The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles we loved from the early 80’s made a comeback in their hot new film that released on August 8, 2014. There’s something different about our friends Michelangelo, Donatello, Raphael, and Leonardo, though. They have a new, fiercer, rougher look that doesn’t quite ring the same bell. My initial reaction was disgust- “these aren’t the same awesome dudes I loved as a kid!” But after seeing the movie I agreed that director Jonathan Liebesman did a tremendous job bringing back our heroes in a half shell.
The new CGI technique used in many recent films has created such a new feel to so many classic movies. The turtles we all know and love went from fun and cute to intense and action packed- but all in a good way. They started off as undetailed cartoons, and in 1990 Michael Bay created a live-action version with men in turtle suits. Many critics slammed Bay and rejected the movie altogether, claiming it wasn’t the same. (I liked those ones… but maybe that’s just me.) Many people feel the same way about this year’s new edition. All in all, the TMNT have evolved ever since their creation. While some people still disagreed with the CGI, I think it was a smart choice. Instead of going for the same old look, Liebesman gave the turtles a whole new look for a whole new generation of TMNT fans.
When it comes to the origins of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, there are many different stories. Some say Splinter, the rat-mentor of the gang, learned the ancient art of ninjitsu by mimicking his owner, then later found the turtles and raised them as his sons. Another version says Splinter ran away, and the turtles fell into the sewer where Splinter found them. However, in the 2014 film, a science laboratory based in New York City is working on a top secret project called “Project Renaissance.” They are forming a mutagen that can potentially save the world from various diseases and testing it on four baby turtles, all named after famous Renaissance artists. (I wonder who that is!) But when trouble breaks out between the co-founders of the lab, the lab catches fire. The project is destroyed and the turtles are saved by April O’neil, daughter of one of the scientists, who puts them in the sewer.
Fifteen years later, April O’Neil is a struggling journalist working for Channel 6 News. She is following a string of activity by the local Foot Gang that has been terrorizing the city. She comes face to face with the TMNT who have been secretly fighting back against the Foot- but no one believes her. In her fight to keep her story alive, and become a “somebody” in the news world, she remembers something about Project Renaissance. She later figures out that the turtles that she saved so long ago, on the night her father died in the fire, are now the vigilantes running around. On two feet. And can talk. And perform ninjitsu…
It turns out that Project Renaissance in fact was not totally destroyed- the last bit of the new mutagen is still living in the blood veins of the turtles, which has turned them into 6-foot ninjas. Shredder, leader of the Foot Gang, seeks the new mutagen. He is cohorts with Sacks, the co-founder of the lab with April’s father 15 years ago. They plan to release the mutagen into the city air, killing thousands. This is because Sack in turn plans to have his new company earn millions of dollars by supplying the only known cure to this pandemic.
April and the turtles manage to stop Shredder with the Aid of Vern, April’s camera man. April and Vern team up against Sack while Shredder is defeated by the turtles. In a cute moment, Raphael expresses his love for his brothers.
The entire movie consists of the original humor in the comic, with phrases like “KOWABUNGA!” and the beloved pepperoni pizza. It was an epic addition to the TMNT movie collection.
