The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have been very popular since the eighties. When growing up I watched the cartoons as well and even though I liked them I never bought the action figures. My pocket money went to the He-Man action figures and BraveStarr and after I stopped watching the cartoon I never checked out the turtles again. The characters were kept alive though in various new cartoon series and movies, but the image I have of them is still from the very first cartoons, where “Cowabunga!” was heard a lot.
This movie, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles can be seen as an origin story, so basically a reboot of the whole story. April O’Neil (Megan Fox) is the reporter who doesn’t seem to be able to report on any serious news stories and by accident discovers the mutated turtles, who look like steroids using fighting machines. It turns out she has known them from her youth and even was essential in them coming to life. The turtles keep appearing in the news as mysterious figures who are working against the evil Foot Clan. April O’Neil gets involved and finds out who’s responsible for some shocking event (besides the classic enemy Shredder).
My expectations about this movie weren’t very high in advance and unfortunately the movie even didn’t manage to meet those. Even though the movie is directed by Jonathan Liebesman, you can still sense the influence Michael Bay has had (who is the executive producer), which results in a lot of explosions and action without too much plot or character development. Megan Fox doesn’t convince in her role and doesn’t succeed in adding emotion to the events she experiences.
The turtles themselves were as I expected: real teenagers who regularly are wisecracking and are regularly responsible for funny moments (with my personal favorite being a beatbox session in an elevator). Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles brings spectacle, but the tone of the movie is all over the place. The result is a movie where you wonder who is the audience for this film. Is it the people who grew up with the cartoons or the current fans? No matter which one it is, the movie doesn’t succeed for either as it’s too violent for young kids and too light for adults.
I also like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles when i was a kid, rarely miss their cartoon shows. But the movie is not that good; it lacks something and doesn’t succeed to touch me at any scene. I think is hangs somewhere in the middle, not much childish and not serious. And the character of Megan Fox could be better. Overall it’s just a one-time watch at home.
Exactly, only saw it once at home and that was enough 🙂