Timeless Turtles: Why the Original TMNT Movie Still Holds Up
We all have our comfort movies. Things we put on during a rainy day, watch when we’re feeling down and trust to leave us better than when we started. From childhood favorites to notable disasters, all are beloved just the same. Which is why after a recent screening of Steve Barron’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990) I was gleefully transported back to my youth. As a kid, TMNT more or less consumed mine and my older brother’s identity. Toys, pajamas, bed sheets, Christmas tree ornaments - anywhere we could show our love for the Heroes in a Half Shell, we did. So, when my oldest friend asked me to see this shared favorite on the big screen at the Cinema Arts Center in Huntington, New York, I had only two words: Cowabunga dude. It was the same old movie I knew and loved as a kid, and more. When the lights came up and the credits rolled, I left overwhelmingly surprised at how well the film still holds up today.
This movie went on to make $202 million on a $13.5 million budget making it the most successful independent film up to the point of its release. By today’s standard, that is less than a fraction of what modern intellectual property franchise movies budget are. Most notably for the movies from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Whether you love it or hate it, there is no denying that the MCU has been one of the most influential cultural tentpoles of the last 15 years in terms of franchise entertainment, and I understand and respect how much work and thought goes into making those movies. However, I also think it’s fair to say, as a consumer, what we have seen from Marvel Studios Phase 4, with exceptions to Spiderman: No Way Home and maybe Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, along with other studios focusing on similar franchises has been a bit of a recession. The original TMNT movie, a franchise movie, came out before franchise entertainment would dominate the Hollywood landscape, and well before the highly advanced filmmaking technique used in today’s franchise movies were as accessible as they are now. So why was TMNT so much more enjoyable this time around? And why does the film still work 32 years later?
For starters, the movie cruises through its tight 93 minute runtime. We are thrust into the world of the film right away by being caught up to speed on the mysterious crimes and thefts happening across New York City via news report delivered by April O’Neil, played Judith Hoag. And as soon as that is over, she is rescued from a group of thugs trying to jump her outside of her news van. Under the cover of the night we learn that it was Leonardo, Michelangelo, Donatello and Raphael who sprang into action. When they return to the sewer, we’re officially introduced to each turtle and gain a complete understanding of each of their characters. Leo, the natural leader. Mikey, the youthful funny guy. Donnie, the methodical brainiac. And Raph is the broodingly fierce brother, fueled by his emotions. Very cleanly, we are given all of this information within the first five minutes of the film. There is no drawn out exposition or overly complicated backstory that the film needs to catch us up to speed on. Albeit, it is just a children’s movie but, technically, so is Eternals (2021), which, in my opinion, was asking for a lot from its prologue. Nevertheless, every beat of the film feels like an intentional element used successfully to move the story forward. Its scenes are purposeful which keeps the movie well-paced as the don’t ever feel like they are lingering on. By the time a scene ends, you are ready to see what is going happen next.
One thing that you are pretty much guaranteed when watching an intellectual property franchise film, such as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, is great attention to detail. In most cases, it is so good that you don’t even notice it’s there because it is so cleverly used in a way that feels natural within the world of the film. This is no exception. Several times throughout the film, there are call backs to the lore of the Turtle’s original cartoon. Some examples include April’s bright yellow raincoat when we first see her - a nod to her famous yellow jumpsuit. Then, we see the Turtle’s, Casey Jones and April pile into a VW van to escape April’s burning apartment from the Foot Clan raid, the VW van alluding to the Turtle Van, better known as the Party Wagon. But my personal favorite is when Raphael puts on his “Bogey” fedora and long tan trench coat human disguise so he can take a walk above the sewers on the city streets which is pulled straight from the cartoon. Not only are these fun details to pick up on while watching the movie, but they are, more importantly, not distracting from the story. They are very brief call backs to their source material that only help us buy into the movie more because they are used as devices to tell the story. They help create a contained world.
