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Turkey Hollow

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Turkey Hollow
Television release poster
Screenplay byTim Burns
Christopher Baldi
Story byJim Henson
Jerry Juhl
Kirk R. Thatcher
Directed byKirk R. Thatcher
StarringMary Steenburgen
Jay Harrington
Graham Verchere
Genevieve Buechner
Reese Alexander
Gabe Khouth
Peter New
Linden Banks
Narrated byLudacris
Music byMick Giacchino[1]
Country of originUnited States
Canada
Original languageEnglish
Production
ProducersRitamarie Peruggi
Harvey Kahn
CinematographyRandal Platt
EditorRichard Schwadel
Running time88 minutes
Production companyThe Jim Henson Company
Original release
NetworkLifetime
ReleaseNovember 21, 2015 (2015-11-21)

Jim Henson's Turkey Hollow is a 2015 Thanksgiving television film created by The Jim Henson Company and aired on Lifetime on November 21, 2015. The film is directed by Kirk R. Thatcher, adapted by Tim Burns and Christopher Baldi from a story by Jim Henson, Jerry Juhl, and Kirk Thatcher, narrated by Ludacris, and starring Mary Steenburgen, Jay Harrington, Graham Verchere, Genevieve Buechner, Reese Alexander, Gabe Khouth, Peter New, and Linden Banks.

The television film was met with mixed reviews.

Plot

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As part of the Thanksgiving holidays, a recently divorced man named Ron Emmerson (Jay Harrington) takes his children Tim (Graham Verchere) and Annie (Genevieve Buechner) to the farm of Ron's eccentric Aunt Cly (Mary Steenburgen) in the town of Turkey Hollow which has no technology. Tim and Annie find themselves caught up in searching for the "Howling Hoodoo," an elusive 10 ft. monster that has been considered a legend to the citizens of Turkey Hollow while also coming across the plot of the scheming neighbor Eldridge Slump (Linden Banks) and his farmworker minions Buzz (Gabe Khouth) and Junior (Peter New) that involves illegal turkeys activities and a plot for Eldridge to claim Aunt Cly's farm. With the aid of some new creature friends named Squonk, Zorp, Burble, and Thring, the Emmersons must expose Slump's plot and save the day.

Cast

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Kirk Thatcher cameos in a photo as Uncle Ned.

Puppeteers

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  • Alice Dinnean – Squonk
  • Jason Hopley – Zorp
  • Rob Mills – Burble
  • Gord Robertson – Thrinng

Additional Puppeteers

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  • Jeny Cassady
  • Morris Chapdelaine
  • Kellie Haines
  • Paul Hooson
  • Geoff Redknap
  • James Rowley

Production

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Turkey Hollow started out as a story called "The Musical Monsters of Turkey Hollow" which was written by Jerry Juhl as one of Jim Henson's proposed specials.[2] The original production phase of "The Musical Monsters of Turkey Hollow" made it as far as puppet design where some of them were built and still exist in the archives. Photos of Lisa Henson and Cheryl Henson were taken in Jim Henson's backyard as a test to see how the puppets would look in the real world outside of a sound stage. The intention was to shoot the special on location.[3] In 2014, "The Musical Monsters of Turkey Hollow" was adapted into a graphic novel.[4]

When Turkey Hollow went into production, the original puppets in storage were refurbished by Jim Henson's Creature Shop with their designs updated by Robert Bennett (the winner of Jim Henson's Creature Shop Challenge) and Peter Brooke, the fabrication done by Julie Zobel, and the animatronics provided by John Criswell as seen in the Google+ Hangout tour.[5] Principal photography was set to begin in the spring of 2015 in Nova Scotia, Canada.[6] Because of a new tax credit, production on the special moved to Front Street Pictures in Vancouver where filming began on June 8, 2015.[7]

Release

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Turkey Hollow was later released on Disney+ on February 10, 2023.[8]

