The Muppets Take Manhattan (1984)

Kermit and his friends go to New York City to get their musical on Broadway only to find it's a more difficult task than they anticipated.

Director:

Frank Oz

Writers:

Tom Patchett (story by), Jay Tarses (story by)

Stars:

Jim Henson, Frank Oz, Dave Goelz

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jim Henson	...	Kermit the Frog / Rowlf / Dr. Teeth / Waldorf / Swedish Chef / Ernie / Granny / Horse & Carriage Rider / Link Hogthrob / The Newsman (voice)
Frank Oz	...	Miss Piggy / Fozzie / Animal / Bert / Cookie Monster / Ocean Breeze Soap Board Member / Sam the Eagle (voice)
Dave Goelz	...	Gonzo / Chester the Rat / Bill the Frog / Zoot / Beauregard / Jim the Dog / Dr. Bunsen Honeydew / Penguin (voice)
Steve Whitmire	...	Rizzo the Rat / Gill the Frog / Baby Kermit / Chicken / College Student in Audience / Dog (voice)
Richard Hunt	...	Scooter / Statler / Janice / Beaker / Dog (voice)
Jerry Nelson	...	Camilla / Lew Zealand / Floyd / Bear / Chicken / Crazy Harry / Dog / Dr. Julius Strangepork / Granny / Penguin / Pops (voice)
Juliana Donald	...	Jenny
Lonny Price	...	Ronnie Crawford
Louis Zorich	...	Pete
Art Carney	...	Bernard Crawford
James Coco	...	Mr. Skeffington
Dabney Coleman	...	Martin Price / Murray Plotsky
Gregory Hines	...	Roller Skater
Linda Lavin	...	Kermit's Doctor
Joan Rivers	...	Perfume Saleswoman

Storyline

The Muppets graduate from college and decide to take their senior revue on the road. They hit the streets of Manhattan trying to sell their show to producers, finally finding one young and idealistic enough to take their show. After several mishaps and much confusion, things begin to come together for them.

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Plot Keywords:

college | the muppets | hit by a car | frog | cave | 

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Genres:

Adventure | Comedy | Drama | Family | Musical | Romance

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Certificate:

G

Details

Official Sites:

Henson.com Sony Movie Channel [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 July 1984 (USA)

Also Known As:

Muppet Movie III

Filming Locations:

Hoboken Railway Station, Hoboken, New Jersey, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$4,416,022, 15 July 1984, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$25,534,703

Company Credits

Production Co:

TriStar Pictures, Henson Associates (HA), Delphi II Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

94 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Instead of being traditional hand puppets, the tiny rats are controlled with rods to operate their heads and mouths.

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Goofs

When Kermit the Frog says "Yes" in Martin Price's office after Fozzie tells him that Price/Plotsky only wanted their money, his mouth doesn't move.

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Quotes

Miss Piggy: I spy because I care!
Kermit the Frog: Well I care, too!
Miss Piggy: Well, *why* don't you say so?
Kermit the Frog: I JUST DID!
Miss Piggy: ALL RIGHT!
[They start screaming, then try to catch their breath]
Roller Skater: Keep the skates. Keep the skates. I don't use 'em anyway; I just like to run around in shorts.

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Crazy Credits

After the final credits roll, you can hear Animal say "Bye Bye, Bye Bye, Bye Bye...Hasta Luego"

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Connections

Followed by A Muppet Family Christmas (1987)

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Soundtracks

You Can't Take No for an Answer
Music and Lyrics by Jeff Moss
Performed by Jim Henson and Chorus

User Reviews

Still fun, but lacks the spark that made the first two films so memorable.

After getting the formula about right with The Great Muppet Caper, the series takes a strange turn with 'Manhattan' only a few years later. Veteran Muppet Frank Oz takes the helm from Jim Henson and makes a few minor but noticeable changes. Gone are the nods and winks to the audience for the most part, and the film is far more plot based and linear than the slapstick shenanigans of the first film.

Kermit and the gang are finishing college and pondering their futures, which will very likely result in them all moving on separately and losing touch. However Kermit boldly concocts a plan that will see the gang remain together, by heading en masse to Manhattan to launch a massive stage musical called Manhattan Melodies, with all the Muppets as performers or stage hands.

Unfortunately after just a few short days, no success and low on funds, the various characters are forced to disperse and forge their own future, with the promise from Kermit to summon them all if/when the musical gets greenlit. Kermit takes a job in a diner and everyone goes their separate ways.

In many ways this is a more depressing film than the first two – even with the frog killing theme – for long periods of time the characters mope and ponder a future alone, and it seems that the Muppets will never again operate in unison. Of course this isn't how the film ends, but even in a puppet movie you don't need to be kept sad for over half the running time.

The jokes are less frequent and the tone less tongue in cheek. The cameos are still plentiful but are more 'look here's the famous cameo' than in other films. The inclusion of the Muppet Babies in a thinly veiled promo for the spin-off is as entertaining as it is blatant, and in some ways is a minor indictment on the dull tone of the rest of the film that it can be upstaged by a flashback.

There is another attempt at a grand sequence with Piggy taking a skate through the park, but it is far less successful than either of the sequences from Caper, and the big finale was an apt but desperate ending to proceedings.

Final Rating – 6.5 / 10. I by no means am saying steer clear of Manhattan, but after the Muppet Movie got the ball rolling and Caper took such a great leap forward, it is disappointing that the franchise would take a step back like this.