Jim Henson: Idea Man

Fantastic biographical account not only of Jim but the Muppets too.

Jim's boundless creativity makes you question what wonderous creations we would be treated to today had he not been taken from the world so early... Watching this is an emotional rollercoaster for any true Henson/Muppet fan, his legacy will continue in our hearts and with his family.

The world learnt so much from his shows like Sesame street, not just reading and counting but empathy for our fellow occupants of this earth both human and animal alike.

When I watch this movie/doc I'm left with those emphatic words of Elmo "Gotta love me!" well Jim we always did and will do forever!

Thankyou Ron, Frank and the Henson family for this wonderful insight of genius.

I thought this was great.

This is a feature length tribute and biography to the great man that was Jim Henson.

It features lots of the people who worked with him, and forms a wonderful education about who the man was and what he stood for.

The talking heads don't get in the way, and there is a lot of rare footage to be seen and enjoyed as well.

I didn't expect this to be as moving as it turned out being, and just hearing the ethos and beliefs that Jim Henson had proved to be inspiring.

I hope people enjoy this well made documentary as much as I did and that it encourages Disney to do more with The Muppets.

Jim Henson is the movie-maker that got me into movies. When I saw The Dark Crystal at age five, I was never the same again. This was when I first felt that I simply had to know how movies get made. Later on, I became a fan of Muppets and Fraggles alike (yes, I got to the Skeksis before I got to Kermit, at least in terms of adoration) and by now, I consider Henson one of the most important creatives of the 20th century.

He changed the way I take in art, and did this and insurmountably more to countless others around the world. Even all these years after his death, he touches generations of people through his colorful creations -- so lifelike, nay, alive in spite of so clearly not being "real". In Ron Howard's documentary, Jim Henson: Idea Man, we see most of his life laid out (albeit sometimes in disappointingly brief snippets), from his youth to his early TV gigs (like those 1950s Wilkins Coffee commercials where a Kermit prototype puppet commits murder indiscriminately); from the inception of Sesame Street to the rise of the Muppets and the bona fide celebrity status of Kermit and Miss Piggy; from the creation of The Dark Crystal (which also involved the opening of the Henson Creature Shop) to the disastrous release of the now-beloved Labyrinth.

Meanwhile, we learn of his personal life and the way he inspired, not just us, but those around him. In one notable moment, Frank Oz recalls how Henson pushed for him to co-direct The Dark Crystal, as Henson felt he himself lacked something that he saw in Oz.

The documentary is cleverly presented, making good use of projectors, stop-motion interludes, and some animations Henson himself created before the Muppet years. Unfortunately, it is missing -- or just barely mentions -- a lot of information about Henson's life that would have made this documentary go from good to great. Still, it is a worthy celebration of that Rainbow Connection (sorry) that Henson created between all of us.

This documentary is a beautifully crafted tribute to one of the most imaginative and creative individuals of our time. Seeing Henson, Oz, and the talented team of Muppeteers at work, performing just below the frame, was both surreal and slightly heartbreaking. It felt as though I had seen too much behind the curtain, losing a bit of that childhood magic where Kermit, Piggy, Fozzy, and Gonzo were real to me.

While the film is visually stunning and expertly made, I felt that certain parts of the 80s were glossed over, leaving me wanting more depth in that era. However, the use of stop-motion was a wonderful addition, complementing the storytelling beautifully.

Ultimately, this documentary paints a touching and heartfelt portrait of an extraordinary man, told through the eyes of those who knew and loved him. It's hard not to be moved by the end, and it's easily one of the most enjoyable projects from Ron Howard.

Jim Henson Idea Man is an earnest tribute to the life and legacy of a visionary. It celebrates puppetry for the incredible art form it is whilst offering a personal look at the effects of fame. It moves along at a satisfyingly easygoing speed up until the final stretch where it suddenly speed runs through a lot of major beats to get to the end but other than that it succeeds at being a beautiful and emotional documentary.

Ron Howard's direction wisely imbues the film with a lot of colourful flourishes and a generally inventive nature in a noble attempt to match the creativity of his subject. It's the usual chronological narrative that charts Henson's life from his beginnings all the way to his untimely death and each little flourish works with the story it's telling, even through the end credits. The footage gathered is amazing and the anecdotes from the people in them are delightful and heartbreaking.