The Happytime Murders (2018) – Film Review
After the Muppet movies of my childhood, I really wanted to see Brian Henson let loose, here. When I first saw the teaser in the theatre—in the trailer pack ahead of Deadpool 2, no less—I and the rest of the theatre was cracking up. It looked great—an adult-themed foray into this world we all knew so well as something far more innocent, as kids. That was going into the theatre.
Coming out… I think they played it safe. Held back. Didn’t want their reputation as family-friendly entertainers tarnished, I suppose. I expected more. Maybe too much.
My buddies and I had one good laugh in the beginning of the movie. Everything afterwards was barely a chuckle—uncomfortable puffs of breath that masked our wonder if the filmmakers even knew what an adult audience was any longer. Toilet humor, bad sight gags, and taking the Bright route—yes, poor analogues for race relations that, not surprisingly, soured the whole affair. In a universe where all the rules don’t even apply all the time—or were constructed so paper-thin in the first place that they’re awkward to keep bringing up—how can a creative crew expect the audience to stay invested? I should’ve asked the other two people that were in there with us.
Lots could’ve been cut, and this be made into a PG-13, yet still more grown-up, iteration of the Muppets (although, again, not called that, but “Puppets”, oddly). A lot feels like it was; Elizabeth Banks (30 Rock, The LEGO Movie) and Joel McHale (of The Soup fame) were grossly-underused, and the movie was over before I knew it. On the flipside, repetition was used for padding runtime, when a lot more could’ve been explored, character-wise, or for more decent laughs. The movie had several tones, too; is it a cop drama? a neo-noir? straight comedy-parody? I didn’t walk in expecting a masterpiece, sure, but I walked out still wanting something…
Phoned-in performances by Melissa McCarthy (Ghostbusters (2016), Bridesmaids), and even some of the voice talent (who I won’t even bother looking up)—with the exception of Bill Barretta, of course—make for a lackluster time. It wasn’t all bad; the soundtrack was neat, employing everything from Nappy Roots and Rick James to LMFAO and Carly Rae Jepsen, they’re all songs we know, but at least there’s a variety. It all still feels like one big Rick Roll, though (yes, that song’s in there, too). Sadly, I forgot a lot only a few hours after viewing, which was Hell, because I also left my notebook for post-viewing at home.
The end-credits—which shows how a lot of the scenes were done, with actual puppeteers and green-screen—was, perhaps, one of the more entertaining parts of the movie. I’d never seen any of these Muppets before, either—all-new creations for the movie, I’m guessing, which is cool.
Overall, a shabby end to the August of Opposites (see my reviews of the out-of-nowhere The Meg and surprisingly-good Slender Man, as well as the shoulder-shrugger, Alpha). Final ‘Risk Assessment: **/***.
Hopefully, since no one in my area is getting Replicas, starring Keanu Reeves, next week’s Kin can pick up my spirits in time for the fall season.
Next review: A.X.L.
