"Most Wanted" a Deserved #2

Kermit the Frog and company are quick to admit at the beginning of Muppets Most Wanted that sequels usually aren't quite as good as the original. In song, no less. And true to form, the sequel we have in theaters now isn't quite as good or memorable as 2011's The Muppets. It's not for lack of trying, however, as Jim Henson's creations crack every joke, drop in every celebrity cameo, and break every wall - especially the fourth - they can in their attempt to follow up the force of pure nostalgia that came before it.

Director James Bobin and screenwriter Nicholas Stoller (sans Jason Segel this go-around) return to continue the story of the Muppets, fresh off their comeback show and ready to figure out the plot of the sequel. The plot sees the gang going on a world tour to take advantage of their rediscovered popularity, but subverted by an evil talent agent (Ricky Gervais) and a criminal mastermind Kermit look-alike named Constantine, who replaces everyone's favorite amphibian and sends his predecessor to a gulag run by a Russian Tina Fey. Together, the duo plan to use the Muppets as a cover in a plot to steal the crown jewels of Great Britain. Yes, the plot sounds silly. But considering this is a Muppets movie, it makes the best kind of irreverent sense.

Yes, everybody is back, even that one you forgot existed.

Freed from the shackles of a human-centric storyline (sorry, Segel; your heart was in the right place), Muppets Most Wanted focuses all of its attention where it SHOULD, on the felt-covered puppets with personality that we've become accustomed to over the previous decades. One of the major complaints about the 2011 Muppets is that it focused too much on Walter, a human-raised Muppet whose quest to join the group was the central theme. That the story gives more story to Kermit, Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Walter (yes, yes, but it's okay now because now he's one of them), and Sam the Eagle as main protagonists, while relegating their human counterparts to chiefly supportive roles, is a real step up, allowing the characters to thrive on their own now that they've become re-acclimated to the spotlight. Characters sound more like themselves (no more out of tune Fozzie), and the workload is shuffled around a bit more so that the A-Listers aren't the only ones carrying the film, or spouting the best dialogue.

Now Miss Piggy isn't the only one who wants him.

The film also capitalizes on two fronts, with both its human stars and soundtrack. No, Most Wanted was never going to upgrade from Segel, Amy Adams and Chris Cooper, but they get the absolute most they could out Ricky Gervais, Ty Burrell and Tina Fey. I've never been a big Gervais fan, but as a secondary antagonist with a snarky tongue, he fits in well. Fey of course shines, her lack of serious singing chops or accent skills actually adding to her humorous performance. And Burrell is pitch perfect as a French Interpol agent whose antics with Sam the Eagle (as a patriotic CIA agent, naturally) make for some of the movie's funniest bits. And that's not even including the numerous celebrity cameos, of which special attention needs to be given to Jemaine Clement, Salma Hayek, Josh Groban, Frank Langella, Usher, Stanley Tucci and Danny Trejo as standouts. Linking all this together is the soundrack by returning composer Christophe Beck and music supervisor (and Academy Award winner) Brett McKenzie (thus completing the Flight of the Conchords loop), which isn't quite as strong as it their collaboration in 2011 but doesn't have the glaring weaknesses, either (I still have nightmares of Chris Cooper attempting to rap). "Something So Right", performed by Miss Piggy and featuring Celine Dion, is engaging and beautiful while clearly meant to be remembered at awards season, and most of the other songs are varying degrees of entertainment. The only real complaint I have is with the variation, which sees the intruder Constantine overexposed and delivering two solo performances before Kermit even gets one from the confines of his prison cell. I hate criticizing Beck's work, since he's been delivering some great soundtracks over the years, but this is one that - while still good - doesn't quite compare with his previous efforts.

Name those celebrity cameos!

One final issue is the lack of focus on a target audience. Naturally, the Muppets gained their popularity from a generation that is showing more than a few gray hairs at this point. But at it's heart, they're supposed to be childrens' entertainment, and that's where the script fails. It's not that the movie isn't funny. It's HILARIOUS. but most of what makes the movie entertaining is dependent on the audience understanding pop culture references that sail well over smaller tykes' heads. How many kids would recognize Constantine wearing the iron teeth of James Bond villain Jaws? Or Kermit trussed up like Hannibal Lecter? Or gulag prisoners performing the opening number from A Chorus Line? This isn't a problem, per se, and fits in well with the personalities the characters have previously established. And there are a few gags (especially a couple of physical ones) at which kids will laugh raucously, but they're far overshadowed by those that will appeal only to those who understand the reference.

Easily the movie's best parts.

Without the nostalgia factor that made the 2011 film such a big hit, it was doubtless that Muppets Most Wanted would be a disappointment of sorts. But that honestly means little when this much fun is happening on the big screen. The irreverent story, self-referential humor, interesting characters and fun musical numbers make for something that is destined to come to rest in your DVD collection. Yes, it fails as a true "family" film, and it doesn't quite stack up against its immediate predecessor. It crosses just enough lines to be wittily eccentric, but is a bit too reliant on pop culture references to be "funny." But for those who grew up admiring the TV show's wackiness it's a worthy followup to the newly-reestablished movie franchise, warts and all.

