbow Connection) for Paul Williams, Kenny Ascher

Saturn Award 1980

In 2009, Muppet Movie was added to the National Film Registry .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Interview with John Landis
  2. ^ Muppet Movie. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed March 2, 2017 .Template: LdiF / Maintenance / Access used