If there is one movie that helped define my appreciation and love for movies it would be Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The very first movie I saw in theaters, it was a larger than life experience for me. I was only 7 years old when I was sitting in that uncomfortable chair, waiting for the big screen action to take place. I’m sure I was wearing my favorite Turtles shirt, possibly with matching shoes. I was a huge fan of the cartoon, and had every toy available that they’ve released. As the title screen played, my heart swelled. I was blown away by what I was seeing on screen. To me, those were the Turtles, living and breathing. The movie pulled at every one of my heart strings; the excitement of the battles, the laughter of the jokes, and even the sadness at the loss of a loved one. The first movie I saw and it had hit every emotional note. It would be a long while before another movie could affect me like this one. Heck, it’s hard to say if any movie could have the exact same response. I look back very fondly on that movie, and can watch it anytime. In fact, I’m watching it now as I write this article. I know there are far better movies out there, with high caliber acting, amazing special effects, quality writing and directing. But to me, one of the best films I have seen will always be Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The Turtles were created by Peter Laird and Kevin Eastman in 1984 as a comic book and has spawned into several highly successful cartoons, multiple video games, and a 4 film franchise. Even now, Kevin Eastman has a new monthly TMNT comic series with IDW and Nickelodeon announced plans of a new cartoon based on the Turtles that will begin airing this March 24th.
Now let’s relive the magic that is the Turtles. We start the movie with a narrative from a news anchor about the growing crime rate in New York City, while we see montage of crimes taking place. The news anchor, Ms April O’Neil, is leaving work and stumbles upon a group of thugs robbing her news van. They attack her but a sai flies through the air and shatters the street lamp. We hear a wicked battle and then it stops. The cops show up and find the thugs tied up. April sees the sai and grabs it before the mysterious hero is able to retrieve it. We meet our hero, actually heroes; Donatello, Michelangelo, Leonardo, and Raphael. Four anthropomorphic turtles who know karate and wield deadly weapons. As they celebrate, Raph hangs in the background, brooding. They meet their sensei, Master Splinter, a giant rat, literally, and regale him with their tale of victory. Raph confesses that, though they triumphed, he left a pivotal clue at the crime scene. Splinter assures him, through wise speech, everything is fine. Raph decides to go catch a movie, and leaves the sewers and actually goes and watches a movie. A six foot tall turtle walks around New York City. He then stops another crime but the thugs run away only to be stopped by a hockey mask wearing psycho named Casey Jones. He starts to beat on them but Raph stops him. The two exchange witty banter and a brief fight but the man runs way.
The turtles instantly fall in love with April O’Neil as they watch her report. April draws comparisons to the rash of crimes currently happening to a long lost ninja clan from Japan. This of course doesn’t go over well with her boss Charlie, or the captain of the police. She conducts an interview with the captain who cuts it short; assuring her there is no “mystical” ninja clan. April’s story hits a little close to home however, for the thugs responsible for the heist and four ninja clad assailants confront her at the subway. Before they can harm her, Raphael shows up and rescues her, the sight of which causes her to pass out. She meets the other turtles and master Splinter and they explain their origins. The turtles escort her home only to find in their absence that their home has been destroyed and Splinter is missing. Homeless and without their sensei, the turtles turn to April for help and she agrees to let them stay. She has a close call when her boss and his son Danny shows up at her house, but the turtles are masters of hiding. Danny spies a turtle but can’t find him. We find out that he is actually part of the “Foot” clan and meets with their master, Shredder, and informs him that he has seen the turtles, giving him their whereabouts.
Tensions heat up between Leo and Raph as to what course of action they should take regarding Splinter. Raph gets angry and leaves again (it’s a running theme). He goes to the rooftop but is attacked by ninja thugs. The fight spills into April’s apartment as Raph is left incapacitated. The three turtles fight off the mob but more ninjas show up. As they are greatly outnumbered, an unlikely ally appears, Casey Jones, and helps even up the odds. A fire breaks out and they are forced to leave. They make camp in April’s old farm house and wait for Raph to recover. Once all the turtles have regained their strength, they meditate in the woods and, in one of the most emotional scenes I’ve ever seen in cinema, Splinter appears to them and tells them they must continue their journey without him. Seriously, that is a heavy scene for a 7 year old to cope with. The turtles head back to the city and find Danny living in their sewer base. Casey spots him leaving and follows. The turtles are attacked again, but this time they were prepared. They defeat the ninja clan and take the fight to the streets. There they prepare for the final confrontation with Shredder, as Casey Jones tries to rescue master Splinter.
