Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 1990

Talk about one of the best comics on-screen adaptation of all time. There are several iterations of the turtles; the Mirage version, the Fred Wolf one (developped even better in the Archie comic from what I hear. You tell me!), The 2003 ones etc... Much as I love re-imaginings and variety, the one that impressed me the most remains this movie's take on the 4 reptiles. It is simply the perfect version of the TMNT both in style and substance. The puppets put together are used so effectively that they made me look way past the fact that they were green rubber or fur.


- CHARACTERS :

* The Turtles :

Now I hear that some fans hated that they mixed aspects from the Mirage comics and the FW cartoon, which is silly because :
a) You have to wait for several issues before all 4 Turtles get distinctive traits. The FW cartoon for all its tongue in cheek wackiness gave us 4 different brothers right away (then again audio-visual mediums are helped by that...)
b) Much like comparing Nolan's Batman and the Adam West Batman, the FW Turtles are just as goofy as the Mirage ones. The former does not take anything seriously and has fun with it (despite the decline in quality that such a long show ends up suffering. My advice is that you should stick to the good/genuinely funny episodes and you'll be fine. The 2003 one suffered from the exact problem post season 4.) , the Mirage stories started with 4 interchangeable reptilian hardasses spouting Wolverinesque quotes and acting all teh serious(though they are still way above and far more likable than any post-2004 Wolverine I've read...) and they take quite some time (and many issues) to get properly intriguing. To me, both are campy as hell, no matter what Mirage hardcores might tell. I've read the Volumes and honestly only Mirage Vol 1 impressed me since, barring the guest issues, Eastman and Laird seemed to have a plotline with a nice start, middle and end. V2 and V4 ? The former was not all that tantalizing and seemed pointless and the latter (written by Laird only) , aside from Splinter's funeral, was not all that interesting (not even an ending at the horizon ? Bah...). And Image V3 ? The one with mutilations for 3 of our turtles ? It is actually better than I expected , but I still need to finish it before a proper verdict.

Case in point , perfection does not really exist BUT an ideal iteration CAN. And this is how our subject here, much like the BTAs and Burton Batman did, found the right balance between both versions (and eventually surpassing both). Here the turtles seem more like actual brothers than they do in much of the comics and I simply love all 4. They are not the Mirage made-for-revenge killers or the FW wacky fun-loving heroes, they are survivalits first and foremost. They know they have to live as outcasts and steal to survive... but at the end of the day, they are a family.

- Leonardo

I actually enjoy the fact the fact that they didn't go "Leo dah almighty leader" on us (mistake that the 2007 CGI TMNT movie made...).He definitely felt like the wise oldest brother, he is level-headed and clearly the most dedicated to their ninjutsu training (which says a lot) but he also loves to joke around with his brothers and slice pizza with his katanas (though he has to train a little more on that part... kids.).
Best Line ? "We had our first battle Master Splinter, but we kicked, uh, I mean, we fought well!"

- Raphael  

Is the lead Turtle of this story and goddamn is he perfect ! This is the PERFECT blend between the sarcastic FW Raph and the more volcanic one from the comics. I am glad that his anger issues are more a result of his will to do the right thing and being dutiful (see how he reacts to the loss of a sai) rather than just an excuse to have him being a jerk for the sake of being one.He also gets to be the center of THE best scene of the movie ,which was lifted from the comic itself... and manage to surpass it in action, pacing and stakes. More on that later.
Favorite quote ? " Urrrgh. Where'd they come up with dis stuff ?"


- Donatello

Now, Donatello is mostly a supporting role in this film because the genre it is does not play to his strength as a lead (the sequel however will center around HIS view and lead to a very heartfelt scene...), mostly because Don's strength is the sci-fiesque side of TMNT (he's actually Pete Laird's favorite Turtle). With that said, I still liked him here. The skateboard/Bo Staff combo was inspired and he acts like the witty wisecracker of the band without losing his logical/calm demeanor (which makes it hard for him to find good catchphrases . Bossa Nova anyone ?)
Best phrase ? " Gosh... It's kinda like, moonlighting. Isn't it ?"


- Michaelangelo

Mikey is actually THE hardest to get right and this movie nailed everything that made him great - much like Raph - a perfect blend of Mirage and FW Michaelangelo. The perfect Mikey is the kind of guy anyone would love to hang with because he's genuinely pleasant (and not obnoxious...).
He is funny, loves to have fun, has a great comedic chemistry with Donatello but was perfectly able to kick ass and take names while manipulating his nunshucks with maestria.
Word of wisdom ? "Wise man said forgiveness is divine, but never pay full price for late pizza."