Reception

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It has a score of 50 out of 100 on Metacritic based on 5 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews"[9] and 60% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 5 reviews with an average rating of 6.1/10.[10] Variety awarded it a mildly positive review, saying "this Lifetime movie turns into a passable family adventure, showcasing the Henson Co.'s trademark creature designs while inoffensively building a new holiday-friendly legend around them."[11] The Hollywood Reporter awarded it a mixed review, and was particularly critical of the lack of screen time for the puppets, saying "However, if you want to watch two amiable but unremarkable child actors meander Muppet-less through the woods while their father does paperwork and Ludacris reads cue cards in a shawl-collar sweater I can only describe as glorious, you may have found a new Thanksgiving tradition."[12] Collider awarded it three of out five stars, saying "Mostly though, Turkey Hollow is just fine. It's family-friendly and has enough humor and delight to potentially appeal to anyone gathered around the TV over Thanksgiving. The cast is cute and likeable, and a romantic subplot for the older set is a unique change of pace."[13] The A.V. Club also awarded it a mixed review, saying "The film isn’t going to improve the reputation of the Thanksgiving TV special, but it's definitely something that can play in the background of a family gathering, piquing someone's interest every 20 minutes or so."[14] The Los Angeles Times gave it a positive review, writing "Overall, this is smart, solid whole-family entertainment, modest in its ambitions yet far above the run of made-for-TV holiday yuck you will be offered in the weeks ahead."[15]

The film's premiere drew 1.6 million viewers and a 0.39 demo share.[16]

References

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  1. ^ "Mick Giacchino Scoring Lifetime's 'Jim Henson's Turkey Hollow' | Film Music Reporter". Archived from the original on 2016-02-19. Retrieved 2016-05-16.
  2. ^ Manhattan Research, Inc. book, chapter by Karen Falk and Irwin Chusid.
  3. ^ "The Jim Henson Company". The Jim Henson Company. Archived from the original on 2015-11-17. Retrieved 2015-11-19.
  4. ^ "Old Henson creatures come alive in 'Turkey Hollow'". USA Today. 2014-06-04. Retrieved 2015-11-19.
  5. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Maker Camp Field Trip: Creature Shop!". YouTube. 15 August 2014.
  6. ^ "Jim Henson film first of many to leave Nova Scotia thanks to tax credit cut: John Dunsworth | Metro News". Metronews.ca. 2015-04-13. Archived from the original on 2015-11-18. Retrieved 2015-11-19.
  7. ^ "Cameras set to roll on 'The Musical Monsters of Turkey Hollow' in B.C. - BC". Global News. 2015-06-02. Archived from the original on 2015-10-19. Retrieved 2015-11-19.
  8. ^ Carpenter, Michael (January 30, 2023). ""Coming to Disney+ in February 2023"". Rutherford Source. Archived from the original on November 13, 2023. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  9. ^ "Turkey Hollow Metacritic listing". (http://www.metacritic.com/tv/jim-hensons-turkey-hollow). Metacritic. Accessed 6 July 2016.
  10. ^ "Turkey Hollow Rotten Tomatoes listing"(https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/jim_hensons_turkey_hollow/ Archived 2016-05-04 at the Wayback Machine) Rotten Tomatoes. Accessed 6 July 2016.
  11. ^ Lowry, Brian, November 18, 2015, "TV Review: ‘Jim Henson's Turkey Hollow’". Variety. Accessed 6 July 2016.
  12. ^ Fienberg, Daniel, 11/20/2015, "'Jim Henson's Turkey Hollow': TV Review" (http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/jim-hensons-turkey-hollow-tv-842511 Archived 2016-04-05 at the Wayback Machine). The Hollywood Reporter. Accessed 6 July 2016.
  13. ^ Keene, Allison, November 19, 2015, "‘Jim Henson's Turkey Hollow’ Review: A Family-Friendly, Old School Creature Feature" (http://collider.com/jim-hensons-turkey-hollow-review-lifetime/ Archived 2016-05-12 at the Wayback Machine). Collider. Accessed 6 July 2016.
  14. ^ Adams, Eric, November 20, 2015, "Jim Henson's Thanksgiving leftovers are reheated in Turkey Hollow" (http://www.avclub.com/review/jim-hensons-thanksgiving-leftovers-are-reheated-tu-228627 Archived 2016-05-16 at the Wayback Machine). The A.V. Club. Accessed 6 July 2016.
  15. ^ Lloyd, Robert, "Review 'Jim Henson's Turkey Hollow' serves up all the familiar holiday stuffing in a solid, smart way" (http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/tv/la-et-st-turkey-hollow-review-20151121-column.html Archived 2016-07-08 at the Wayback Machine). The LA Times. Accessed 6 July 2016.
  16. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (November 24, 2015). "UPDATED: EXPANDED SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Saturday Cable Originals & Network Update: 11.21.2015". ShowBuzzDaily. Archived from the original on November 25, 2015. Retrieved July 19, 2017.
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