Muppet Treasure Island (1996) Dir: Brian Henson
- Ridley Coote
- 10 hours ago
- 2 min read
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I grew up absolutely adoring this 1996 comedy adaptation of the classic seafaring adventure 'Treasure Island', by Louis Stevenson. If there is one way to make a remake or adaptation worth it, it's to do it with the beloved band of puppets known as 'The Muppets'. This one was directed by Brian Henson, son of the legendary puppeteers Jim and Jane Henson, and, whilst not as popular as the Muppets adaption of 'A Christmas Carol', it is still more than worthy of love.
Where else to begin with this film than with its brilliant puppetry? The cast and crew behind the iconic Muppets have always been talented, but this film marks some of their most creative and amusing work to-date. The visual gags in this film are genuinely hilarious, no matter how many times you watch it. I would argue that the Muppet-based comedy is by far the film's greatest strength.
The songs are so much fun, and are full of silly bits of humour that I can't help but love. Few things make me smile as much as 'The Muppets' singing and dancing in their wonderfully joyful ways. The story is, of course, a pretty simple version of Stevenson's classic story, but with the added absurdity that the world's most famous band of puppets brings, there's almost no way you won't have fun watching this.
Kevin Bishop doesn't give a particularly great performance as the young 'Jim Hawkins', but it's functional enough that it goes under the radar with all the muppet mayhem around him. Meanwhile, Tim Curry, in typical Tim Curry fashion, absolutely steals the show as the titular 'Long John Silver'. Curry has more charisma in his pinky toe than most of us will ever have across our whole lifetime, and he uses it to great effect, acting and singing circles around everybody else like it was nothing.
In regards to the voices behind the legendary puppets, there's a whole host of family names, each providing extremely enjoyable performances, both with their voices and with their puppetry skills; Dave Goelz, Steve Whitmire, Jerry Nelson, Kevin Clash, Bill Barretta, and the legendary Frank Oz. There was also a couple of fun little performances from Billy Connolly and Jennifer Saunders that are worth mentioning too.
Overall, although I do prefer 'The Muppets Christmas Carol', I still absolutely adore this treasure-fueled, pirate-filled, utterly ridiculous family adventure. It is such a silly film, but it brings so much joy to my heart that I simply don't care. Nostalgia no doubt helps, but I think anyone, especially those with younger family members, would be able to appreciate this a lot. I'm so glad I decided to revisit this - it was so worth it.
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