Disney Enlists Segel & Stoller for new Muppets movie

[frogboy4]

A Very Merry Thought-Out Post

Performing and entertainment should be the best it can be! This is why we have critics to keep the performers on their toes...

I haven't really seen any arguing - just healthy conversation as to what we like and don't like. Perhaps people are overly sensitive?

Also - if performers and entertainers went into things with the half-baked notion (bubbadog) that "Oh, well - that's as good as it gets... No reason to try harder... " Then our experience as an audience would truly suffer.

In the words of the late great Bette Davis:
"Acting should be bigger than life. Scripts should be bigger than life. It should all be bigger than life." AND "Attempt the impossible in order to improve your work."

Balance
It's been a heated but healthy conversation and that's what forums are all about. I do think some members have been unduly harsh on the performers and even though I disagree and it makes me a little sad - nobody has crossed the line so far. A forum isn't merely a promotional tool where fans agree with one another and don't dare say something controversial - it's where we can geek out and respectfully state our ideas on subject matter many people in our daily lives hold little knowledge or interest.

Craft
That being said, I don't see the performers of any troupe just sliding in perfectly and taking over for someone else. It's an organic process where the learning is not only behind the scenes but also on the job. I think the Muppeteers have been doing everything they can to get the dynamics right, but it’s something delicate. It’s not something that can be demanded or they have to “bleed” for craft-wise. It is said that Jim had a gentle approach to such things and I think and hope that is being employed here.

Reception
I think Eric's Fozzie gets a 110% these days, his Piggy a 95%. Steve's Kermit is fairly different from Jim’s; I believe the right spirit is there over 90% of the time in my eyes (I know others may disagree). Audiences generally pick out the slightest things wrong with any performance. It's in our nature. Kermit is not immune from this criticism. Many (non Muppet fanatics) will never get over the difference in voice pitch and that's the way it is. For them there's little that can be done.

Muppet Rights
Disney, the performers and the Muppets don't owe us anything as fans, of course, and I don't think anyone's quite been saying that. They put there projects out there and we can pay to see it or not. I do agree that no matter what most of us will end up seeing what's released. I also think that this particular project is geared toward pleasing the fans, reminding people and informing others on why they should love the Muppets.

Bigger than Life
I do think projects should be bigger and better than life. You got me there! Too often Cineplex’s are filled with TV movie quality scripts and we wonder why the audience won't keep silent during the film. Much of the time we're watching a really big television. A lot of the magic has been coming back so far this summer in big budget audience pleasers like "Iron Man".

Television's Dwarfing Influence
I was a moderate fan of "Sex & the City" on HBO, but have little interest in seeing a film that looks like a 2 hour 25 minute episode! And from what I've seen it doesn't look glamorous or bigger than life. Sarah Jessica Parker more resembles Estelle Getty than a fashion icon in her poorly shot promotional poster. I'm not necessarily trying to be mean there; I like Sarah and a career of hot studio lights wears heavy on the complexion. I am merely making the point that (unless a film has particularly gritty subject matter) I want my movie stars airbrushed, impossibly larger than life and shining in films and promotional materials. I expect this Muppet film to hit the sweet notes of the original trilogy while remaining funny, glossy and relatable. It won't be a 90 minute Muppet Show, Muppets Tonight (or Oz).

Golden Opportunity
I think it is important to make the best work possible and I think that is being done under the circumstances. As stated before I don't believe the performers have been given the ideal opportunity to grow these characters. Now they do. Some people will never be satisfied, some are eager to embrace things no matter what and people like me have faith that it will meet or surpass the golden Muppet standards of yesterday. It will be exciting to watch and see.

 

[Beauregard]

It will be exciting to watch and see.

Pass the popcorn...I can't wait!

 

[uppitymuppity]

Well said Frogboy!

 

[Bubbadog]

Also - if performers and entertainers went into things with the half-baked notion (bubbadog) that "Oh, well - that's as good as it gets... No reason to try harder... " Then our experience as an audience would truly suffer.

To each their own. And a true statement.

I feel I have been misunderstood. But then again, it is all up to interpretation, isn't it?

Nevertheless, my intent was not to cause a stink. (And still isn't, I would like to point out.) But in the future I would like the courtesy of not being named specifically in rebuttal, as I feel that was not necessary. Thanks.

----------

That being said, what I meant was, NO, we don't need to settle for "half-rate" performance, or to not expect that the performers are not going to do their best, but that regardless that WE, as fans, WILL see it no matter what, won't we? And if not all, a majority of us will, because we all know if we stop watching, they'll stop making. A sad truth, no matter how you see it.

The second it stops making money, it won't make a difference if there is heated debate or not. They will just stop making it all together, and lock it up in the "vaults".
I hope this clears up my meaning.

