"Turtle Power..."
I am an 80's and 90's kid. I grew up yelling "Cowabunga" and having pretend fights with the Foot Clan. My love of pizza was only furthered because of my love of Leonardo, Donatello, Michelangelo and Raphael. I even joined the Burger King Kids Club just so I could get my hands on the exclusive Ninja Turtles VHS tapes. So when the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles came to the big screen in 1990, I was ready to be dazzled. At the ripe ol' age of five, my every dream came alive on the silver screen.
Fast forward to 2014 and I am now pushing 30 years of age and getting just as excited to see the new Michael Bay produced, Jonathan Liebesman directed, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT). Launching after a wave of bad press due to them being changed to aliens (then back), issues with the turtle's look and most recently the upset surrounding their Australian poster; I was holding my expectations pretty low. I am happy to say I was pleasantly surprised.
By no means is this the evolution of cinema as we know it. It won't win any awards for the best acting (by the human components) nor will it go down as the best film ever created. You know what? I am okay with that. In the end I went into the movie expecting to be disappointed and came out pretty happy. I found the 101 minute film to be full of nods to the previous films and television shows. Even the into is a throwback to the original comic series. I was filled with equal parts adrenaline, excitement and nostalgia throughout the movie.
The first thing I noticed while watching the movie was how the turtles were kept hidden for roughly the first 15 minutes or so. While some movies *cough GODZILLA cough* can take over an hour to finally allow viewers to see the namesake character(s); TMNT holds out just long enough. Once finally unveiled, the movies kicks into overdrive. The turtles are bigger than any previous incarnation and look to stand well over six feet. The size alone isn't the only change. Now each turtle is given personality in their unique look. For example, Michelangelo embraces his surfer inspiration by wearing sea shell necklace. Leonardo on the other hand rocks some make-shift armor that is adorned with a New York City button. It is the little touches like this that I enjoyed. Also, I appreciate that each brother had their own body type. From the tank-like Raphael to the slim and meek Donatello, each of the four were easily distinguished.
On a more technical level, the motion capture and CGI for the brothers (and Splinter) is amazing. The level of detail found on their skin and fur to be extremely well done. While I am on the topic of Splinter, I found him to be a tad to rat like. Yes, that is an odd thing to say since Splinter IS a rat, yet I found those features to stand out. As for the design choices regarding the turtles, I honestly didn't mind. Give them lips and a nose; didn't bother me. What mattered to me was their personality; something each turtle had in droves. Each of the four retained their signature style and that was something that pleased me greatly.
While the look and technical specs of the movie made pleased me, the story and human element left something to be desired. The plot of the movie, which I will not spoil here, is something we have seen a million times over. Heck, I even called the resolution about midway through the film. But again, I stress, don't expect an Academy Award winner here. Megan Fox's April O'neil and Will Arnett's Vernon Fenwick are alright. Not the best acting I have ever seen, but certainly not the worst. To be fair, I was actually surprised at how much I like Fox's version of April.
With every hero story, you need an equally great villain. TMNT had two, neither of which I thought were any good. William Fichtner's character, Eric Sacks, is a one dimensional and stereotypical bad guy. He kind of reminds me of Bill Gates if Gates had decided to go insane and take over New York. Shredder, the turtle's longstanding nemesis, is a one trick pony. What you see in the third trailer is almost all he does. He is a like a Samurai Swiss Army knife. By the third time he pulled out ALL his blades I was thinking "Oh come on now, we have already seen this."
When all was said and I came out and was happy that I had seen the film. Was it original? Not really, no. Was it the best movie I have seen this year? Nope (that honor goes to Guardians of the Galaxy so far). Did I have a good time? Yes, yes I did. It is by no means perfect, but it is one hell of a fun ride.
SIDE NOTE: Don't see it in 3D. It isn't worth the upcharge and the fight scenes are almost unwatchable due to the quick cuts.
Rating: 7 / 10
Fast forward to 2014 and I am now pushing 30 years of age and getting just as excited to see the new Michael Bay produced, Jonathan Liebesman directed, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT). Launching after a wave of bad press due to them being changed to aliens (then back), issues with the turtle's look and most recently the upset surrounding their Australian poster; I was holding my expectations pretty low. I am happy to say I was pleasantly surprised.
By no means is this the evolution of cinema as we know it. It won't win any awards for the best acting (by the human components) nor will it go down as the best film ever created. You know what? I am okay with that. In the end I went into the movie expecting to be disappointed and came out pretty happy. I found the 101 minute film to be full of nods to the previous films and television shows. Even the into is a throwback to the original comic series. I was filled with equal parts adrenaline, excitement and nostalgia throughout the movie.
The first thing I noticed while watching the movie was how the turtles were kept hidden for roughly the first 15 minutes or so. While some movies *cough GODZILLA cough* can take over an hour to finally allow viewers to see the namesake character(s); TMNT holds out just long enough. Once finally unveiled, the movies kicks into overdrive. The turtles are bigger than any previous incarnation and look to stand well over six feet. The size alone isn't the only change. Now each turtle is given personality in their unique look. For example, Michelangelo embraces his surfer inspiration by wearing sea shell necklace. Leonardo on the other hand rocks some make-shift armor that is adorned with a New York City button. It is the little touches like this that I enjoyed. Also, I appreciate that each brother had their own body type. From the tank-like Raphael to the slim and meek Donatello, each of the four were easily distinguished.
 |
| Size comparison. Megan Fox is 5' 4". Raph is a giant. |
While the look and technical specs of the movie made pleased me, the story and human element left something to be desired. The plot of the movie, which I will not spoil here, is something we have seen a million times over. Heck, I even called the resolution about midway through the film. But again, I stress, don't expect an Academy Award winner here. Megan Fox's April O'neil and Will Arnett's Vernon Fenwick are alright. Not the best acting I have ever seen, but certainly not the worst. To be fair, I was actually surprised at how much I like Fox's version of April.
With every hero story, you need an equally great villain. TMNT had two, neither of which I thought were any good. William Fichtner's character, Eric Sacks, is a one dimensional and stereotypical bad guy. He kind of reminds me of Bill Gates if Gates had decided to go insane and take over New York. Shredder, the turtle's longstanding nemesis, is a one trick pony. What you see in the third trailer is almost all he does. He is a like a Samurai Swiss Army knife. By the third time he pulled out ALL his blades I was thinking "Oh come on now, we have already seen this."
 |
| Splinter meets the Swiss Army version of Shredder. Does he come with a toothpick too? |
SIDE NOTE: Don't see it in 3D. It isn't worth the upcharge and the fight scenes are almost unwatchable due to the quick cuts.
Rating: 7 / 10
No comments:
Post a Comment