First off I must say I love this movie. I am watching it now as I type this and it takes me back to being that 7 year old boy in that big theater seat staring at the screen, mesmerized. Now having said that I can objectively criticize this movie, to an extent, and I must say the direction and cinematography is amazing. Directed by Steve Barron, the camera work blows away about 60% of the movies that pass for action films nowadays. The camera stays stationery when needed, and is on a tracking station when it needs to move. On to writing, and I must say the writing is well done for a film about giant turtles. The dialogue, although nothing Shakespearean, is very good. The jokes hit their mark more often than not, and the pacing is excellent. This movie never seems to drag. And finally the fight scenes, which again, blow most films that pass for action away. The fights are well choreographed and the stunts are excellent. The men in the suits move so fluidly, you wouldn’t think they were wearing 50lb turtle costumes. The costumes are well done, created by The Jim Henson Company, the mouths, eyes, and bodies all move convincingly. The music ranges from classical score, which is used effectively, to cheesy early 90s hip hop. If there is a real negative to this film it’s the soundtrack, although I do have Turtle Power in my playlist. The jokes as I mentioned are pretty good, and rather clever for a kid’s movie. It is clearly aimed at kids 8-13, yet we have topical jokes about homosexuality and immigration. I remember hearing the joke about the green card and thinking, “oh green card, because he is a turtle!” Now I watch it and am shocked they actually put this in the movie.
The Turtles were at the height of popularity when the movie came out, coming of the success of a new cartoon that was in its 4th season, and a popular comic book that was still in publication. The movie pulled elements from both sources. The acting, if anything, could probably be picked apart. The voice cast does a great job with the turtles and Splinter, even with Corey Feldman voicing Donatello. Casey Jones is pretty one-note as a character but Elias Koteas does a decent job. Judith Hoag portrays April O’Neil and for a role that fit the standard “damsel in distress” model, she adds a nice character to it and never appears too helpless. The amount of action in this film is staggering; the last about half hour is a giant fight scene, not to mention the 7 minute fight in the middle. It delivers everything fans of both the cartoon and comic would want from a Ninja Turtles movie. It was one of the most successful independent films released in 1990, grossing $201,000,000. The critics however, were not kind. The film has 44% rating at Rotten Tomatoes, which only tells me one thing; they need to lighten up! I could easily give this movie an 8 star rating, but that would be overly generous. So I can safely say it’s a 7 star movie, and recommend it to those who want to see giant turtles beating up ninjas while cracking wise.
Let us know how you liked the movie in the comments section below!
Tags: comic booked, Comic Books, Corey Feldman, Donatello, films, James Halstead, James Victor Von Halstead, Kevin Eastman, Leonardo, Michelangelo, Peter Laird, Rafael, Review, Spinter, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
About the Author
Written by James Victor Von Halstead
When not battling the forces of the undead you can find James at the local cinema watching whatever comic book inspired film that was just released, for the third time.
I remember watching it in the theaters too and it was jawsome! Raphael was always my favorite turtle. Great review!
Raphael was the man, but Donatello was my favorite. Mostly from the cartoon, because he was the “smart” one. It was really highlighted in the second movie.
This review said everything I would’ve wanted to about the film, and reasserted to me that its quality and staying power are indeed more than just nostalgia. Well done sir!
I had forgotten, until recently, how much of an impact this movie had on me. It was the first movie that my mother ever took me to (without my 3 sisters), and we were both surprised by its relative grit compared to the cartoon. I think it was the first time I’d seen a real attempt at character development in an action flick. If you think about it, Raphael is a very atypical action flick character. He’s uncertain, emotionally vulnerable, and is almost more self destructive than heroic. I mean, he is prominently shown to cry in the film. Not your usual cheeseball action movie.
You know, I just realized that this movie had a lot of teenage violence. When you think about it, most of the Foot Clan were teenagers. The turtles were beating up the youth of New York. That is a heavy message for a kid to process. Also,
“Ninja kick the damn rabbit!”
Go Ninja Go Ninja Go!