Turtles (1990)

Turtles: Directed by Steve Barron. With Judith Hoag, Elias Koteas, Josh Pais, David Forman. Four teenage mutant ninja turtles emerge from the shadows to protect New York City from a gang of criminal ninjas.

“I speak out on behalf of all fans of the TMNT!u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThis is not a bad movie!u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eYou might say it has no storyline but I say itu0026#39;s kept simplistic for all the comic book fans. You donu0026#39;t want to confuse people with a massive complex tale. No one argues with u0026#39;Enter the Dragonu0026#39; having a bad storyline!u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe characters in this movie are wonderfully set up. Right from the start we see that Raphael has issues. This anger forces him to distance himself and in the process we feel his fury. We immerse ourselves in the character and see how deep he can go. From woefully staring into New York from a rooftop or letting out a frenzy upon the gang that has literally knocked April to the ground we are getting to know the character inside and out. This is the hero of the movie. As for the comedic cheek of Casey Jones or the light-hearted double wisecracks of Michaelangelo and Donatello, Iu0026#39;d love to see the reason behind this movie having u0026quot;no character studyu0026quot; as some people might say.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe action scenes are set up within the constraints of a normal fun movie with great camera angles just dying to be put on an advert or poster.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe turtle effects by the Jim Henson creature shop donu0026#39;t disappoint even though Splinter looks like he walked straight off the set of u0026#39;Labyrinthu0026#39;. The turtles are so good you shouldnu0026#39;t care anyway. The animatronics are fab and the voice characterisation is well chosen.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAs for the main blessing, Steve Barron has chosen a dark tone for his movie. The original comic book would have been made proud by this attempt at making the movie more adult than people could believe. The crime-filled backdrops of New York make a great battleground, and the whole mythological element that all crime is ruled by a master ninja adds to the drama. The soundtrack couldnu0026#39;t be better for the beginning. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThis is a fantastic movie and horribly underrated. With so many great elements this goes down as one of the all time great fantasy adventures. 10 out of 10 and a cowabunga to boot!”