This weekend sees the release of the new live-action
‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ film and as many of you are more than likely
aware by now, there has been quite a lot of controversy surrounding this film
pretty much literally ever since the project was first announced. First off,
the fact that it was to be produced by Michael Bay clearly must have had plenty
of TMNT fans worried after his work on the ‘Transformers’ movies. Of course we
all know how those films fared reviews-wise amongst critics and audiences. But
really, the fact that Bay was producing it (he wasn’t even going to direct it)
was relatively minor compared to the other major controversies that emerged
during the film’s production. There was the supposed change in the Turtles’
origin (as reported by Bay himself) in which they would be aliens. Then there
was the supposed leaked script which used that origin story and focused more on
the human character of Casey Jones than the actual Turtles themselves (which is
a problem that many people have had with Bay’s ‘Transformers’ films).
Ultimately, the alien ‘origin’ back-story was abandoned; however, the
controversy towards the film continued. It clearly must have reached its peak
when Megan Fox was cast in the major role of fearless reporter April O’Neil. In
other words, almost every major bit of news surrounding this film has faced
quite a large amount of scrutiny from TMNT fans.
But even though I’m certainly going to be in the minority on
this, I must say… I’m actually really looking forward to this movie. I mean I’m
kind of obligated to see the film anyway given that I did two separate posts on
the film during its pre-production period back in 2012 (one on the controversial
‘alien’ back-story in May and another on the ‘leaked script’ in September) but
I really think that this movie is looking really good. The second trailer that
was released is what sold me on it; it made the film look much more appealing
than what we saw in the first trailer. If anything, I’m hoping that this will
stay true to the essence of the franchise more than the ‘Transformers’ films…
and yes I’m saying this even though I’ve made it clear that I am a fan of those
films. However, if this new ‘Turtles’ film does suck, this time we can’t put
the full blame on Michael Bay because he didn’t direct it; he only produced it.
That’s like saying he’s the main one to blame for all of the horror remakes his
studio has made. Still, if Bay’s toughest critics do need something to fuel
their fire, I guess if the film doesn’t turn out that good we can blame him for
picking Jonathan Liebesman (a director who doesn’t really have that good of a
track record) to direct the film but that’s really about it.
But for now, before the new film comes out, today we’ll be
looking at the previous TMNT movies, which includes the original trilogy of
live-action films that came out during the 90’s and the 2007 animated film that
was supposedly going to revive the film franchise but it seems like that didn’t
really go too far seeing how this new film is now coming out. Plus, I’ll even
throw in a little bonus review of a made-for-TV TMNT film that was released a
few years ago. Now this is not going include much about any of the TMNT
television series that have come out over the years, which include the original
cartoon from the late 80’s, the incredibly weird live-action series titled ‘Ninja
Turtles: The Next Mutation’ which ran for one season in the late 90’s, the 2003
revival, and the recent computer animated series on Nick. That’s because, aside
from the last film I’m covering here, they really don’t factor that much into
any of these films. However, I will add that I did watch a few episodes from
both the 80’s and 2003 series before watching these films, which for the record
I had never really watched before now, so that I could be a bit more familiar
with the franchise. So with that said, it’s time to look back at the films
starring our favorite ‘heroes in a half-shell’; the Teenage Mutant Ninja
Turtles.
TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES (1990)
When the first live-action TMNT film came out, I’m guessing
that most of the TMNT fans at the time might have been expecting something that
was more in line with the animated series, which had just finished its third
season just a few months earlier. However, the film turned out to be something
a bit more mature than the cartoon. Instead, it is based more on the original
TMNT comic book series which, for the record, I haven’t read but I am aware
that it is much darker and more violent than the cartoon. As for this first
film, I have to say that I think it actually does hold up pretty well. The film
does a pretty good job of mixing the darker elements of the comics with some of
the more light-hearted elements of the cartoon. I mean, if you look at it
nowadays, the film isn’t really ‘that dark’. I mean sure, there are a couple
instances of mild language, easily the most infamous example of that being the
scene where Raphael just yells ‘DAMN!!!’ at the top of his lungs while chasing
Casey Jones through the city (I also want to use this time to point out my
favorite line in the film where Michelangelo and Donatello are watching a
cartoon and at one point Michelangelo says, ‘Ninja kick the damn rabbit!!’).