One of my favorite things about this movie is how tangible it looks. Credit has to be given to production designer, Roy Forge Smith, art director, Gary Wissner, and the Jim Henson Creature Shop in London for making every part of this movie feel real. Smith and Wissner masterfully create an authentic look and feel of New York City without even spending too much time on the streets. Most of the time we are exploring through the sewers, which look amazing, hiding in warehouses, hanging out at April’s apartment or fighting on rooftops. The New York we are shown has a smoggy, grungy crowdedness to it that elicits what the city really was like at the time of the making of the film. It does such a good job with capturing the city’s essence in the early 90’s and it’s early displays of youth counter culture. And the fact that the Jim Henson Creature Shop was behind the making of the turtle costumes should speak for itself. These suits are feats of engineering for their time that still look incredible today. A number of suits were made with some being lighter for the stunts and fighting sequences while others were more detailed for the actual performances that were controlled by technology placed in the turtles’ heads and shells. If you want to learn more about the turtle suits, I recommend Cosplay Chris’ Youtube video that goes into much more detail. Nonetheless, everything about this movie feels real simply because it is. On this rewatch, I never stopped and thought I was watching men in bulky costumes doing karate. Even though that was what I was actually watching, they always felt real and delivered great performances. The way they interreact with each other, the other characters and their environments makes you buy into the world you are watching so much because everything you are seeing is physically there. Each actor’s performance is stemmed from reacting and experiencing something that was actually in front of them. They believe the thing they are seeing is real and we, the viewers, can feel that. Their investment becomes our investment. This movie is a perfect example of how well practical effects can pay off in the long run.
In today’s world of franchise IP entertainment, there is such a reliance on CGI to pull a lot of the weight for their movies. Yet, I would argue, it is easier to be taken out of those more recent films because today’s CGI and digital visual effects are used more for spectacle than for narrative when they should be used to enhance both. We all want to witness impossible worlds come to life. Today, it is so easy to make that happen with where we have gotten with digital technology, but they still need to look believable and uphold the rules of the world we are investing in. Physics should be consistent. In 1990, CGI was not at the point it is today when Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was made. The filmmakers had no choice to make everything practically, but it is clear to see beneficial they have had on the legacy of the film. People are still interested in this movie and use it as the point of reference for the Ninja Turtles in the movies, unlike the rebooted films from 2014 and 2016 which heavily relies on CGI. Obviously, CGI shouldn’t be eradicated from the movies but I believe it needs to be used more thoughtfully to serve them rather than being foundational to what makes the movie what it is. That is unless it is going to be a consistent storytelling too like it was recently seen in Avatar: The Way of Water.
After coming out from this particular viewing of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, my biggest take away was how relevant its themes are to today’s world. It touches on a lot like brotherhood and family, forgiveness, hope and identity. But what stuck out to me the most was how the film defines masculinity through empathy. Raphael is known for his “cool but rude” personality, but it goes much deeper than that in the movie. After spending so much time with Raphael for the first half of the film, we learn how hyper emotional he is. Whatever he is feeling, it is dialed up to 110%. We can see how frustrated he is after losing his sai, and how distraught he is after Splinter is kidnapped. However, his emotionality is derived from how much he cares about being the best ninja he can be and his affection for Splinter. He comes across as tough to hide it, but his empathy for his family and friends is somewhere deep inside his shell. He eventually realizes his irrational behavior was coming from his inability to control his feelings which he is then able to channel to focus on rescuing Splinter – a very well crafter character arc. If we look at the Shredder’s character, he is also a depicts conventional masculinity but derived from fear, anger and revenge. He only cares about manipulating young boys to join his clan of Foot Ninjas and carry out crimes at his will. Ultimately, his inability to connect with himself, his emotions and others is what brings him to his demise by the end of the film. Whereas Raph’s hyper masculinity comes from a place of empathy because there is sincere intent behind it. He wants to save his father figure with his brothers. I commend this films ability for its portrayal of toxic masculinity because it effectively shows how damaging it can be to oneself and the others around them, while also showing the great things that can happen after growing through it.
Finally, I must admit that nostalgia played a major role in this particular viewing experience. As I mentioned, I went to this particular screening with one of my oldest friends, who also happened to have been raised on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. It was foundational to our friendship. As time would pass, he and I would go on to run in different circles and would be in and out of touch with each other. Being that this is a childhood favorite of both of ours, we knew we had to see this movie together when we heard it was playing. It is safe to say that our love for TMNT has once again rekindled our friendship. I couldn't help but be transported back to when we were kids watching this on VHS in our basements during a sleepover. This isn't by any means a perfect movie but I do think that it has a lot more going for it today than people give it credit for, especially for a children's movie. It’s quick, funny, immersive, looks incredible, a beautiful relic of the early 90’s and, above all, a great ride from start to finish. Turtle power.