ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, February 17, 1996 TAG: 9602190112
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 10 EDITION: METRO
TYPE: MOVIE REVIEW
SOURCE: KATHERINE REED STAFF WRITER
Jim Henson is alive and well in son Brian Henson's new Muppet movie, "Muppet Treasure Island."
Dad would have been proud, and kids - especially little ones - will like most of this silly, salty tumble through the pages of the Robert Louis Stevenson book. The movie won't inspire any trips to the library, but it captures some of the charm of the very best swashbucklers.
That's mainly because puppets are perfect for creating some over-the-top pirates. They've got names like Big Jim, Little Jim and Dead Jim, Clueless Morgan and Headless Bill. Dead Jim's a shivering bag of bones. Clueless is a laid-back, dim-witted mountain goat. And Headless Bill? He can't answer, but it makes for quite a shipboard roll call.
The movie pits young Jim Hawkins (Kevin Bishop, future Seventeen magazine heartthrob) and Capt. Kermit the Frog against the scheming, mutinous pirate Long John Silver (Tim Curry) and a crew that put the riff in riff-raff. Bishop has a nice voice, and Curry - well, you remember that old crooner Frank N. Furter. These songs are a lot catchier than many of those generated by other, recent Disney movies; "Cabin Fever" could win a lot of favor with parents getting out of the house with their restless children this weekend.
What kids will like best are those odd little Henson touches, like the talking Tikis and beer stein and the Keystone Kops-style powderkeg scene at the beginning of the movie, and regulars like Gonzo and Rizzo the Rat, who get top billing this time.
Parents who see a lot of movies with their kids can't help but notice and be grateful for the continuation of a Henson tradition with this movie: dialogue that makes children laugh without insulting their intelligence or offending anyone's sensibilities. Jerry Juhl (who helped write two other Muppet movies), Kirk Thatcher and James Hart seem to have a pretty good idea of what makes children and many adults laugh.
The second half of the movie isn't as much fun as the first, and older kids may get restless. But ages 3-8 will be in hog (apologies to Miss Piggy) heaven.
Muppet Treasure Island ***
A Walt Disney Pictures release showing at Salem Valley 8 and Valley View Mall 6. 90 min. Rated G.
LENGTH: Medium: 52 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: When Miss Piggy is marooned on an island, she convincesby CNBthe local warthogs that she is a goddess, until she is reunited with
her true love, Kermit the Frog. color.