Also the film is a bit more ‘violent’ than the cartoon when it comes to the
action. Still, in retrospect, there have definitely been a lot of other ‘PG’
rated films that are much more violent than this one. In the end, this one is
pretty tame by today’s standards.'
Aside from that, the fight sequences are pretty good, which
actually does say quite a lot considering that some of the participants of
these fights are wearing giant turtle costumes. And on that note, the Turtle
suits, which were designed for this movie by Jim Henson, who of course many of
you will know as the creator of ‘The Muppets’, are also really good as well. I
mean, let’s be honest… this movie is fairly cheesy. This is a Teenage Mutant
Ninja Turtles film… that title alone should give you an idea of what kind of
movie this is. Is it perfect? No, not really but it’s still pretty entertaining
and the main edge that this film has over the other films in the series is that
it did take the bold route of staying more true to the original comics than the
cartoon and keep in mind, this was 1990, right during the peak of the franchise’s
popularity. I have the feeling that most TMNT fans at the time were more
familiar with the cartoon than the comics so hopefully this film might’ve made
those fans of the cartoon interested in the comics that started it all. So
overall, the original ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ film may not be a perfect
movie, but at the end of the day it is still the best of the original
live-action TMNT films. In fact on that note it’s also still the best TMNT film
period.
Rating: 4/5
TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES II: THE SECRET OF THE OOZE (1991)
So because the first ‘TMNT’ film was more dark and violent
than I’m guessing that many people were expecting, this led to some backlash by
parents which then resulted in the next film, ‘TMNT II: The Secret of the
Ooze’, which was released just one year after the first film, being much more
light-hearted than its predecessor. In this film, the Turtles rarely use their
actual weapons and the action is this film is much more comedic in tone… oh
yeah and to top it all off, Vanilla Ice makes a cameo where he does an
impromptu ‘Ninja Rap’ (‘Go Ninja, Go Ninja Go!’). In other words, this film is
clearly more oriented towards kids than it is towards adults. So for older TMNT
fans, I kind of feel that this movie isn’t really for you because it doesn’t
have the same edge that the first film had; whereas that film felt more like
the original TMNT comics, this one feels more like the cartoon. But really,
that’s not entirely a bad thing. The way I see it, for kids this film is pretty
harmless. It’s cheesy, playful fun and as one might expect from a Ninja Turtles
film, it doesn’t take itself ‘too seriously’. The action sequences are still
pretty good as are the Turtle costumes and this film even gives the group some
mutant enemies to fight, a key element of the cartoon. So if you’re a younger
TMNT fan, then I believe that you’re really going to like this film. However for
adults, your enjoyment of this film may vary.
Rating: 3/5
(just keep in mind that is in the perspective of its target audience)
TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES III: TURTLES IN TIME (1993)
First off I just want to note that the actual movie does not
have the subtitle ‘Turtles in Time’, which was also the name of one of the most
popular TMNT arcade games. That subtitle only became part of the title in
recent home video releases. As for the film itself, this is widely regarded as
the worst of the live-action TMNT films and after seeing it… I definitely agree
with that statement. Now I don’t know how much I can add to this discussion considering
that James Rolfe (AKA the ‘Angry Video Game Nerd’) did an excellent video
review for it a few years ago. But regardless of that, I will still note some
of the biggest problems that I had with the film. The whole idea of the Turtles
going ‘back in time’ is a fairly interesting concept but it’s not really done
well here. Now for the record I’ve never played the arcade game ‘Turtles in
Time’ but from what I can tell that game kept the characters in New York
whereas here they’re sent back to Ancient Japan. In other words, a good chunk
of the film really doesn’t feel a whole lot like ‘TMNT’. Not only that, but
early on Michelangelo is briefly captured meaning that there’s only about one major
fight sequence that involves all four of the turtles, which must have pissed
fans of the franchise, especially those whose favorite turtle was Michelangelo
(being that he is my favorite as well, I’m right there with them). In fact, there
aren’t even many action sequences in this film, so it kind of drags at points.
