**REDBAND trailer**
So, The Happytime Murders AIN’T the Muppets
we grew up with. Matter of fact, none of
the classic Muppets’re in the movie, so you don’t have to worry about your childhood
being ruined with this. Given that, like
Spongebob, the Simpsons, Futurama, Family
Guy, yada, yada (just because it’s on the tube on the Nick station doesn’t
mean it’s kid-friendly…sorry to burst your bubble, THM AIN’T FOR KIDS! There’s
just as many F-bombs, if not more, than any Tarantino movie, there Muppets getting
their heads blown off, a Muppet getting dismembered by a couple dogs, and a
whole bunch of un-PCness I wouldn’t want to have to explain to my kid. Those of you who saw Seed of Chucky in the day, this is THAT movie in a dramedy noire
setting.
Brian
Henson, the late legendary Muppet creator Jim Henson’s son, finally got around
to making this edgier Muppet-entric movie that’s apparently been floating
around the studio for a couple DECADES. This
means Henson Sr. COULD’VE known about the idea floating around, I don’t know,
it might’ve been after he died in ’90.
Joey, who hated THM, doesn’t
think Henson Sr.’d let the movie be made even though he pushed the kid-friendly
envelope, IMO, back in the day with films like Labyrinth, Dark Crystal, and Black
Cauldron. Even some skits on The Muppet Show where Crazy Harry blows
up a hapless Muppet were on the primetime (kid time) slot.
To the younger
Henson’s credit, he created Henson Alternative to distance his father’s legacy
from the adult-oriented Muppet fare, hence, no Kermit, Miss Piggy, Gonzo, or
Fozzie.
THM centers around someone’s bumping off the characters
from The Happytime Gang, a popular
puppet TV show. It’s up to PI Phil
Philips (puppeteered and voiced by Bill Barretta), a Muppet and his ex-partner,
Officer Connie Edwards (Melissa McCarthy), to find out who’s the perp. The thing is they can’t get along, because of
history.
Like all the
Muppet movies dating back to ‘79’s The
Muppet Movie, Henson continues to meld humans with the Muppets in THM, which lends itself to the prejudice
theme…AND, THAT’S WHERE THM MESHES
WITH HENSON SR.’S ORIGINAL MUPPET IDEA…ACCEPTANCE AND FORGIVENESS!
Yeah, the
movie’s violent as hell, is vulgar as hell, and as un-PC as well…me. BUT, the message’s there, all within a pretty
good noire story. You have your PI, you’ve
got your femme fatale in Sandra White (voiced by Dorien Davies), your red
herring, and your twist. Oh yeah, and
Melissa McCarthy, who I normally loathe, actually did well.
If the
Muppet in a R-rated movie thing’s your hang up to seeing THM, if seeing Muppets doing un-PC things like snorting pixie stick
dust or the aforementioned violence and cussing, then, don’t see it. BUT, if your up for an adult lesson in
tolerance, acceptance, and forgiveness, give THM a go.
Be good to
each other.
-J-
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