The defence The Sentimental Softie
“Sincerity is not manipulation.”
The film risks embarrassment to make emotion communal, and that openness is harder than fashionable detachment.
Back to trending 
A Muppet Family Christmas
Family · Comedy · Music · 1987
Fozzie Bear surprises his mother on Christmas Eve by bringing the entire Muppet gang to her farm to celebrate the holidays. Doc and his dog Sprocket, who had planned a quiet Christmas, end up joining the Muppets in their holiday activities and preparations. The Sesame Street and Fraggle Rock regulars join the festivities, but to Kermit's dismay, the only one missing is Miss Piggy, who has been caught in a snowstorm.
Movie details
A Muppet Family Christmas
“It's a merry Muppet Christmas with Fozzie and friends!”
1987 Family · Comedy · Music 47m
Critical arithmetic
The consensus, allegedly.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
IMDb
8.1 / 10
5.1K votes
TMDB
6.9 / 10
Community rating
External scores via OMDb · CC BY-NC 4.0. Values normalized for display; availability varies by title.
Fozzie Bear surprises his mother on Christmas Eve by bringing the entire Muppet gang to her farm to celebrate the holidays. Doc and his dog Sprocket, who had planned a quiet Christmas, end up joining the Muppets in their holiday activities and preparations. The Sesame Street and Fraggle Rock regulars join the festivities, but to Kermit's dismay, the only one missing is Miss Piggy, who has been caught in a snowstorm.
CriticWise case file
What this film says about your taste.
Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.
The archetype split
Who fights over A Muppet Family Christmas?
For the defence
The Sentimental Softie
“You came to feel something, and you will.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Cool Ironist
“Feeling things is a little embarrassing.”
Read their objectionThe split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.
Taste neighbourhood
Nearby on the taste map.
TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.
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Olive, the Other Reindeer
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The Smurfs: A Christmas Carol
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When Grouchy Smurf behaves badly to everyone and refuses to celebrate Christmas, the Smurfs of Christmas Past, Present and Future teach him to appreciate Christmas.
A Nonsense Christmas with Sabrina Carpenter
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Pop icon Sabrina Carpenter jingles all the bells in her first-ever variety music special full of holiday hits, unexpected duets and comedic cameos.
Dreamworks: Holiday Classics
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Join your favourite DreamWorks friends for these four holiday specials. Watch as those zany zoosters from Madagascar save Christmas, Donkey puts on a carolling Christmas Shrek-tacular, and Po prepares for his favourite holiday, the Winter Feast.
A Charlie Brown Christmas
Animation · 1965
When Charlie Brown complains about the overwhelming materialism that he sees amongst everyone during the Christmas season, Lucy suggests that he become director of the school Christmas pageant. Charlie Brown accepts, but it is a frustrating struggle. When an attempt to restore the proper spirit with a forlorn little fir Christmas tree fails, he needs Linus' help to learn the meaning of Christmas.
Toy Story That Time Forgot
Animation · 2014
During a post-Christmas play date, the gang find themselves in uncharted territory when the coolest set of action figures ever turn out to be dangerously delusional. It's all up to Trixie, the triceratops, if the gang hopes to return to Bonnie's room in this Toy Story That Time Forgot.
The Grinch
Animation · 2018
The Grinch hatches a scheme to ruin Christmas when the residents of Whoville plan their annual holiday celebration. But a certain little who might change things.
Trolls Holiday in Harmony
Animation · 2021
Queen Poppy plans the first annual Trolls Kingdom Secret Holiday Gift Swap, but things don't go quite as expected.
Where it lives
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Streaming availability data supplied by JustWatch.
Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Peter Harris · Eric Till
Written by
Jerry Juhl
Jim Henson
Kermit the Frog / Rowlf the Dog / Dr. Teeth / Swedish Chef / Waldorf / Ernie / Self
Frank Oz
Miss Piggy / Fozzy Bear / Animal / Sam the Eagle / Bert / Grover / Cookie Monster
Dave Goelz
Gonzo / Dr. Bunsen Honeydew / Zoot / Beauregard / Boober Fraggle
Jerry Nelson
Robin the Frog / Camilla the Chicken / Floyd Pepper / Lew Zealand / Pops / The Count / Gobo Fraggle / Herry Monster
Richard Hunt
Scooter / Janice / Statler / Beaker / Gladys the Cow / Two-Headed Monster / Snowman (voice)
Kathryn Mullen
Mokey Fraggle (voice)
Steve Whitmire
Turkey / Rizzo the Rat / Wembley Fraggle / Sprocket the Dog / Lips (voice)
Court is in session
Put A Muppet Family Christmas on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
The prosecution The Cool Ironist
“The strings are showing.”
Every cue tells you exactly what to feel and when, leaving sentiment to do the work character should have done.