* April O'Neil

Pretty much the Vol1 Mirage April (though with a far more realistic reaction to meeting 4 giant anthropomorphic turtles and an old talking rat ! Point for Judith Hoag's performance here !). Is a great supporting character and the TMNT's link to the outside world.

* Casey Jones

Elias Koteas is your GOD ! Steals every scene he's in plain and simple .

* Splinter

An interesting reverse of the Mirage Splinter and as a result , my favorite version of Splinter as a whole. Now, the comics Splinter was calculating and valued revenge & honor above all else, leading him to train the turtles as assassins. In the movie ? He trained them to survive and due to the need of a family. Both concepts are great, but I prefer the latter for managing to be sympathetic without necessarily losing the vengeful edge (see what he did to Shredder in the end). The rat is simply impossible to dislike due to his gentle wisdom. He has some of the best retorts to his sons antics (boys will be boys !) and that will be carried on to the 2nd movie.
His last line shows how the character is a lot more nuanced than one could believe " I always liked... COWABUNGA. Hahahaha, I made a funny ! HAHAHAHAHAa!"; Thumbs up for the teacher and father !

* Shredder

I love many versions of the Shredder : James Avery's Shredder is simply hilarious, the relationship between him and Krang was great and Bebop and RockSteady are glorious ! Naysayers take a hike to hell... Then, the Utrom Shredder was boss for being a psychotic nutbar with a fierce and predatory demeanor (and the Ch'rell twist was not half bad, considering that the original comics Shredder is nothing more than a story kickstarter rather than a character.)
Movie Shredder ? www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mVTf-…
Everything I wanted the original comics version to be. This is still the most impressive version of Oroku Saki; instead of being a plot device, he is a driven and ruthless antagonist. Rather than being gutted by the Turtles after a few moves, he handles them on his own and knows how to exactly push their buttons "The rat ? So it has a name... it HAD a name .". I just love the whole character .
His first entrance is great; the music and atmosphere convey his fearsome presence.He is manipulative and knows how to use the lost youth to do his bidding (black market and discretion. Effective combination !) . Simply PERFECT. Also, despite his effectiveness and mastery of martial arts, he is still haunted by his murder of Hamato Yoshi (losing his calm when he recognises Splinter...).

- THE OVERALL MOVIE

It is actually a blend from various stories from the Vol 1 of the comics, mainly Issue 1, The Return to New York story arc and its prologue. This mostly proves that taking the right elements and adding onto that concept leads to a superior output. As the saying goes "Original is not always synonymous with best.".
This film comes along that is perfectly plotted, shot, scored and directed and not a single moment felt wasted, EVERYTHING added up.
If you wanna understand what I mean about the score, it had the lighthearted feisty theme for the Turtles and the Shredder suite (in several movements) for the various darker fight scenes and tense moments.
The 2 greatest scenes ? The final fight against the Shredder which goes from rather tame and jokey at first but escalates quickly and dramatically once Splinter is mentionned  AND the Raphael fight on the roof top. In the comics it was Leo who was fighting against the Foot and it seemed that he had a chance at first; The cut-away scenes are not always related to that fight but they were meant to show how calm the others situation was in contrast. It was a build-up to the Shredder's "return".
But in the movie ?  
Raphael is disarmed and fights for HIS LIFE ALL THE WAY THROUGH while still giving some of his best sarcastic banter.Not faithful to the original ? It surpassed it so I simply dismiss that.

- AS A BONUS: THE SECOND MOVIE ...

Now about the secret of the ooze ... Less epic? True. Safer and lighter ? Indeed . Goofier and more slapsticky ? No doubts about that . And yet , it is still a good movie ! If I were to sum it up in one word it'd be FUN . Pure unadulterated FUN. You cannot surpass the PEAK that the First movie established, so one might as well have fun with the concept !
Granted the Shredder is still played seriously and he still manages to make Tokka and Rahzar hazardous even though they are silly infants. It is very much Donatello centered,being more sci-fiesque than its more urban city based predecessor, focusing on his sensitivity and his shock when he realized that he and his brothers were just a mistake . That alone proved me that this movie still had a lot of heart in it.
And the whole climactic battle against the Foot ? Ninja Doughnuts, Fire extincters and Go NINJA Go NINJA GO ! Damn IS IT A RIOT ! A PARTY ! A CELEBRATION ! PURE JOIE DE VIVRE !
I don't care what anyone says , "Secret Of the Ooze " is a radical tongue-in-cheek delight !


Next time, well another day, we will discuss the comics... well what I gathered anyway.