Instead of the filmmakers using villains from the cartoon
series like Krang or Baxter Stockman, they instead give us a rather generic
Japanese warlord and a kind-of out of place English trader. The dialogue is incredibly
cheesy, and while that is something to expect from this franchise, it comes off
way too cheesy in this film. Some of the jokes don’t even make sense and some
of the references come out of nowhere like a weird moment where Raphael
imitates Schwarzenegger by saying ‘I’ll be Back’ and another where Donatello
goes, “Were you expecting maybe the Addams Family?”. As for the Turtles
themselves, the costumes weren’t done by Jim Henson’s company this time and
because of that, they really don’t look as good as they did before. Also, the
dialogue doesn’t always sync up with their mouth movements. Now, I don’t think
that it’s all ‘that bad’ as I will admit there were a couple of funny moments
here and there but for the most part, this is a pretty weak sequel that really
doesn’t feel much like a ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ film. So overall this
is the one film in the franchise that I just can’t recommend because it truly
is the worst of the live-action ‘TMNT’ films.
Rating: 1/5
TMNT (2007)
So because the third Turtles film performed poorly with
critics and audiences, it ended up being the last live-action TMNT film until
the new reboot. In 2007, the film series was revived with the release of a
computer animated film simply titled ‘TMNT’. It performed fairly well at the
box office amidst mixed reviews and it seems like plans were set for this film
to get a sequel. However, that never happened hence the new film coming out
this weekend. But as for this film, overall I’d say that it’s a fun and
entertaining animated film and a fairly solid addition to the TMNT franchise.
However, at the same time, I can’t say that it’s ‘perfect’ as there are some
rather odd problems with it, most of them come from the overall story. Now I do
like the idea of the Turtles trying to reunite after they start to grow apart
but I’m not as crazy towards the main plot of the film, where they fight a
group of ancient warriors and a series of monsters. It’s like the third
live-action film; I really don’t see how this connects with TMNT. The opening
prologue that sets up the whole story feels more like ‘300’. Now I know that
there have been ‘strange’ plot-lines that have been done before in this
franchise, but why not do something connected to Dimension X, the alternate
dimension where one of the Turtles’ major villains, Krang, resides. In fact,
that whole concept has not even been done in any of the films. I’m not going to
say anything more about that but I’m kind of hoping that this new live-action
film series does something with that storyline.
Anyway, despite the rather odd, and sometimes occasionally
over-complicated, story, there are still some really good things about this
film. The animation is pretty good and the action sequences are fairly
well-done, even though they do sort of have a ‘video-game’ quality to them. The
voice acting is also pretty good with a cast that includes the likes of Sarah
Michelle Gellar, Chris Evans, Patrick Stewart, and the late Mako. Plus, when
the film does focus on the Turtles, this does feel like a TMNT film. So
overall, I’d say that young TMNT fans will like this movie; it’s colorful, fun,
and action-packed. As for the older TMNT fans, this is sort of similar to the
case of the second live-action film in that your enjoyment of the film may vary
but overall I’d still say that is an enjoyable and solid addition to the TMNT
franchise. However, it could’ve benefitted from a stronger story, one that
focused more on the Turtles themselves and not some fantasy storyline that
doesn’t really feel like something you would normally expect to see from this
franchise.
Rating: 3/5
BONUS REVIEW: TURTLES FOREVER (2009)
I’m finishing off this retrospective with a review of the
made-for-TV Ninja Turtles film, ‘Turtles Forever’. The main reason why this
film is so special is because it’s a big crossover event (released in 2009, the
year which marked the 25th anniversary of the franchise) between the
original 1987 TMNT cartoon and the more recent TMNT series from 2003 (this was
before the Nickelodeon series that debuted in 2012). It’s a film that I believe
will appeal to pretty much every major fan of TMNT as it pays tribute to
numerous interpretations of the franchise; they even feature the Ninja Turtles
from the original comic book series, which is pretty cool. It balances the
roles of the 80’s Turtles and the 2003 Turtles pretty well with a pretty
well-written story that doesn’t feel like it’s being done as a ‘cheap’
crossover. I will admit that I’m not that familiar with the 2003 series but you
don’t really need to be in order to enjoy this movie. You can clearly tell that
all of those involved with the project really worked as hard as they could in
order to make this special as good as it is. My only complaint, which is a
fairly minor one at that, is in regards to the voice acting for the 80’s
versions of the main characters. It’s not bad, but none of the members of the original
cartoon’s cast return for this, apparently because they were union actors
whereas 4Kids, the company behind the 2003 cartoon, is a non-union organization.
The actors who do portray the 80’s characters here do at least try their best
to try and imitate the voices of their predecessors but it is a little
distracting at times. Still, in the end, ‘Turtles Forever’ is a must-see for
any TMNT fan as it does an excellent job at paying tribute to this long-running
media franchise.
Rating: 4.5/5
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