Evidently, I've never seen "Muppets Take Manhattan" in its entirety because I had no idea The Muppet Babies originated here. Of the original movies, it seems to rely on reference humor the most; at least it felt that way. Plenty of appearances from outside Muppets on top of the usual Hollywood cameos. That ain't a complaint, and good luck forgetting the image of Dabney Coleman using a chicken for a hostage anytime soon. But it also has that reliable Muppet spirit; good-natured in its quest for Broadway stardom and even the occasional belly-laugh. There's just an undying purity to this movie.7/10

The Muppets Take Manhattan (1984): Dir: Frank Oz / Cast: Dabney Coleman, Joan Rivers, Liza Minnelli, Art Carney, Gregory Hines: Another achievement for Jim Henson with the action taking place in Manhattan where the Broadway fun ends and the gang goes their separate ways. Kermit the frog gets a job at a restaurant. Fozzie Bear attempts hibernation in the mountains. Gonzo joins the circus where he is shot out of a cannon. And Miss Piggy continues her pursuit of Kermit. Frank Oz does a wonderful job directing. The individual subplots regarding the Muppets is involving but they soon come to realize that together they can make a difference. Unfortunately the celebrity cameos are disappointing. Dabney Coleman fares okay as a con artist who bargains with the Muppets with regards to their Broadway performance and ends up arrested. Art Carney also steals a moment when his son attempts to prove himself by taking a chance on their show. Liza Minnelli has an amusing cameo in a restaurant but not long enough, and the same can be said with regards to Joan Rivers who is seen briefly with Miss Piggy. Gregory Hines plays a roller blades guy who ends up giving them up. More would have been better in terms of the celebrity interactions. Entertaining third Muppet outing highlighted with Henson's outstanding work and a wonderful celebration of New York. Score: 8 / 10

I bought this film on DVD because I'd seen all the Muppets movies except for the first one and this one.I was thinking that this movie was going to be great. But half an hour later, I was just plain bored.Throughout the film, I kept checking the timer on my DVD player wondering when this was going to end. Most of the film is just Kermit visiting producers and executives trying to get this play made. Kids will be bored by this plot. Also, most of the movie was in the cafe. And don't get me started on Kermit losing his memory and joining a boring company that sells soap. Kids will be yawning at that point. Also, do you think kids will enjoy the overlong dialogue scenes and the "Peoples is people" speech by that Russian guy?If you're making a children's film, you have to know what the children want. Not what only adults want.Some of the jokes I thought were good, but the pace was really slow and the story was just not that interesting.The only two scenes I liked were Miss Piggy chasing after the thief and the Muppet babies scene. Those two scenes don't really have anything to do with the movie.There is one shot I'm trying to figure out how it was done. There is a shot of the rats running out of the restaurant. How did they do that? Was it stop motion animation? That was incredible. Sadly, that was the only thing that grabbed my attention.The cameos were pointless. The scene with Miss Piggy and Joan Rivers (I could barely recognize her) was lame. It's like they turned turned on the camera and said "Okay Joan, do something funny." Whereas the filmmakers found it funny, the audience doesn't.Brooke Shields was just wooden like she always is.For me, this is the weakest out of all the Muppet movies. Muppets From Space, love it or hate it, at least the pacing in that wasn't slow or dull.

I personally don't think it is QUITE as good as Muppet Movie or Great Muppet Caper, and one or two scenes towards the beginning could have been better paced, but along with those two Muppet movies, Christmas Carol and Treasure Island, The Muppets Take Manhattan is one of the better Muppet movies by far. It has a great story, different but still a fun one, bouncy songs especially It's Time for Saying Goodbye and the superb Together Again, the Manhattan locations are clever and truly stunning and the cameos from the likes of Liza Minelli, Joan Rivers, Brooke Shields and Gregory Hines are fun personified. And the Muppet performers are once again spot on, and any scene with Miss Piggy especially is a joy. Overall, terrific fun and recommended. 8.5/10 Bethany Cox