Review: The Great Muppet Caper/Muppet Treasure Island Blu-ray

Ryan Dosier - Tomorrow sees the release of The Great Muppet Caper and Muppet Treasure Island on a dual Blu-ray. The odd pairing doesn't make much sense, but there's no denying that putting two in one will probably sell more copies than individual releases. The release tactic is frustrating for Muppet fans, because we know both of these films deserve individual releases and it makes displaying the Muppet movies in chronological order incredibly difficult. (Or is that just me?)

Moving on, the release itself is really not bad. In fact, it's a joy to have all seven theatrical Muppet films on Blu-ray high definition. And boy, does the Blu-ray format make these two movies look outstanding. The Great Muppet Caper is one of my favorite films ever, so needless to say I've seen it countless times. The Blu-ray transfer is crisp, colorful, and really nice. Even the sound gets a wonderful revamp for this release. Muppet Treasure Island looks better, of course, being that it was released 15 years after Caper. The high definition transfer for Treasure Island is simply stunning. The "Cabin Fever" number leaps right off the screen in gorgeous color.

The bonus features for the release are incredibly sparse. In fact, the only feature for The Great Muppet Caper is two "Frog-E-Oke" tracks. Would it have been too much to ask for new commentary from the Muppets or the Muppet performers? Why not include The Muppets Go to the Movies, the TV special produced to tie into the film? It's incredibly disheartening that Jim Henson's feature directorial debut gets so little in the way of bonus features. Muppet Treasure Island fares slightly better, with one "Frog-E-Oke" track, old Brian Henson commentary, the old "Tale Behind the Tail" feature, and a "Let the Good Shine Out" music video from the Muppet Treasure Island sing-along tape. Why they didn't just include the whole tape, I'll never know.

The release is presented with both films on one Blu-ray disc and two individual DVDs, which is a great deal for the price and very handy for those who want the new release but don't have a Blu-ray player handy. The disc menus are very, very well done--especially Caper--and give the release some legitimacy. In fact, the menus for these films are better than the Blu-ray menus for the recent Muppet Christmas Carol and Muppet Movie Blu-ray releases.

Overall this release is worth your time for the gorgeous high-definition presentation of both of these wonderful films. If you own them on DVD already, I highly recommend upgrading to the Blu-ray if you have the ability. Plus, it comes with DVD copies so it's a win-win. The sparse bonus features are incredibly frustrating, but Muppet fans are unfortunately used to that by now. This release will be a great addition to any Muppet movie collection and makes a great Christmas gift for the Muppet fan in your life!

The Great Muppet Caper/Muppet Treasure Island Blu-ray
-- 3 out of 5 photographic essays on kneecaps

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier, muppetmindset@gmail.com