The Great Muppet Caper

• Directed by Jim Henson (Feature Directorial Debut)
• June 26, 1981 (United States) / July 30, 1981 (United Kingdom)

Twin brothers Kermit and Fozzie journey to London to solve a jewel heist.

Nothing beats The Muppets for genuinely entertaining family fun. The Great Muppet Caper is the second cinematic outing for the Muppets. It’s a fun and silly movie, bordering on absurdist comedy that relies heavily on corny 50s jokes and running gags in a way that the Muppets are uniquely capable of making effective.

This is not a sequel to The Muppet Movie but rather a standalone film that places as many of the Muppet characters as it possibly can into brand new roles yet you can see how each character is connected to their origins in the Muppets.

In this go Kermit and Fozzie are twin brothers who find themselves in hot water having been present for a jewel robbery yet completely oblivious to his occurrence instead focusing on themselves joining the staff of their newspaper. It is all done to a rather rousing song and dance number.

While the song and dance number there was good (as were the others), the songs themselves were not nearly as memorable as The Muppet Movie. They are nothing as memorable as “Rainbow Connection” or “Movin’ Right Along”. They’re not bad but you will never get one of them stuck in your head.

Aside from Kermit and Fozzie, we have Diana Rigg as wealthy fashion icon Lady Holiday whose jewels were stolen and Charles Grodin as her brother Nicky without a British accent. Of all the jokes they made in this movie, not one touched on Charles Grodin not having a British accent. It seems pretty obvious.

In comparison to the comedy of the first film, this certainly equals that. They are just as dumb yet as funny as before. And they come steady. We have cornball jokes like a diamond called the Baseball Diamond with action occurring at the Mallory Gallery. There are running gags involving bears wearing hats and other things.

This is one of those movies that is fast paced, but not fast paced in the sense of the SpongeBob Generation. It’s crazy and it’s looney and it’s just fun with moments of frenetic energy. It’s the characters doing what they do best with nothing more than plenty of silliness.

Part of the fun of any Muppet film are the celebrity cameos or well-known individuals in small supporting roles. Peter Ustinov and Oscar the Grouch were probably my favorite as well as being the most entertaining. The cameos in general were much fewer than before I felt. Or maybe they were not as well paced.

Ultimately The Great Muppet Caper is a loving poke at the romantic crime keeper movie. You have the jewel thieves as well as a love triangle involving Kermit, Nicky, and Miss Piggy. It is so dumb that it works. They play it straight despite the use of puppets.

The Great Muppet Caper is a funny and just entertaining movie that is enjoyable for kids and adults. If you love the Muppets you will love this!