The Happytime Murders Blu Ray Review (Universal)

The Happytime Murders is a 2018 black comedy film directed by Brian Henson (The Muppet Christmas Carol, Muppet Treasure Island, The Skrumps, & Sid the Science Kid). It was first announced in 2008 by The Jim Henson Company. Lionsgate originally picked up the rights for it in 2010. Cameron Diaz, Katherine Heigl, & Jamie Foxx were all attached to the project at one point. There are a total of 125 puppets in the film & 40 of them were created specifically for it. Sesame Workshop sued over the tagline used for the feature. The budget was around $47 million & it made $27.5 million at the box office worldwide. In a world where puppets coexist with humans but are treated as second-class citizens, Phil Phillips (played by: Bill Barretta from The Muppets, Nightmares & Dreamscapes: From the Stories of Stephen King, & Dinosaurs) was the first puppet cop on the Los Angeles Police Department before being fired. Now a private detective with a human secretary Bubbles (played by: Maya Rudolph from Bridesmaids, Grown Ups 1/2, 50 First Dates, & Idiocracy), he is hired by puppet client Sandra (played by: Dorien Davies from Word Party, Love, Sex and Missed Connections, & Julie’s Greenroom) to find out who has been blackmailing her. Phil investigates a lead at a puppet owned porn shop & runs into “The Happytime Gang” cast member Bumblypants (played by: Kevin Clash from Sesame Street, Monstruos Supersanos, & Big Bag) there.

Things go terribly wrong & a massacre takes place. The LAPD arrive, Phil sees his former partner Detective Connie Edwards (played by: Melissa McCarthy from Ghostbusters, Bridesmaids, This Is 40, & The Hangover Part III) at the scene of the crime. They have a troubled past together. Phil starts to notice the connection to the “The Happytime Gang” as various members from the show end up facing some bad luck. It includes Phil’s brother Larry “Shenanigans” Phillips (played by: Victor Yerrid from Crank Yankers & Robot Chicken), Lyle (played by: Kevin Clash from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 1/2, Labyrinth, Dinosaurs, & Muppet Treasure Island), Jenny (played by: Elizabeth Banks from The Hunger Games trilogy, Power Rangers, Spider-Man trilogy, & The 40-Year-Old Virgin), Ezra (played by: Ted Michaels from No, You Shut Up!), & Cara (played by: Colleen Smith from The Puppet Game Show & No, You Shut Up!). Phil & Connie are forced to team up to solve this murder spree that’s taking over their city. Lt. Banning (played by: Leslie David Baker from The Office) & F.B.I. agent Campbell (played by: Joel McHale from Community, Ted, Assassination Nation, & Spider-Man 2) are also on the case. As they dig deeper into the investigation, they find out what started all this chaos. Can they save the rest from being slaughtered? or Will it be too late????

The Happytime Murders really surprised me & it was way better than expected. Honestly, I am usually not a big fan of Melissa McCarthy. She plays the same character all the time & it gets old really quick but her role here was much different. It was one of her best performances that I’ve seen so far. The rest of the supporting cast were also solid. This reminded me of a more over the top & Rated R version of “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” & I am definitely cool with that considering I love that film. The screenplay was hilarious & it had me laughing out loud more than any other comedy this year. I didn’t expect it but The Happytime Murders was the funniest movie I’ve seen or reviewed in 2018. It had a unique vibe to it which I appreciate, it stands out from all the other features out there. I never thought I’d see puppets acting this way & it cracked me up non stop! It was way darker than expected which made me like it even more. I know it didn’t do that good at the box office & it had mixed comments but I HIGHLY recommend that you check it out & give it a shot for yourself!!!!

Melissa McCarthy stars in The Happytime Murders

Let’s talk about the high definition presentation from Universal! This 1080p (2.40:1) transfer looks fantastic on home video! The Happytime Murders has a nice visual style to it & the puppets look awesome here. The colors really pop out & it has several great locations for the feature. The English: DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 track highlights all the action, suspense, & hilarious moments. The dialogue is very clean & it has a good boost to it in the home system. It also includes English SDH & Spanish subtitles. Both picture & sound are at high level on this release.

Let’s discuss the special features from Universal on this blu ray disc! “Audio Commentary” with producer/director Brian Henson & lead actor Bill Barretta. They talk about the setting for the feature. They bring up the separate company because this isn’t your typical puppet film. They joke about the first foul language used early on. They chat about the cast & characters. They bring up that they had a longer cut & had to cut out some scenes. They mention do alternate takes for various scenes. They talk about some of the skillful puppet shots in the feature. They bring the crew & their work on the production. It’s a mainly a scene by scene track but it has a nice flow to it. 6 “Deleted Scenes” that run a little over 14 minutes. It has an almost 3 minute “Gag Reel”. “Line-O-Rama” is a little over 2 minutes. These short features are hilarious on here! “Virtual Environments” is a little over 2 minutes & it goes behind the scenes on the visual effects for the film. “Avatar Demo” is almost 3 minutes & it focuses on different ways that they used puppets in the feature. “VFX Breakdown” is a little over 4 minutes. It also focuses on the visual effects for the production. It shows how some of the puppets come to life on the screen. It has various behind the scenes material. It has two “Trailers” for The Happytime Murders. It comes with a slipcover, a digital code, & a DVD copy of the release. It’s available everywhere right now, check it out!!!!