Muppets from Space 1999

[7.1/10] Even when The Muppets aren’t great, they’re still pretty good. That's a tribute to the tone and foundation Jim Henson and company set all those years ago. If you keep the right dynamic with the characters, lean into the madcap silliness that is their trademark, and have fun in the process, your floor is going to remain pretty high even if you can't quite hit the ceiling (cannon or no cannon).

That's the big takeaway from Muppets in Space, the film that both capped off and was the reason for the end of Kermit and company’s post-Jim, 1990s Renaissance. The movie is resoundingly fine. There’s plenty of solid laughs, off-the-wall silliness, and neat musical moments to keep viewers entertained for the full ninety minutes. Unfortunately, it lacks the real heart, outstanding human performances, or stand-out gags to really elevate it in the vein of its immediate predecessors. But with the Muppets, good enough is still more than good enough.

While the film can't quite reach the depths of sentiment classic like the original Muppet Movie can, it does have a strong emotional throughline. Gonzo feels distraught over not knowing who and what he is. Without knowing his origins, he’s not sure where he belongs, which gives him this yearning for family and home he doesn’t know what to do with.

In essence, Muppets from Space is a feature-length realization of Gonzo’s “I’m Going to Go Back There Someday” song from the 1977 film. That's a good thing! Nobody expects great pathos or real drama from these loony comedies, but having the kernel of some real emotion at the core of even a silly story helps audiences connect to it. Gonzo seeking the assurance of identity, and Kermit affirming him as he is makes for a nice idea, even if the prior film managed to be more affecting in three minutes than this one is in ninety.

Still, Gonzo’s quest to find his people drives the film nicely. A chance bolt of lightning starts giving him voices and vision from somewhere far beyond, telling him that his people are trying to find him. The movie nicely plays with the idea that Gonzo may be genuinely hearing from someone far beyond the stars, or this could all be a hopeful delusion, which leads to some comic moments. And of course, there’s an organization of bad guys, called COVNET, trying to detect extraterrestrial threats that get tangled up with Gonzo too.

This is all just fine as a story engine. It leads to Gonzo getting kidnapped, stand-offs in secret government facilities, and efforts to welcome alien visitors at a nearby cape. As a spine for humor and nonsense, you could do worse. But Muppets from Space never really fills in that, er, space, with much in the way of sterling laughs or great moments.

Instead, we get a series of perfectly okay James Bond-style gags of Kermit, Piggy, Fozzy, and Pepe using various gadgets devised by Dr. Honeydew and Beaker to make their way through the facility, with predictably ludicrous results. The cameos are nothing to write home about either, with the likes of two performers from Dawson’s Creek and Rob Schneider hardly substituting for the comedy legends and great fits for the Muppets who’ve stopped by in previous outings. (And the less said about Hulk Hogan, the better.)

Likewise, Arrested Development’s Jeffrey Tambor is, again, entirely solid as Edgar, the man in charge of COVNET who’s desperate to use Gonzo to up his standing in the organization and track down more aliens. He’s game for the mayhem and finds a nice line between goofiness and intimidation. But coming on the heels of Michael Caine, who breaks your heart in Muppet Christmas Carol, and Tim Curry, who chews scenery with glee in Muppet Treasure Island, Tambor is a bit of a letdown by comparison.

That's not to say that Muppets from Space is wholly lacking in high points. The opening section featuring the whole Muppet crew living in the same big house is an absolute treat. On the one hand, there’s something strangely homey and inviting about seeing the felt friends starting their day together and getting along under one roof. On the other hand, it’s a good chance for the comic lunacy of Animal giving himself a swirly in a crowded bathroom to freshen up, or the Swedish Chef making raspberry popovers that pop much more than expected. It’s fairly disconnected from the rest of the movie, but by god, I’d watch this sitcom!

On a purely sonic level, Muppets from Space isn’t a musical like past entries in the Muppet cinematic canon. But it manages to make up for that by having a downright banging soundtrack full of funky classics. I don’t know that I’d have ever asked for the Muppets jamming out to “Brick House”, or Gonzo blasting through the universe to “Shining Star”, or a whole contingent of Whatever-like aliens singing “Celebration”, but somehow, the mixing and matching works like gangbusters.

So too does the little bit more sentiment director Tim Hill and the creative team pour into the final moments. Having found his people, the aliens invite Gonzo to board their grand ship and return to a place full of those like him, in a neat subversion of his Noah’s Ark anxiety dream that opens the film. But in marked contrast to the numerous homages to Close Encounters of the Third King, Gonzo realizes that he should stay with the Muppet-y friends who have become his family, because whatever he is, they’re where he belongs. The idea is underbaked, but still a wholesome note to go out on.

And for the most part, that's enough. Muppets from Space will never be my first choice among Muppet movies. Hell, it’s probably not even in the top fifty percent. But the joy of these wild characters and their silly world is that even when they’re not firing on all cylinders, there’s enough to enjoy with their antics and unique style that even an under-par installment can still be plenty entertaining. Like Gonzo himself notes, even when things are a little shaggy, it’s easy for Kermit and friends to feel like home.