 

[Drtooth]

Television's Dwarfing Influence
I was a moderate fan of "Sex & the City" on HBO, but have little interest in seeing a film that looks like a 2 hour 25 minute episode! And from what I've seen it doesn't look glamorous or bigger than life. Sarah Jessica Parker more resembles Estelle Getty than a fashion icon in her poorly shot promotional poster. I'm not necessarily trying to be mean there; I like Sarah and a career of hot studio lights wears heavy on the complexion. I am merely making the point that (unless a film has particularly gritty subject matter) I want my movie stars airbrushed, impossibly larger than life and shining in films and promotional materials. I expect this Muppet film to hit the sweet notes of the original trilogy while remaining funny, glossy and relatable. It won't be a 90 minute Muppet Show, Muppets Tonight (or Oz).

The beauty of the Muppet movies (including Follow that Bird and to some extent Elmo in Goruchland) is that they look just that. Like movies. The only ones that looked like a TV show were the TV films... KSY, VMX, and especially OZ. I have no doubt that when they script this, they imagine big, lush sets and scenary. Filming bits outside of a sound stage. And big, cinematic camera angles.

Oz (hate to keep beating a dead horse) looked like a TV movie. Especially With the off Kilter camera angles (which added to the ugliness of the final product).

VMX I give credit for trying to look like a film. it was filmed in widescreen after all. Don't understand why it was released full frame. The Moulin Scrooge Number looked like a good theatrical interpretation of a Muppet Show skit. Even Kermit's intro onstage looked theatrical. It really gave it a look of a giant stage, with a little frog in front of a huge curtain. A look that is missing from the Muppet show.

I say the same thing about the SS films. With a larger budget, Sesame Street looks like a large, busy full street, instead of the one sided small quiet corner that the television version suggests.

 

[GuySmileyfan]

Oh goodie! They're finally going to make a muppet movie that was suppose to be. I just hope they resurrected Rowlf too, because he's so cute. As a matter of fact, in case you haven't notice on It's a Very Muppet Christmas Movie, Rowlf was played by Bill Barreta and the only words he said is "Hey Kermit, Yeah, oh!" So which is a good start. And he finally has his own monologue on Episode 2 of Statler and Waldorf On the Balcony talking about the Wedding Crashers. Here it is:http://movies.com/muppets/archive Let's hope this new muppet movie is a hit. Especially bringing back the memories.

By the way, they might say file not found, but it's completely untrue. Just wait in five seconds and voila.

 

[uppitymuppity]

I did not mean to hurt your feelings Bubba, you are very right about the money thing. Everything here revolves around cash flow. But, I've had this argument many many times before. If you make a classic and concentrate on the art of it - it will not only make money but carry on the franchise. Sex and the City will make 50 million - be thrown into the trash bin, they'll make another and so on. But, JAWS will be watched a billion times over and is still delivering Spielberg checks ever month. And the movie is over 30 years old...

Did you hear that Universal Studios caught on fire over the weekend? I'm above it in the hills and we can smell the burnt smoke of the Back to the Future set and there is a faint smell of old "I Love Lucy" episodes in the air! Only in Hollywood!

To each their own. And a true statement.

I feel I have been misunderstood. But then again, it is all up to interpretation, isn't it?

Nevertheless, my intent was not to cause a stink. (And still isn't, I would like to point out.) But in the future I would like the courtesy of not being named specifically in rebuttal, as I feel that was not necessary. Thanks.

----------

That being said, what I meant was, NO, we don't need to settle for "half-rate" performance, or to not expect that the performers are not going to do their best, but that regardless that WE, as fans, WILL see it no matter what, won't we? And if not all, a majority of us will, because we all know if we stop watching, they'll stop making. A sad truth, no matter how you see it.

The second it stops making money, it won't make a difference if there is heated debate or not. They will just stop making it all together, and lock it up in the "vaults".
I hope this clears up my meaning.

 

[uppitymuppity]

Rolling Stone!

Did Rolling Stone just post an article about the new project and claim that Segel is "Brilliant" for bringing the muppets back?

I believe they did:

http://www.rollingstone.com/news/coverstory/21023786/

 

[GuySmileyfan]

Did Rolling Stone just post an article about the new project and claim that Segel is "Brilliant" for bringing the muppets back?

I believe they did:

http://www.rollingstone.com/news/coverstory/21023786/

Some of the word aren't necessary, but what Segel said about the storyline sounds very promising.

 

[frogboy4]

Thanks uppitymuppity! The article made me laugh. Maybe with a surge in popularity news sources will finally get it right just who owns the Muppet brand and maybe even distinguish one property from another. Either way we get our Muppet film (sans the underwater bit unless global warming finally gets us).