Growing up, I LOVED the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT). Every morning before school my younger brother and I would lay on the kitchen counter (yes, that's right lay) and watch the classic 80s cartoon. I specifically remember trying to win tickets to the Coming Out of Their Shells concert tour. I was 6, maybe 7 at the time.
I will never forget in 1990, when I was 9 years old, going to see the very first TMNT live-action move with my brother and my 18 year old cousin. My eyes were wide and my jaw dropped on that first wide angle shot of NYC.
Jim Henson's creature shop was at the forefront of puppet-tronics as they built the green suits actors and stunt men like Ernie Rays Jr. (Donatello) would wear to bring the turtles to life. And classic voices like Robbie Rist, Brian Tochi (Revenge of the Nerds), and Corey Feldman (Goonies) - there was so much to love. In short, my nostalgia runs very deep.
The new TMNT is nothing like that. I have very mixed feelings about it. Don't get me wrong, I'll buy it - and the soundtrack too...but mixed feelings nonetheless.
I saw the Midnight showing with my brother. Naturally. As many other reviews have been keen to point out - the graphics and animation detail were on par with Pixar or Dreamworks. Hong Kong Based IMAGI did an amazing job of backlighting a grim nighttime NYC. It was visually stunning and much darker - closer to the Turtle's roots.
Everything was what I expected, except for one thing: the plot.
Don't expect to see Shredder; something I am thankful for. Shredder is long gone and without the arch enemy, the movie lends it self to many other plot lines including the ever strong brother rivalry between Raphael and Leonardo. I was really glad to see Raph and Leo FIGHT (and I mean fight) like the Ninja they're trained to be. Would I be admitting I'm really a nerd if I said I might have gotten a little choked up when the climax of the fight is over and Leo's Katanas are shattered? (I'm still wondering if Raph really over powered Leo, or if Leo let him...)
Everything else in the plot, however, falls short. The opening scene was HORRIBLE plot-wise. Laurence Fishburn does the v-o and I kept thinking Morpheous. I half expected to hear Keanu Reeves next. In a script writing class, I learned that if there is another way to do expository information than by doing a voice over - you should avoid the voice over like the plague. I would have rather the movie started off with some action scene - like starting with the scene of Leonardo in South America or something not yet written would have been far better. Kevin Munroe should have spent less time trying to explain his villains and more time getting to the point. You don't need a lot of back story with superhero movies. Maybe by doing what Spiderman 2 (and probably number 3) did and have the re-cap of the previous illustrated within the credits LIKE a comic would apply here too... but really I could have come up with something more effective.
Will kids love it. Yes. Will 20 something Turtles fans enjoy it? More than likely. But could the plot have been stronger and could the screen play I wrote in 1995 and 1996 for a 4th Ninja Turtles film been more what fans might have been expecting - yes.
***SPOILER***
There will be a sequel. Kevin no doubt left room for that. So is it time for me to start dusting off that script and beating down the door at Mirage Studio to try and sell my screenplay? I think it is. ;)