Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Movie

Today, I saw “Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Movie,” which came out on Netflix last month, and I will let you know of this film. Bear in mind, I only saw the premiere with my brother, and we thought it was fine, but said it did look like it would be a good show. Just not something we wanted to watch every week.

Despite their popularity spike long before most of today’s teenagers were born, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles never really faded out. Michael Nordine said in his review, “We’re only six years removed from the most recent live-action film based on the pizza-loving reptiles, and it was just two months ago that a new TMNT video game was released.” Ant Wart and Andy Suriano’s film is based on the animated series that aired on Nickelodeon from 2018 to 2020. Despite doubtfully bringing any nostalgic fans of the series from late 80s, early 90s in the park, this film is a serviceable – if also forgettable – entry in this franchise.

Nordine noted, “It would be difficult to overstate how obsessed with ninjas and martial arts children were in the ’90s, with the franchise riding the same wave as “Mortal Kombat,” “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers” and the “3 Ninjas” movies. (That almost all of this was cribbed from Japanese pop culture didn’t occur to those of us who were kids at the time, of course.)” Most of the franchises continue, though the obsession they’re trending now is one of nostalgia – which, looked at from a certain angle, might be the most profitable and universal genre in existence.

Nordine mentioned, “To say that the plot of “Rise” borrows liberally from “The Terminator” would be putting it lightly; to assume that the film’s intended audience knows or cares would probably be wrong.” It starts in the war-torn New York City of 2044, where Masters Leonardo (Ben Schwartz) and Michelangelo (Brandon Mychal Smith) are so close to being murdered by an alien race known as the Krang that they do something desperate: open a portal and send longtime ally Casey Jones (Haley Joel Osment) back in time so that the disaster they’re facing can be stopped before it starts.

The problem with this isn’t that it’s unoriginal. It’s that, if only by benefit of being different from the wide range of “TMNT” franchise we’ve already seen over the last 30+ years, the future timeline is more compelling than the one we get. Nordine said, “Michelangelo and Leonardo have advanced abilities we’ve never seen from them before, laser blasts and explosions blanket the battlefield, and there’s an immediate sense of urgency that the rest of the film is sorely lacking. It’s downright apocalyptic, in fact, and feels moments away from utter ruin. “Middle-Aged Mutant Ninja Turtles” might not roll off the tongue as easily, but it probably would have been a better movie.”

That wouldn’t leave much time for fan service, however. What little we know of this future timeline tells us that there’d be no pizza for the ninja turtles to eat, not to mention few moments of humor when “radical” and/or “bodacious” would be appropriate to say. Nordine said, “The catchphrases and fun-loving air of these heroes in a half shell is a large part of their appeal, and “Rise” is careful not to deviate from a formula that’s kept the franchise at least semi-relevant for decades.” For the children this continuation of the Nickelodeon show is clearly targeting, that’ll probably be enough – never mind that it feels less like an actual movie and more like a “very special episode” of the series.

However, there are some differences that carry over from the show. Here, the brothers have actual mystic abilities along with their ninjitsu skills. Nordine noted, “they’re also more visually distinct from one another than usual, with Raphael (Omar Benson Miller) being much larger than his siblings and the ever-erudite Donatello (Josh Brener) donning a full face covering while bringing up concepts like the grandfather paradox to help his brothers understand time travel. But none of that prevents “Rise” from feeling samey. A longtime devotee such as myself would never suggest that it’s time for the ninja turtles to go away, but it might be time for them to grow up — if only just a little.”

Some of the differences here didn’t sit with me, but then again, changes happen with each installment. Raphael is apparently older than Leonardo, and is now the leader, since Leonardo is cocky, arrogant, impulsive, and too quick in reacting. Old school fans remember Leonardo being the eldest and having the leader qualities and Raphael being the hot-head, but this one seems to change it around. Still, I think this film was fine for what it was. If you’re an old-school Ninja Turtles fan, you may not get into this, but if you have kids who watched “Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles,” then you can put it on for them.

Thank you for joining in on my review tonight. Stay tuned next Friday for the continuation of “Starship Troopers Month.”