Your Thoughts: Muppets Letters to Santa

[DannyRWW]

My timer didn''t work with the new converter box thing. Does anyone know where I can download it (preferably in a format I can put on a dvd so I can bring it home for my daughter). I promised my daughter we would get to see kermit and we didn't

 

[Barry Lee]

I have not posted here in ages. But heres my review.

I have been reading and reading the thoughts and opinions before hand but i just wanted to keep my mouth shut to see the final product.

Where to begin? I think this is the first step to having the Muppets truly back. I felt this was an attempt at classic muppets, most of it worked. Some of it did not.

The story -- yes is something "Sesame" could EASILY pull off. But it was precious. The opening number with the monsters and rats were cute. Though it dragged on and on and I felt it was more of a commercial for our US Post Offices. BUT boy, I am so glad they got back the whole monsters, chickens, rats and things in the background. That's classic. I dont think we've really seen that much lately. Thats just fantastic in my opinion. And Sweetums getting a singing line was great too, nice transition. The Mayor Bloomberg thing -- mehh.

Jane and Madison had great chemistry with the muppets. It felt natural too me, not being talked down at or anything. I loved the whole vibe with them all living in the apartment, that was fantastic! NO PIG JOKES! WOOHOO! Reading the interview here it says Paul Williams was credited for the overall idea.

Frankly, I could tell. I remember how much Paul loves Gonzo. Which is primarily why I think Gonzo was at the main focus. I think it would have been cute though if Robin was the one who had sent the letter and not the little girl. But thats just my opinion.

The Mob thing -- was funny. Pepe' did steal the show, and I love him for it. He brought an edge to the whole Santa feeling. I also loved how the celebrities were WORKING FOR the Muppets, Whoopi being a cab driver was just so random. But not overshadowing at all. The second song about going to the north pole i felt was pointless.

I adored the Crazy Harry cameo very TMS there. Uma Therman was great, and so was Pepe's reaction to her. I for one loved the whole airport thing, thought it was somewhat a tad bit ridiculous. Bobo was just hilarious. Beakers wish machine was hilarious.

The third song, made me about to cry. That was so much Jim feeling in that song in my opinion. I was truly touched. The ending was great too, everyone sounded pretty great. The EM band sounded the best. AND ROWLF & ROBIN GOT A SINGING LINE WOOHOO!

This whole special felt really classic too me, I felt like i was visiting old friends, and it wasnt dated. Though it wasnt the BEST Muppet Christmas Special ever, for what we've had lately, this has been one of the best productions I have seen since VMX. Better than that actually. This is a good start.

 

[Redsonga]

I'm not saying it was the best ever, but it was better than most of the newer things IMHO . Anyway, even if SS could have done the story they could not have done it with the same brand of muppetness I think, that seemed to be alive and well in this :3.
As for Kermit not being the main character, well, maybe besides the writer liking Gonzo it could be because maybe they felt that he was a bit too mellow to be driving into something heart and soul like visiting Santa for the whole story ? He looks before he leaps a lot more than Gonzo after all...

 

[CBPuppets]

it was so good to see some of the classics such as Luncheon Counter monster, Big Mean Carl, and Beauregard.

 

[Onath]

So I checked IMDB and it has Jon Henson listed as Sweetums voice.

Also something of interest they have Brian Henson listed as Sal voice. But I don't remember seeing Sal

There was also a listing for Kevin Clash doing Clifford but I didn't see Clifford either.

So maybe there is some extra footage out there that didn't make it into the final cut. It would be great to see that stuff on a DVD.

 

[matleo]

I liked it. It was the first time in a long time that I've really enjoyed something new by the muppets and look forward ot seeing it again. I liked seeing Scooter, Rowlf, Beau, Pops, Harry, Lew and several others again. I really liked whoever did Floyd and feel that now that they have a band in place again, it's time to for THEM to do a musical number. It really isn't the Muppets without a wild number from the band. I loved the song that Gonzo and Fozzie sang.

The were only two things I didn't like. First, I actually found Pepe to be a little annoying in this. I got a little tired of Pepe sort of rolling his eyes at everything in the special. Yes, it is a tv special about muppets finding Santa Clause and YES there are certain leaps of faith you have to make, but about the 18th time Pepe mentioned something was "unbelievable" or "ridiculous" I just grew tired of it.

