Review: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

BY JACOB FERREIRA

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is a phrase that brings back all sorts of fond memories to people of all ages. The recently released TMNT movie however will not be a fond memory.

The essence of the turtles themselves was captured perfectly. Each of their distinctive personalities and habits were spot on (most notably, Johnny Knoxville’s voice as Leonardo) and probably the best part of the movie. The only issue is that they were given barely any screen time at all. Whenever they appeared, it was like a breath of fresh air in comparison to the movie’s abysmal plot, but as the movie’s only saving grace, however, they fail to make a real difference. A more apt title to the film would be “Megan Fox Tries Acting and Ninja Turtles Appear Sometimes”. Despite the movie being named after the turtles, eager reporter April O’Neil (Megan Fox) takes center stage, along with her socially awkward cameraman, Vernon Fenwick (Will Arnett). While Fox unsurprisingly has terribly poor acting, Arnett’s character is painfully unfunny. Whether the actor or the script is to blame is not clear. Either way, this glaring problem may have been easier to look past if the movie had made the stars of the movie the characters it was actually named after.

The story’s protagonists weren’t the only ones with faults though. The villains of the film, the Foot Clan and their leader, The Shredder, are incredibly one dimensional with their generic plot to take over the world, which can somehow can achieved by simply mutating the population of New York City. Another thing to note is that Shredder himself has been transformed into the equivalent of an evil and hardcore Edward Scissorhands. This new depiction is a pretty large deviation from his standard design and can seem a bit ridiculous to certain viewers, but it isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The target audience of kids and preteens may love it just as much as older die-hard TMNT fans hate it.

Produced by Michael Bay, the film still follows his standard formula of 90% explosions and 10% generic plot. Director Jonathan Liebesman just comes across as a mini Michael Bay. If you want to enjoy a smart film with a great story featuring the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, then this movie is the last thing you want to see, but if you enjoy movies like Transformers that are filled with cool robots and monsters, eye candy, and over the top explosions, then you’re in for a treat.