Review of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows (2016) by Jason S — 25 Sep 2016

Everyone loves a bit of nostalgia now and again. After screening Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows, I experienced something unexpected. For 97 minutes, the 90s were back, and though the characters were not in costume, presented as pure digital creation, the storytelling was unmistakable; hokey dialogue, absurd scenarios, laid-back directing and, most importantly, an emphasis on having fun.

By no means is the film you take in if you're looking for depth of character and a logical plot.

A sequel to the 2014 Nickelodeon Studios remake, the Turtles are living it up, fresh off their defeat of the Shredder and ready to take on the world, only doing so through under the cover of darkness. All seems right in New York City until the Shredder, along with two dimwit toughs, Bebop and Rocksteady, are freed by the Foot Clan from prisoner transfer officer Casey Jones. Despite the Turtles attempt to stop him, Shredder is teleported by crazed scientist Baxter Stockman, but is intercepted by the cruel, child-like alien brain Krang, who devises a plan to open a portal from his dimension to Earth. Shredder and Stockman mutate Bebop and Rocksteady using Krang's formula and begin to search the globe for the missing pieces of the machine required to bring the alien to Earth.

As you can tell, there are lots of moving parts (literally and figuratively) in this film. Several new, but fan favorite characters are introduced, among them the perfectly cast Bebop and Rocksteady (Whose Line regular Gary Anthony Williams and WWE star Stephen Farrelly) and the addition of Arrow star Stephen Amell, who takes on a new rendition of the hockey-mask vigilante Casey Jones. Amell almost seems out of his element at times, brandishing a smile and can-do attitude, unlike his gritty TV personality. Brad Garrett provides a throwback performance as the voice of Krang and Brian Tee takes over as a more menacing and believable Shredder. Even Tyler Perry manages to ham it up perfectly as Stockman, a geeky, deranged scientist not too far off from John Glover's brief Batman & Robin performance.

The Turtles themselves, met initially with mixed reactions from the first film, move fluidly and act naturally (or as natural as a six-foot bipedal turtle would) and provides four unique personalities within the team. Michelangelo and Donatello are given more of a spotlight in this second go-around, which can be a refreshing change from the constant Leonardo/Raphael feud, which is almost expected in any Turtles production. Meagan Fox continues her performance as April, bordering between hardened news reporter and part-time vigilante, along with the underused Will Arnett as Vernon Fenwick, the man given credit for saving the city last time (as the Turtles must remain, you guessed in, in the shadows) and Laura Linney (yes, that Laura Linney) as a determined police chief. Could you imagine the conversation between Linney and her agent: "Laura, now that you're finished promoting Downton Abbey and Masterpiece Theater, how about taking on a role in the Ninja Turtles sequel?".

This film will by no means make anyone's Oscar list (although the last one 'did well' as the Golden Raspberry Awards in 2014), but it's not meant to. This is a film that is purely made for the children in the audience and their parents who more than likely enjoyed the same concept so many years ago. Remakes are a tricky business; expectations of comic book characters are higher than ever, yet somehow the Turtles managed to fly under the radar and found a way to make a film that doesn't worry about shared universes and twelve sequels down the line. It offers itself as nothing more than what it is: a film about four mutant turtles that fight crime, both earthly and otherwise.

Let's face facts for a moment: the film has several flaws. The script jumps around, the acting is uneven and there's not enough room for all of the characters to flourish. That being said, for 97 minutes, it was a trip back to the childhood with enhanced graphics and a few modern references. The Turtles are just that; a throwback to a simpler time with an easy-going, fun-loving movie experience.