Movie Review 036 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Out of the Shadows [June 10 2016]

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Out of the Shadows [061016] 3.5/5

- 38%/ 54%, 6.3/10, 40, 5.7, wiki, official -

After facing Shredder, who has joined forces with mad scientist Baxter Stockman and henchmen Bebop and Rocksteady to take over the world, the Turtles must confront an even greater nemesis: the notorious Krang.

(Director David Green[Earth to Echo], Budget $135 Millions = Box Office $188.8 Millions [domestic], Duration 1hr 52mns, Rating PG-13, Genre - Action, Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy, TMNT Universe)

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~ Smartly shot with clear and hard-hitting action sequences with fun and vibrant set pieces involving thankfully mostly the turtles and their adversaries, with less realistic and more cartoony appearance  and improved animations as well as higher fidelity brought the CG counterparts to life 

~ A rather badly written script with a stitched together storyline, going almost all the way to the opposite end of the spectrum compared to the rather grounded take in the first movie with the storytelling level of the original cartoon's animated series, asking the viewers to have a higher suspension of disbelief and just go along for the ride without much explanation at all or just verbal exposition without any visual aid

~ Treading back the same water of the first installment with the same unfair and sexualized treatment of the beloved human characters (i.e. the heavily altered Casey Jones, the inexplicably sexy April O'neil and the underused Shredder), clunky adapting the original's cartoony and wacky concept more to the detriment of the overall experience

~ Inclusion of fan-favourite items and characters from the original franchise such as the Turtles Truck, their classic nemesis Bebop and Rocksteady and even Krang, complete with their trademark looks and much needed update when necessary although they were rather ham-fistedly fit into the movie as the latter being treated as a mere cameo

~ Much needed focus on the turtles themselves instead of the supposedly side characters with each of them being portrayed wonderfully by the motion capture actors as each of them have their own time in the spotlight to showcase their individual personalities and characteristics, with their adversary have the same treatment despite their short screen time

~ A cheesy and cliched throughline of the mutant brothers clashing against each other yet again but now about trying to blend in with the rest of the world, being supported only by their onscreen chemistry together and believable performances (a tall order coming from humanoid mutant turtles) although the surrounding silly if not asinine plot didn't do them much favours

+ Highlights: the turtle truck sequence which highlighted every turtle and even the truck itself, the delightful duo of Bebop and Rocksteady, the outrageous plane to river scene & the end fight with Krang despite its similarities with the one in the first film
- Lowlights: the sexualized April O'neil, the flawed Casey Jones, the short screentime of the criminal duo, the underutilised Shredder & the mere cameo of Krang