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Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas

(1977, Rated NR, Family and kids, Starring Jim Henson, David Goelz, Jerry Nelson)

  • Is it age appropriate?

    About our ratings

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    Not age appropriate for kids under 0, age appropriate for kids over 5; suggested age 5.

  • Is it any good?

    4.0

  • Common Sense says

    Early Muppet TV special with warmth, tunes, critters.

Themes in this movie include:   family relationships, honesty, loss, materialism

Why We Rated This on for Ages 5 and Up

The good stuff

  • Educational value:

    Not an issue.

  • Messages:

    There is a general theme of when-one-door-closes-another-opens; the Otter household gets an unexpected windfall even though crucial victory eludes them in the talent show. Emmett and his mother both act a little bit selfishly in entering the contest without telling each other, and they find that they have more success combining their acts.

  • Role models:

    Emmet Otter and his Ma both have each other's best interests at heart (though each also pursues the talent-show goal with a little bit of self-serving rationalization). They take the defeat in the show with good manners and no resentment. The bullying Riverbottom Gang never get their comeuppance for bad behavior, which is sort of refreshing in the context -- they do nothing underhanded to win the contest, either -- and there's no hard feelings by the heroes in the end.
 

What to watch out for

  • Violence & scariness:

    Just a threat of intimidation by the rowdy Riverbottom Gang. One of them, a fish, spits water at a bystander.

  • Sexy stuff:

    Not an issue.

  • Language:

    Not an issue.

  • Consumerism:

     Hard to ignore the Muppet commercial empire that ensued (with other Muppet movies and shows occasionally trailered on the different release versions of this).

  • Drinking, drugs, & smoking:

    Not an issue.
 

What Parents Need to Know

About Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas

Parents need to know that except for Kermit the Frog in an introductory sequence, none of the familiar Muppet characters appear here -- no Miss Piggy, Fozzie, Elmo, Gonzo, etc. There is repeated mention of a dead loved one, an eccentric but fondly remembered father.

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Families Can Talk About

  • Families can talk about the moral of the tale, and the reaction of the characters to the outcome of talent show. Ask kids if they can point to times in their own lives when disappointments turned into positive outcomes.
  • Tell younger kids what the term "snake oil salesman" really means. Older kids can be pointed toward a variation of the same plotline as this in the classic O. Henry Christmas short story "The Gift of the Magi."
  • Look into the history of "jug-band" music, and where it fits into the pantheon of American entertainment. The documentary Chasin' Gus' Ghost goes into the subject.
Tools and tips that can help

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