After watching A Very Jonas Christmas Movie, I needed a pallet cleanser.  Normally, I would go to the classic cinema era for such an effect, but Disney+ offered something more immediate: A Muppets Christmas: Letters to Santa (2008).  It was “more immediate” in relation to current day, but also because I was already on the Mouse’s streaming service.  What is great about anything having to do with Jim Henson’s famous creations is that they can be genuinely funny for any age group, while also giving an important lesson that cannot be ignored.  They may not be specifically Christian, but this Catholic will take that combination any day.  It also did not hurt that this one is short and sweet.

Unfortunately, A Muppets Christmas: Letters to Santa begins with most of our favorite characters in a long line.  They are at a New York City post office trying to get out their letters on Christmas Eve along with a sizeable portion of their fellow denizens.  The ever-impatient Miss Piggy (voiced by Eric Jacobson) demands that they be allowed to go to the front of the line, but even Mayor Michael Bloomberg (as himself) cannot help her.  Upon getting inside, though, they are ushered into the mail room during one of the many musical interludes and nearly wreck the entire operation as only the Muppets can do.  Nonetheless, most of what they need posted gets sent, except for a collection of letters Gonzo (voiced by Dave Goelz) was supposed to deliver for his neighbor, little Claire (Madison Pettis).  Gonzo feels terrible for the oversight, but even Kermit the Frog (voiced by Steve Whitmire) says there is nothing that can be done.  Kermit is also hard-pressed by Miss Piggy for them to get away for their planned Christmas vacation in the Caribbean.  Them, along with the rest of their Muppet friends, are all going somewhere for the holidays.  This is another sore spot for Gonzo, who knows that Claire is disappointed that all her neighbors will be gone for the next few days.  With everyone about to scatter, Gonzo determines that he is going to do whatever he can to deliver her letters to the North Pole.  Risking Miss Piggy’s wrath, Kermit, Fozzie Bear (voiced by Eric Jacobson), and a few others decide to help Gonzo.  The obvious choice is to return to the Post Office, but it has closed early for the holiday.  There are a few other typically Muppet solutions.  One is UPS.  That is the United Pigeon Service, by the way.  Get it?  Next, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew (voiced by Dave Goelz) invents a wish granting device, but his assistant, Beaker (voiced by Steve Whitmire), makes off with it when he conjures a supermodel.  Finally, they opt for trying the airport where they conveniently find North Pole Airlines.  The “company’s” one clerk, Joy (Uma Thurman), gets them their tickets, but they are stopped from getting to their flight on time by Transportation Security Administrations representative Officer Frank Meany (Nathan Lane) who, for some reason, does not like the look of the Muppets.  Officer Meany detains Kermit and company, but they convince him to let them go by saying that doing so will help him get on Santa’s nice list.  From there, the only way Joy can get them on the plane is to have them ride on the wing.  Somehow, they figure out when they are over the North Pole and jump, landing right where they need to be.  Still, when they knock on the front door, they are told that Santa Claus (Richard Griffiths) has already departed to deliver the gifts.  A fresh wave of sadness comes over Gonzo, but Santa hears his sorrow and comes to pick up the Muppets.  This also turns out to be their ride back to New York City as Claire has wished for all her friends to be together on Christmas.  While this is not exactly thrilling for her mother (Jane Krakowski), they spend a joyous evening and conclude by wishing the viewers a “happy holidays.”

Of course, this Catholic noted that they say “happy holidays” at the end of A Muppets Christmas: Letters to Santa instead of Merry Christmas.  It is a situation I do not want to make too much out of, but one I think about nonetheless.  I do not begrudge those who say “happy holidays,” but I do wonder why they feel it necessary to do so.  To be fair, there are a few holidays this time of year, but we do not use that phrase near Thanksgiving or at New Year’s.  Sadly, there are those that do not want to deal with the religious implications of Christmas, hence the wording.  Still, enough of that tired soapbox.  Since this is a Muppets movie, let us instead be positive.  These characters make that easy to do when they utter phrases like how Christmas is about giving.  The usual way this manifests itself is through gifts wrapped and unwrapped on the appointed day.  We get caught up in the material side of the exchange, but the real present is God’s presence in our lives.  He delivered Himself into this world on Christmas Day as hope incarnate.  If we can see the act of giving to others in the same light, even in the packages we hand over to be opened instead of reverencing Jesus on that day, then we can at least approach the true meaning of Christmas.  To illustrate this point, look to what Gonzo and the rest do for Claire.  They are setting aside their feelings of self-importance and needs in order to help others.  This is faith in action, and it makes watching movies like this one worth an hour of your time.

Then again, a lot of the hour that is A Muppets Christmas: Letters to Santa is taken up by musical numbers.  Because it is the Muppets, my tolerance for these pieces is higher.  Also, because it is the Muppets, I will take this one over most of the so-called Christmas movies I have seen.