Sesame Street Presents: Follow that Bird (1985)

User Rating:

6.3/10   

Director:

Ken Kwapis

Writers:

Judy Freudberg (writer)
Tony Geiss (writer)

Release Date:

2 August 1985 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Comedy | Family | Music

Tagline:

It's Big Adventure! It's Big Laughs! It's Big Bird on the Big Screen!

Plot:

Starring the cast of TV's Sesame Street. Oscar, Bert, Ernie, Cookie Monster plus other members of the...

Plot Keywords:

Sesame Street | Foster Family | The Muppets | Lost Child | Dodo Birds

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Caroll Spinney	...	Big Bird / Oscar / Bruno / Grouch (uncredited) (voice)
Jim Henson	...	Kermit the Frog / Ernie / Granny Fannie Nesselrode (voice)
Frank Oz	...	Cookie Monster / Bert / Grover (voice)
Richard Hunt	...	Forgetful Jones / Gladys the Cow / Bird / Feathered Friends Owl / Sully / Monster (voice)
Kathryn Mullen	...	Feathered Friend's Magistrate / Grouch (uncredited) (principal muppet performers) (voice)
Jerry Nelson	...	Biff / Count / Herry / Sherlock Hemlock (principal Muppet performers) (voice)
Paul Bartel	...	Grouch Cook
Sandra Bernhard	...	Grouch Waitress
John Candy	...	State Trooper
Chevy Chase	...	Newscaster
Joe Flaherty	...	Sid Sleaze
Waylon Jennings	...	Truck Driver
Dave Thomas	...	Sam Sleaze
Laraine Newman	...	Mommy Dodo (voice)
Brian Hohlfeld	...	Daddy Dodo (voice)

Also Known As:

Follow That Bird

Runtime:

88 min

Country:

USA | Canada

Language:

English | American Sign Language

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:L | West Germany:o.Al. | Australia:G | Argentina:Atp | Canada:G | USA:G | UK:U

Filming Locations:

Bolton, Ontario, Canada

Company:

Children's Television Workshop (CTW)

Trivia:

The newscaster, played by Chevy Chase, opens his broadcast by quoting the theme song from '_Mister Roger's Neighborhood' (1971)_'.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Big Bird points to the keys for the cage, Sam Sleaze is holding the keyring with one finger. In the next shot, he is holding the keyring with four fingers.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Announcer: Ladies and gentlemen, would you please rise for the Grouch Anthem.
Oscar the Grouch: No, no, no! With the Grouch Anthem, you stay sitting down! Down in front there!

Movie Connections:

References THX 1138 (1971)

Soundtrack:

One Little Star

A real fun movie that kids will love and adults will enjoy

The bird adoption agency comes across the case of Big Bird - who lives alone with no other birds around him. Working for the agency, Miss Finch convinces Bird to leave Sesame Street and move across America to live with the Dodo Family. When Bird misses his friends he leaves his new home to walk back home - not aware of how far it is. On his journey he meets many people, but several groups are out looking for him too - including all his friends from Sesame Street, a pair of circus owners and none other than Miss Finch herself.

Sesame Street is the benchmark for children's television forever as far as I'm concerned - educational and entertaining, it did such a good job that it took me years of school before I stopped pronouncing Z `zee' and did it properly as `zed'. This film version turns off the straight educational part of the service but ups the entertainment. The plot is a good excuse for a freewheeling adventure that has plenty of laughs. Big Bird's sections are a little slower, truth be told, but the supporting searches are very light and funny - Bird has to carry the message so it's fair it should be less funny.

The message takes over the educational stuff and is a nicely put one about accepting differences and still being friends. It isn't heavily made until the end, where the `with your own kind' argument is hammered home. This is a little heavy handed but can be forgiven due to the level of enjoyment the film gives. While not aiming at adults per se, the film has plenty for them - the humour never aims low but should be enjoyed by adults and children alike. The funniest `adult' laugh is accidental and is where Maria turns to Sandra Bernhard and says `I'd like a tossed salad'! Unintentional laugh of course as the `other' meaning of that wasn't really known in the early 80's! Sorry - I'm just twisted! Outside of that the biggest laugh I had that kids won't get was the homage to North By Northwest's crop duster scene.

The cast is great. All the old Muppets from the street are here, although it may upset young fans to see Elmo sidelined to a silent appearance at a window but the rest are good stuff. Bird himself is a little dry but the rest are very funny in small amounts - Grover, Count, Cookie Monster and Oscar all had good lines, as did Ernie & Bert, but Telly is kind of the Muppet nobody really likes! The human cast of Sesame Street are cheerful and light - as you would expect, but it is the good cameos that spice it up. Chase has a great moment, Kermit reprises his reporter role but is clearly too big for this movie, Kellerman, Candy and Flaherty all have very small roles, although Flaherty has the best song.

Overall this is a very enjoyable movie that is perfectly pitched for adults and children - without doing what Pixar do and separating the material for each taste. The songs are not that great and there is at least one poor one in there, but the film has a fun energy to it that is wholesome but still entertaining and has great dialogue from start to finish. Love it!