Ihe other thing I didn't like was the lighting. I thought there were a lot of places where the characters were lit poorly. Just a lot of shadows on them. I think it was a choice in several of those places like in apartment at the end. But ultimately, for me, it was a choice that didn't work.

Other than those two things I really liked it. Can't wait for it to come out on DVD next year.

--Matt

P>S-- Forgot to mention my favorite part. I loved it when the band came back in at the end of Zoot wished Kermit a Happy Hannukah! For some reason I really enjoyed that.

 

[Randall Flagg]

Ok, I haven't posted here since 2003, but I'm back... (I'm sure everyone is just thrilled.)

Anyway, overall, I thought it was a pleasant show. Not astounding, but hey, I'm in my 30s, the Muppets probably shouldn't seem astounding to someone in their 30s anyway.

My one main gripe, not just with this special but with the muppets since Henson died is that Kermit has lost his edge. He's become too cute and smiley/schmaltzy most of the time. What happened to the Kermit from the Muppet Show? The one who always looked exasperated and was constantly flapping his arms around, screaming, and acting like he was surrounded by a bunch of idiots? Maybe retiring from the theater reduced the stress in his life and made him more relaxed? I don't know, but I miss that old frazzled Kermit. Also, while I won't complain about his voice, I still don't think Steve gets his mannerisms quite right. The way he moves his hand in Kermit's head doesn't match how Henson did it. I can always tell, even with the sound off, when it's Steve doing Kermit (he somehow makes the head too... um... angular. That's not quite the right way to describe it, but I can't think how else to.)

Eric Jacobsen is amazing as Fozzie, and I have to say that Sam sounded a LOT better in this than he did in that other Christmas thing they did a few years ago. Rowlf should be brought to the forefront more, because I think Bill Barretta handles his voice quite well, and Rowlf was always a prominent muppet in the past.
Pepe is definitely my favorite these days. He's the perfect antidote for when the Muppets start to get a bit too sappy.

 

[Onath]

If you didn't get a chance to see it click the link below

http://www.nbc.com/Movies_Specials_More/Happy_Holidays/video/episodes/#vid=890222


Also I checked IMDB and It said that John Henson did the voice of Sweetums. There are also Credits for Kevin Clash doing Clifford, Brian Henson doing Sal, and one for Bean Bunny but I don't remember seeing any of them in the special.

So maybe there is some extra footage that got taken out in the final cut.

 

[RedPiggy]

Some people probably felt (as I kinda did) that Grover would actually have been a good fit as maybe the taxi driver, considering the overall tone. And I miss Beau's taxi driving in GMC.

I get a kick out of reading these posts/reviews (since a lot of it turned into Santa Uh-huh, Nuh-uh nonsense). I agree with a previous poster that this is a business, and whether we like it or not, the Muppets just haven't been able to live off just us 30-somethings. I've been an admirer of Kirk's direction ever since Dinosaurs, and it seems like watching that is the only way to get adult muppety stuff at the moment. Yes, SS could have been in here and totally fit with the tone, but like Janice and Redsonga have been saying, that's not technically a bad thing. VMX HAD more angsty mature tones, and it was reviled. Jim Henson himself tried to break out of the kiddie thing ... and the box office screamed bloody murder. The most popular fanfics I tend to see don't really age anyone and use a lot of typical tones. That's not a bad thing. I just find it funny that more adult-oriented fics (not vulgar, just not rated G) MAY be read, but you'd never know it except from the views numbers. And yet, the main gripe about this special and perhaps a few of the new stuff is that it is TOO kiddy. It's just really flabbergasting. I'm not saying anyone has to LIKE more serious stuff, but it irks me to see "safe" fics being okay while "safe" actual Muppet products aren't. This isn't a gripe about anyone in particular. I know of one initial reader who just didn't like the tone ... but I can handle that, since she likes lighter tones in the official stuff too.

Even if we completely ignores fanfics, the real point is that VMX HAD depth to it and many were disgusted by it. Then they lighten things up to please the supposed haters, and they become disgusted by the ultra-safe SS tone.

I feel sorry for Kermit and company. They just can't win.

 

[ryhoyarbie]

To me Floyd was nicely done, but missing some of that smart *** personality Floyd always had.

I know! When everyone was out in the hallway when Piggy came out, Floyd should have made a joke about the Pig. That would have been the perfect time to make fun of her.