The Muppets Take Amazon Prime Video With ’80s Classic
The original Muppet trilogy has a lot in common with the original Star Wars trilogy. Much like Return of the Jedi, The Muppets Take Manhattan was seen as the weakest film in the series, and, well, I guess the similarities end there. What I should have said was that, for me personally, the two trilogies have a lot in common.
I know in my heart that Return of the Jedi isn’t the best Star Wars movie, but it’s the one I watched the most as a kid and the one I have the deepest personal connection to. Ditto for Muppets Take Manhattan. I know objectively that The Muppet Movie is superior and The Great Muppet Caper is funnier, but Manhattan has a certain charm I can’t explain. You, too, can struggle to explain the movie’s charm when you stream it on Amazon Prime Video!
If You Can Make It In New York
The original Muppet films share no continuity whatsoever. The Muppet Movie and The Great Muppet Caper both tell conflicting versions of the Muppets’ origin story. Meanwhile, The Muppets Take Manhattan has the good sense to skip that part and begins with the troupe already formed and performing together…in college.
Yeah, it’s weird, but so are the Muppets themselves. The Muppets perform a musical they wrote called Manhattan Melodies for the other students and, after a positive response, take the show to Broadway. Naturally, every Broadway producer they try is unwilling to bankroll a show written by a bunch of frogs, dogs, bears, chickens, and whatevers fresh out of college.
The Great Gonzo
After one too many rejections, the gang decides to go their separate ways. Kermit remains in New York while the others get jobs as theater ushers, stunt performers, and whatever else they can find. There’s an amnesia subplot, live-action Muppet Babies, and the whole thing ends with an onstage wedding between Kermit and Miss. Piggy.
I can honestly say that of the two movies I’ve seen with “Take Manhattan” in the title, the Muppets win hands down.
The Best Movie That Takes Manhattan
The other movie of course being Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan. While the majority of that movie was shot in Vancouver, Canada, The Muppets Take Manhattan was filmed entirely in and around New York City. Muppets is also the better movie for what that’s worth.
I’m not sure that “It’s better than the eighth Jason movie,” is the glowing endorsement Muppets Takes Manhattan deserves, but it’s the one it’s gonna get. In fact, I would say that The Muppets Take Manhattan is better than most of the Friday the 13th movies. It probably beats out a few of the Halloweens, too, if I’m being honest.
The End of The Muppets Golden Age
Watching Muppets Take Manhattan in 2024 is a bittersweet experience. The viewing experience is tainted slightly, knowing that it’s the last time Jim Henson would voice Kermit the Frog on the big screen. And it’s not just Manhattan. Henson’s premature death has a way of haunting all of the early Muppet films.
It’s that sensation of enjoying what you’re watching but then tearing up when you remember The Muppets will never be this good again. Sure, The Muppet Christmas Carol is “goated” as the kids say, but the original three movies have a certain magic that no one—even Henson’s kids—can replicate. And from that point of view, The Muppets Take Manhattan makes a fitting end to the golden age of Muppets.
The Muppets Take Amazon
REVIEW SCORE
Muppets Take Manhattan was a critical and commercial success when it was released in 1984, albeit to a lesser extent than its predecessors. Much like the above-mentioned Return of the Jedi, the critical consensus for Manhattan was that the magic was still there. It just wasn’t as revolutionary as it once was.
If you’ve never seen The Muppets Take Manhattan or you just need the dopamine rush you can only get from a gaggle of felt-covered puppets, I highly recommend streaming it right now on Amazon Prime Video.