It's Cool to be Blue

There's no plainer way to put it: 2012 was one of the best all-time years for animated films. It wasn't just the tremendous, unique contributions from the "Big Three" animated studios of Pixar (Brave), Disney (Wreck-It Ralph and Frankenweenie) and Dreamworks (Rise of the Guardians and Madagascar 3) that did it either, but also slew of third party and independent animators who put forth not just some of the best animated motion pictures in years, but also some of the best MOVIES of 2012, from Studio Gibli's The Secret World of Arrietty to LAIKA's ParaNorman. With this level of quality dominating last year's features, it's kind of disappointing to look at what 2013 has to offer. Monsters University? Epic? The Croods? Turbo? Frozen? The only animated flick I'm really looking forward to this year is Despicable Me 2, and to be fair that's just because I can't get enough of Gru's Minions (nor should anyone with a funny bone, as this trailer shows). Sure, any of these titles could turn out awesome and change my mind, but last year I was both eagerly anticipating and pleasantly surprised by most of the animated film released, and I just don't get the same feeling from this year's batch of entries, and they're going to have to earn my appreciation.

Scorch Supernova in repose...

That was certainly true for first entry Escape from Planet Earth, the freshman feature release from Canadian animation studio Rainmaker Entertainment. In it, we're introduced to Scorch Supernova (Brendan Fraser) and his brother Gary (Rob Corddry). Scorch is a widely-respected intergalactic hero, as well known for his magnetic charisma as his is for his reckless manner and ability to succeed where nobody else can. Gary, meanwhile, is his brother's brainy overseer at Mission Control, often trying to mitigate the trouble Scorch's methods always seem to attract. When Scorch accepts a mission to "The Dark Planet", from where no mission has never returned, he does so against the wishes of Gary, who quits in disgust at the lack of respect he has received from Scorch and others. But when Scorch is captured on the mission, it is up to Gary to become the hero and rescue his brother from the evil planet known as Earth.

Gary learns the evils of the Big Gulp.

Escape from Planet Earth succeeds in more places than you might expect from a fledgling animation studio. Despite perhaps not crafting their animation with the same level of quality as the big boys, the whole of the artwork - and especially the 3D - are very, VERY good. There were a few moments that didn't quite match up to the rest of the picture, but they happened so infrequently and at the very beginning, so that you'd barely remember them when all is said and done. And despite their relative cliches, the characters are fun enough and with motivations that are easy for kids to comprehend. Gary Supernova especially is nicely voiced by Corddry, who puts forth his second good performance this month (though not nearly as good as Warm Bodies) as a blue-collar (pun intended?) guy pushed to perform the extraordinary. Playing opposite him is the highly effective Fraser, who might have discovered a potential for career resurgence in voice acting with the macho, confident swagger he brings to the screen. Other strong (or at least amusing) performances belong to Craig Robinson, Sarah Jessica Parker, Ricky Gervais and Jane Lynch (although nothing she ever does will top Lynch's Wreck-It Ralph role), but it's William Shatner hamming it up as an evil military leader that steals the show. Director/screenwriter Cal Brunker shows a real connection with his actors, unexpected from the rookie (he's typically been an art department guy), and he also has a talent for the wry quip and a propensity for the in-joke. For instance, one of my favorite bits featured human guards attempting to wrangle one of the story's aliens. One character's exclamation? "James! Cameron! Get the Alien!"

Okay... it's just like driving an interspace car...

But while Escape From Planet Earth manages to outstrip its meager origins, it doesn't necessarily make it an animated flick worth your time. Those dialogue gags don't happen often enough to be anything more than clever moments in a script practically bereft of them. The story is also an amalgam of cliched story and characters, from rambunctious kids to sibling rivalry to the rake gag, suitable perhaps for kids but not really all that engaging for their parents. There's also not really any one scene-stealer like Madagascar's Penguins to whom you could really see yourself getting attached... I mean, there IS Scorch, but his antics aren't nearly so inspired as to be entertaining on their own. And while most of the cast is quite good, the lone low score goes to Jessica Alba, whose lack of personality is on full display in a role that really shouldn't have been all that difficult to handle.

I think they actually stuck Fraser's eyes in there...

It's clever on occasion, the acting is pretty good and the artwork is VERY fun to look at. Those are the essential bullet points for what to expect from Escape From Planet Earth. It's a good first feature effort from Rainmaker, whose biggest success to this point was arguably the TV show Beast Wars: Transformers, and this successful release certainly sets the stage for them to form a lucrative movie business for the future. But what might make this movie the MOST appealing is that there is NOTHING else to take your kids to in the theaters right now. If you have the hankering to go to the movies, this isn't a bad family pick, even if the coming months will offer a few more (and hopefully better) options. Still, Escape From Planet Earth manages to top out as the #6 movie of 2013, not a bad start for the animated genre this year. I don't expect anything in the same vein of Wreck-It Ralph or ParaNorman when it comes to this year's titles, but hopefully this won't be the best thing the animated genre has to offer us for the near future.