With the slogan “No Sesame. All Street.” the movie plays it safe repeating the usual comedic tropes, but with an extra dazzle of puppets. Courtesy of STX Entertainment
By Anthony Nolfi
Kermit the Frog would not approve of all of the filthy language in “The Happytime Murders,” and he wouldn’t like the movie much either.
Produced by The Jim Henson Company, “The Happytime Murders” is a raunchy buddy cop comedy film featuring Melissa McCarthy, Elizabeth Banks, tons of puppets and a whole lot of profanity.
McCarthy, playing her usual hot-headed self as she does in most of her comedies, must work alongside her former police partner, a washed up, blue-skinned puppet named Phil Phillips, to solve a string of murders committed against puppets.
Think “Who Framed Roger Rabbit?” but with lewd Sesame Street knock-offs and not as much heart.
A lot of the film is the same tired, repetitive humor audiences have become accustomed to from comedy films from the last decade. Only now there are puppets thrown in for an especially surreal effect.
Ever wanted to see an octopus milk a cow in the back of a adult film shop? If so, that’s in the first 10 minutes of the film.
There’s a lot of focus on the puppets of this film, which actually works in its benefit. No two puppets ever look alike, and there’s a lot of creativity in how they appear on screen. The practical effects are commendable and appreciated, especially given the CGI overdose that many films get stuck with.
Phil — puppeteered and voiced by Bill Barretta, a veteran from Sesame Street — is a surprisingly believable and sympathetic character.
A disgraced cop-turned-private investigator, Phil has a lot on his shoulders. He blames himself for prejudice against puppets and a past tied to McCarthy that got her hurt and him kicked off the police force.
Who would think a swearing, blue puppet would have more humanity than the others in the film?
The human actors do fine, but nothing spectacular. McCarthy offers her usual brand of humor and acting. Joel McHale and Leslie David Baker (from “Community” and “The Office” respectively) play decent enough law enforcement agents.
Maya Rudolph as Bubbles, Phil’s secretary, is probably the most likable character, as her supportive and kind words toward her boss make her sweet and good-natured..
For a comedy film, there weren’t many scenes that elicited much laughter. There were certainly a couple of chuckles here and there, mostly from the fact that such crude and obnoxious language is coming out of goofy, googly-eyed Muppet rejects.
There’s definitely an attempt here, which is worth something. Combining adult situations with childlike imagery isn’t something revolutionary, but it has faded from mainstream film lately.
It’s not offensively heinous, just kind of stale and without as much heart as one would expect from the people who came up with iconic and beloved Kermit, Miss Piggy and Fozzie Bear.
“The Happytime Murders” is unfortunately just okay, which may be worse than being a memorably bad film.
2/5 stars
