Everyone has had their very own chance to be introduced to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Some met them in their original comic books from Mirage Studios, many watched the original animated series, where our heroes in a half shell were brought to life in a brand new way, and different films (both live-action, animated and a hybrid of the two) and new series have kept them in the limelight for nearly 40 years. Their latest film, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, maybe the one project that brings all of the fans, no matter when they came into the fold, together.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem comes from the minds of superstar writer/producer duo Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg (Superbad, Neighbours, Sausage Party) alongside co-writers Dan Hernandez and Benji Samit (Pokémon: Detective Pikachu) and is Directed by the team of Jeff Rowe (Who also has a writing credit) and Kyler Spears (The Mitchells vs. The Machines).
The all-star cast is led by Nicolas Cantu (The Walking Dead: World Beyond) as Leonardo, Micah Abbey (Cousins For Life) as Donatello, Shamon Brown Jr. (The Chi) as Michelangelo and Brady Noon (The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers) as Raphael with Ayo Edebiri (The Bear, Big Mouth) as April O’Neil and the legendary Jackie Chan as Splinter. Rounding out the cast is a who’s who of big names, including Paul Rudd, Giancarlo Esposito, Ice Cube, Maya Rudoolph, Rose Byrne, Seth Rogen, John Cena, Post Malone and Hannibal Burress.
“The animation style in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem seeks to set itself apart.”
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, surrounds our favourite reptiles attempting to find their place in the world as they come of age, wishing to be a part of the bigger world above their home in the sewers. In this iteration of their story, Splinter plays more of the role of the overprotective father amongst the four teens who are testing their own limits as both teenagers and ninjas. It’s during one of their trips to the surface that they encounter a teen reporter for her high school newspaper, April O’Neil and are brought into a larger plot wherein a small group of mutants, led by the Ice Cube-voiced Superfly, seek their own permanent place in the world.
The animation style in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem seeks to set itself apart. It sits somewhere between stop-motion and sketch drawing and has a distinct flow that is purposefully not smooth. It is reminiscent of what the Spider-Verse movies are trying to accomplish, ensuring their style is as different from the mainstream as possible. The design of the Turtles is good because the four characters are distinct enough that you don’t need the colour-coded masks and initiated belt buckles to tell them apart, but they are still there because… branding.
The choice of the villains used in the film is particularly special to the nostalgic among us, where names like Mondo Gecko, Genghis Frog, Leatherhead, Wingnut and Ray Fillet come into the picture, as many of these characters’ original figures in the 90’s were a part of my toy collection. Still, the story is up to date so that new audiences can experience them all for the first time without the need for context.
The writing in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem is aimed at, well, it isn’t really aimed at all. The story and humour are spread like a sprinkler to hit every single member of the audience. I experienced the film among families, including my own wife and children, and the laughs were coming often, no matter the age or gender of the audience member.
“If you are looking to see this as an adult, you won’t be the only one there without kids. This is a true movie for all audiences.”
Hearing men in their 40s geeking out about the lore, along with a 6-year-old excitedly telling her father that she couldn’t wait to see Raphael, left me confident that this movie would satisfy fans both young and old. More importantly, if there are concerns that Rogen and Goldberg, creators of many R-rated content, including the raunchy animated film Sausage Party, made something inappropriate here, you needn’t worry. This movie is made for kids, without excluding adults’ enjoyment. I’m not saying it’s a children’s film that adults will merely tolerate. Adults will laugh out loud at this movie just as much as kids will love it.
Without spoilers, I loved story points, including controversial choices regarding who was (and who wasn’t) included in the movie and some interesting twists regarding the characters and their motivations. But there were also points that I didn’t love as much, including some origin story issues that I had that didn’t align with older projects, but it wasn’t enough to make me fall out of love with the film.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem hits theatres on Wednesday, August 2 and if this is a movie that your kids are looking to see, consider yourself blessed. If you are looking to see this as an adult, you won’t be the only one there without kids. This is a true movie for all audiences.
