Muppets Most Wanted ***

The Muppets are back in a terrific sequel, on the road again performing in major European capitals. This time they're under the management of Ricky Gervais as Dominic Badguy (pronounced "bahd - gee" please) who is in cahoots with an evil Kermit look-alike, while the real Kermie languishes in the gulag.

It's great seeing all the characters again with a raft of new songs, inventive sight gags, and sly digs at everyone and everything imaginable. In addition to Gervais there are other strong humans in the cast, including Tina Fey as a Siberian prison commandant, Ty Burrell as a French Interpol inspector, and a host of often-hilarious cameos from celebrities literally too numerous to mention.

The songs don't always catch, and the movie slumps in the second half hour, but Tina Fey's prison musical review and Ty Burrell's inspector one-upping the CIA's Sam Eagle are inspired bits of lunacy. I remind parents that the Muppets, though denizens of Disney, are PG rated, not G, so much of the humor will be inaccessible to the youngest. Judging by the restive tykes in the theater I saw today, you can be too young for the Muppets.