TMNT

By Ewen Hosie

Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird were two young comic book artists who conceived the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in 1984 as the result of a joke.

A pastiche of violent ninja comics that were in vogue at the time (see Frank Miller’s Ronin), mutant superheroes and the anthropomorphised misanthropy of Cerebus the Aardvark, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles exploded into a phenomenon. The precursor to similarly huge multimedia brands such as Pokémon or Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers, the Ninja Turtles were an interesting concept that ran out of steam.

This reboot, which moves at an admittedly breathless pace, is set a few years after the demise of the turtles’ main nemesis Shredder aka Oroku Saki. Taking a more mythological bent than before, an immortal industrialist (Stewart) is attempting to re-unite with the generals he led into battle 3000 years before, restoring their mortality by returning 13 creatures they unleashed from a portal to their rightful dimension (or so the laboured opening narration informs us).

Team leader Leonardo returns after a year-long absence, having honed his ninja skills travelling the world: Donatello now works as an IT consultant: Michelangelo also works, at kids’ parties under the pseudonym ‘Cowabunga Carl’, while Raphael retains his traditional angst, prowling the rooftops as the vigilante Nightwatcher.

The absence of Shredder has led to the inclusion of semi-replacement lady ninja Karai (Zi Yi), whose most memorable moment is a cringe-worthy allusion to future encounters with old enemies, suggesting Shredder (and sequels) will be on the way.

The biggest diversion from previous entries is the use of computer-generated animation instead of animatronics and puppetry in the creation of the TMNT universe. The leap in technology allows for breakneck camera movements that capture the dynamism and movement of the characters to impressive effect, but in the move to CG sacrifices weight and impact to the action sequences. The most expertly orchestrated of the film’s (many) set pieces is a rain-soaked battle between clean-cut sibling Leonardo and his younger, angrier brother Raphael which is skilfully handled.

Originality is not one of the film’s strong points, with its plot attempting to find a good balance of darkness and kid-friendly hi-jinks that fails to settle well. The dichotomy of tone is based on the fact that the source material by Eastman and Laird tracing back to the original comics is considerably bloody, but most who are familiar with the franchise remember it for its light-hearted Saturday morning cartoon. TMNT attempts to appropriate elements of both but it is a fairly unmemorable and unfortunate re-invention.

It may probably be best remembered as the last film appearance of Mako, having died upon completion of his voice work as the turtles’ wizened rat master Splinter, which, similarly to Orson Welles’ last appearance as a voice artist in Transformers the Movie, proves an unfitting epitaphs to an actor that deserved a better send-off.