The Other Superheroes: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

20th January 2011

Whenever I think of superheroes that don’t get enough praise and attention, I think of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. A lot of people I know would say “But they aren’t superheroes! they’re mutant turtles who know martial arts. They don’t have super powers!”. Well Batman doesn’t have any powers, yet he’s one of the most iconic superheroes ever.
Various comic book stars are ninjas and they can be considered superheroes. The X-Men are mutants, and they’re superheroes. And tons of teenagers have been putting on their capes and masks lately. So there we are, they’re teenagers, they’re mutants, they know the way of the ninja, and they’re turtles.

And, not to mention, adorable at times.

I remember absolutely adoring this movie as a child. Watching it now, as an adult, I notice things that I didn’t see before. The plot is highly intriguing to me, and it can even be quite emotional at times. The scene where the Turtles lose Splinter and go to April’s home surprised me, even today, with how the Turtles show their sadness in such a human way. Splinter himself is also quite interesting to watch. He may be a mutated rat, but he seems like the wisest being and most caring individual to the Turtles. He’s quite the Yoda to their Luke Skywalker.

The film, in my eyes, is a great comic book adaption. It captured the look and feel of TMNT and I had no trouble suspending my disbelief. What made it great was the amazing work done by Jim Henson and his Creature Shop. It’s no wonder why most people were disappointed that the more recent TMNT film was full CG. To watch the Turtles express themselves, talk, laugh, fight, and just interact is enough to watch the movie for. The fact that the story itself is entertaining is like a cherry on top of this pizza sundae (may not taste good but I have a quota for pizza jokes).

Donatello and Michelangelo, waiting for what they crave: Pizza. We have all done this.

The Turtles aren’t the only ones in this movie, though. We have April O’Neil played by Judith Hoag, who I don’t feel was very suited to the role, but interacted with the rest of the characters well enough. Then we have one of my favorites, Casey Jones, surprisingly played by Elias Koteas. I love Koteas, and seeing him in a young tough guy role straight out of a comic book is pretty funny, but he does it well.

I don’t think I’d want to see anyone else play that role. The scenes where he trades insults with the Turtles are a great laugh, and it’s good to see a vigilante who wears a goalie mask fight with sports equipment. I’d normally have to pay hard cash and go to some shady warehouse to see something like that, or just watch a game of Hockey. On the opposite side of the good guys, however, is Shredder, his right hand man Tatsu, and his Foot Clan. A nasty bunch who you really really REALLY do not want to bump into in a dark alley. Or a bright alley. Or anywhere, now that I think about it.

The Shredder, Tatsu, and the oddly named Foot clan. Don’t ask about the can opener helmet.

The story of the movie is that crime has been going up in the city. Thefts, muggings, and other devious behaviour is everywhere. April O’Neil seems to be the only one who is trying to bring the people behind it, the Foot Clan, to the attention of others. The Foot Clan is not alone however, as they’ve begun employing various rebelious teenagers (possibly the only bad thing about the movie) and turning them into criminals. Luckily, we have Turtles around to help people when in need. With Splinter’s guidance and wisdom, they do there very best to prove that they are ready to go out and do good.

The film was directed by Steve Barron, known for various music videos and the very entertaining mini-series such as Merlin and Arabian Nights. The music suits the film perfectly, having an odd but very pop music style feel for the time it was made. The writing is good, at times a bit too much like a story from a comic book, but nothing to complain about. As I mentioned earlier, the film looks great, and to this day it looks good enough to go up with modern movies. It really makes me wish movies would use less CG and more models and animatronics. Hopefully we’ll see that if they ever make another TMNT film, which rumors say will be happening. Warning: may involve Michael Bay. Sorry to ruin your day.

Donatello, Raphael, Michelangelo, and Leonardo aren’t happy about that, either.

If you haven’t given the film a watch, but you’re a fan of comedy, action, ninjas, comic books, mutants, turtles, or pizza, give the film a watch. You’ll be satisfied with it. It’ll leave you with a really happy feeling as the Turtles themselves really connect better with the audience than one would imagine. One scene that stuck out for me was a very sad and emotional scene where the Turtles sat around a fire and received a message from Splinter, the one person who means everything to them, who taught them, cared for them, loved them, and became their father. If that scene doesn’t make you feel something for these Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, I don’t know what will.

This review brought to you by Pizza. Glorious, glorious Pizza.

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