I was over at my father’s house this evening, and so my tersely-worded Facebook review of “The Muppets” was posted via cell phone:

Muppets FTW. Exceeded my high expectations.

I probably don’t need to say much else, but I wanted to anyway. My father, my brother and sister-in-law from North Carolina, their two children and I went to see the movie this afternoon in Tullahoma, and I could not have been more pleased. It was entertaining, respectful of the franchise and yet imbuing it with a fresh new energy. Like the reboot of “Star Trek” a couple of years ago, it was intended to be accessible to newcomers while rewarding to old fans, and like “Star Trek” it succeeded wildly on both counts. I have no idea to what Frank Oz might be referring when he implied it was disrespectful to the characters or canon. This was no more a departure from previous Muppet projects than some of those projects were from each other.

Most important of all, it was just good fun. My nephew, who sat next to me in the theater, told me he knew I found it funny because I laughed at it so much. Absolutely. He and his five-year-old sister loved it too.

Anyway, it was hard not to feel a tingle of excitement when they recreated the opening credits of “The Muppet Show” for the big screen.

I don’t want to give too much away, but there were fun celebrity cameos. I’ll spoil just one, and it’s one you have to look quickly for anyway: When Kermit tries to get the old gang back together, Fozzie is performing in Reno, Nevada, as the only authentic part of a seedy Muppet tribute band, the “Moopets.” I had to laugh when I recognized that the drummer, dressed to look like Animal, was Dave Grohl of Nirvana and the Foo Fighters. (Speaking of Nirvana, there’s a performance of “Smells Like Teen Spirit” later in the movie that has to be heard to be appreciated.)

Kudos to Jason Segel for what was obviously a labor of love as producer, co-writer and co-star. Amy Adams is wonderful, too, and Chris Cooper is fine and funny as the scenery-chewing villain (including a somewhat-unexpected musical number).

Also, if you’re a Pixar fan, be sure and see “The Muppets” in the theater because there’s a “Toy Story” short subject before the movie – a nice play on the relationship between real toys and the little toys that come as premiums in fast food children’s meals.