Based on a song from The Muppet Movie where Gonzo sings about flying through space to a place he’s only dreamed about, Muppets From Space follows Gonzo’s quest to find out where he’s from. Early on in the movie, Gonzo spills his Kap ‘N’ Alphabet cereal and it mysteriously spells “Watch the Sky” and “RU There.” That night he climbs on the roof of the house that he shares with the rest of the Muppets and watches the sky. “Lightning” strikes him and he’s transported into space where the cosmic fish validate his belief that he’s an alien. Everybody, including his best friend, Rizzo the Rat, thinks he’s gone a little crazy. But Gonzo continues to follow his beliefs and appears on TV with Miss Piggy to let the world know he’s an alien. This sets off an alien craze, and Dr. K. Edgar Singer, a scientist working for the government investigating alien sightings, abducts Gonzo. Finally at the end of the movie, when Gonzo’s family comes in a spaceship back to Earth, he must decide whether to go into space with them or remain on Earth with his friends.
Positive Elements: Pro-family sentiments are shown when Gonzo looks on the mantel at the Muppets’ house, sees photos of other families and wishes he had a family too. The importance of friendship and being a true friend comes up numerous times. As the Muppets go to rescue Gonzo, Kermit the Frog says, “We never forget one of our own.” Rizzo drops everything to go find Gonzo.
Spiritual Content: Gonzo has a reoccurring dream where he tries to enter Noah’s Ark. Noah doesn’t let Gonzo aboard because he’s only one (not in a pair). Noah closes the door only to open it a second later to hand Gonzo an umbrella and say, “You’re going to need this.” As stated above, when Gonzo spills his breakfast cereal it magically rearranges itself on the table to spell a message. Also, when Gonzo is struck by “lightning” the cosmic fish give him advice and say, “May the fish be with you.” Later, Gonzo’s family “channels” their voices through his sandwich. Rizzo feigns crossing himself when he meets the bad doctor, K. Edgar Singer. He also prays in a joking manner when Gonzo’s family lands in the spaceship.
Sexual Content: Several slight hints may go over young children’s heads. At a party, Pepe the Giant Prawn invites some women to join him in the hot tub. A security guard kisses Animal and says she can’t live without him. A bird jumps on a rat, but the rat says, “Not now, the guys are watching.” When the alien’s ship lands, everybody starts dancing on the beach and the eagle turns and stares at a crop-topped girl who’s bouncing around. Also, a minor passing reference to K. Edgar Singer’s “Platinum Buns” videotape.
Violent Content: Miss Piggy gets in several fights, which is nothing new for her character. First, she beats up one of the guys taking Gonzo away with a karate move to the crotch. Then she and Andie MacDowell battle on the beach to see who’s going to be the TV on-air personality. Hollywood Hogan has a small part where he grabs a microphone and talks to all of his professional wrestling fans.
Crude or Profane Language: A bad doctor, Dr. Phil Van Neuter, says, “Oh, good Lord.” A guard asks, “What the heck is going on?” Name-calling is winked at when Miss Piggy calls somebody Shelley Smelly. Rizzo proffers what could be taken as an off-color line when K. Edgar Singer puts on a surgical glove and asks if he may do an examination. Rizzo responds, “It depends on the final destination of that finger.”
Other Negative Elements: Animal bathes himself by flushing himself in the toilet. Pepe and Rizzo trick Gonzo into building a Jacuzzi by pretending they’re voices from outer space. Early 70s rock tunes are used for a lot of background music.
Summary: Not since the original Muppet Movie have the Muppets just played themselves. Kermit, Miss Piggy, Fozzie and the whole gang are their fun lovable selves in this film. And when you realize every set had to be built 4-feet off the ground to allow for the puppeteers to move around and props had to be the right size and weight for puppets to carry, it’s an amazing movie to watch. Adults may notice parodies of Star Wars, Independence Day, James Bond and The Shawshank Redemption. The story line is simple and children will enjoy many of the antics. But if rock music and aliens aren’t your thing, maybe a trip to a planetarium or observatory would “space out” your kids more than this quirky sci-fi comedy.
