Review of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014) by Cinavenom — 10 Aug 2014

Let me first start by saying that I have been a fan of TMNT since the comic book, well before it was ever adapted to become the cartoon that most are familiar with and much before the first attempt at adapting TMNT into a movie.

I was entertained by the new adaptation.

What I really liked about this movie is that it held much closer to the original comic book than did the first movie adaptation (which I thought was horrible). It was dark just like the comic book. It had humor sprinkled through it, just like the comic book. I also loved the fact, as with the new cartoon, that Splinter is a bad dude instead of a weak and feeble old man like in the first movie. I mean the guy is a ninjitsu master sensei, they are typically pretty bad dudes right. I thought using CGI is a much better way to represent comic book drawings than the corny costumes they used in 1990 film. At first I thought the turtles looked a little silly but they grew on me thorough the film and I was quite pleased by the end.

What I didn't like about the movie was that the acting was sub-par. I realize the intent was never to have great acting when Megan Fox was cast as the lead. The story wasn't very captivating and deep so I wasn't glued to the screen like I would be in an amazing story. I thought that too much of the story was focused around April O'neil's character rather than the boys like it should have been.

This movie was for kids and now being a father and taking my son to these movies, I use a different barometer to rate kids movies and that is how much my son enjoys it. In his eyes, it didn't disappoint. He was quite captivated and he love the film...so I did too.

The new Turtles film is filled with great action scenes and CGI effects and is an entertaining summer blockbuster film but it does lack depth, character development and great acting, however, it is an entertaining film fit for young children. And as a long time fan of the franchise (30 years now), I am pleased with the result and am looking forward to the next one.