Movie Review: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem
What We Liked
What We Didn't Like
Since their debut in the mid-1980s, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have become one of the world’s most enduring pop culture creations. Over nearly 40 years, the turtles have appeared in independent comics, kids’ cartoons, a series of family-based movies, video games, and a misguided Michael Bay reimagining. Perhaps the best thing about the heroes in a half shells’ latest incarnation, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, is that the animated film reinvents the characters once more while also maintaining affection for all previous turtle takes.
The new film from writers and producers Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg provides a slightly new vision of the characters’ origins, which, to be fair, have never been consistent. Donatello, Michelangelo, Leonardo, and Raphael were just baby tortoises when they were knocked into a sewer and came into contact with a glowing ooze that caused them to grow in size. A rat named Splinter, also covered in the ooze, took the young turtles in and trained them as ninja warriors. Afraid of what humans might do to them, Splinter cautioned them to stay in the shadows and never associate with the real world.
Fifteen years later, the boys have turned into hyper teens with a curiosity for what’s going on in the streets of New York. One night, they stumble upon a reporter named April O’ Neil (Ayo Edebiri) and save her from being mugged. When April befriends them following their good deed, the turtles decide that heroics might be their key to acceptance, and they set out to take down a mysterious crime lord named Superfly. It might not surprise you to learn that Superfly is a giant bug voiced by Ice Cube, who’s leading a team of other mutants – including a surfer dude gecko named Mondo Gecko voiced by Paul Rudd, warthog and rhino pals Bebop and Rocksteady (Rogen and John Cena), a singing stingray (Post Malone) and several other gross baddies, and they want to get revenge on the humans who have spurned them.
Mutant Mayhem might be the first of the films to really lean into the “teenage” side of the property, fronting it above even the weird sci-fi and martial arts. The film wisely casts actual teenagers as the characters, giving it a playful humor and energy. The characters’ dynamics are still familiar – Donatello’s the brainiac, Leonardo the wannabe leader, Michelangelo the party dude and Raphael has rage issues – but the film leans less into the angst of some of the other incarnations . It’s particularly fun to watch the characters tease Leonardo for using his “Batman voice” when he wants to be serious or to watch them shoot video of themselves tossing ninja stars at watermelons that Mikey notes look uncomfortably like his head.
Mutant Mayhem is also the first film in the series to be an out-and-out comedy, something co-director Jeff Rowe previously delivered with the wonderful Netflix film The Mitchells vs. The Machines. The film is lively and silly, and Rogen and Goldberg bring their pop culture love to the dialogue. Edebiri, best-known for her standout role on the TV show The Bear, brings a wry wit to April O’ Neil, here depicted as someone a bit closer to the turtles’ age. The film is funny and quotable, and the cast is clearly having a great time. Jackie Chan voices Splinter, and the scene where he tries to throw his sons a birthday party – complete with cutouts of all the Hollywood Chrises – is very funny. Ssprinkling the supporting cast with actors like Paul Rudd, John Cena, Ice Cube and Seth Rogen gives it a fun energy when the film risks getting too plot-heavy in its back half (the film’s bromance between Michelangelo and Mondo Gecko might be worth its own movie).
Rogen and Goldberg have always had a knack for mixing laughs with heart, and the idea to ground the story in the turtles’ longing for acceptance and friendship is surprisingly affecting. Most adaptations of this material have made the heroes happy to stay in the shadows or at least aware of the necessity. But centering Mutant Mayhem on the young turtles’ desire to have friends and go to high school like normal kids provides a warmth and sweetness that this series has previously not attempted, and it works well. Likewise, the relationship between Splinter and his sons is touching without feeling treacly or pandering.
“Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem.” Photo by Courtesy of Paramount Pictures. – © 2023 Paramount Pictures. TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES is a trademark of Viacom International Inc.
The animation emulates Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, complementing its computer-generated animation with a style that looks closer to 2D and embellishments that look almost hand-drawn. As with the Spider-Verse movies, it proves that animation might be the most effective way to bring comic book stories to the big screen. The action is fluid and exciting in a way live action or even live-action/CGI hybrids could not be, propelled by a lively score from Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross. It’s a colorful movie, taking place in glow-bowl bowling alleys, red-tinged dark rooms or brightly lit city locations. The turtles have undergone slight cosmetic changes to make it easier for their personalities to pop off the screen, and the design of the human characters and setting is reminiscent of those early Eastman and Laird comics.
Unlike other comic book properties, Mutant Mayhem doesn’t pelt the audience with Easter eggs. There are scattered references to other TMNT movies here and there – including a clever use of Vanilla Ice’s “Ninja Rap” – but it never feels overwhelming. There’s enough familiar iconography to satisfy long-time fans, but the tone is light and fun enough to pitch it directly at younger audiences, who will grow up to ensure that Turtle Power endures another generation.
If you were never a Ninja Turtles fan, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem probably won’t change your mind. But for those with a nostalgic bent or kids looking for something fun on a summer afternoon, it’s a pleasant August surprise.
