by Joseph McAleer
NEW YORK (CNS) – Thirty years after bursting onto the comic book scene, the wise-cracking, pizza-loving “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” (Paramount) re-emerge from the sewers of New York City. Their mission, once again: to save the world.
This reboot marks the fifth film to feature the reptilian heroes, created by Peter Laird and Kevin Eastman. With Michael Bay of the “Transformers” franchise on board as producer, action and destruction are ramped up in vivid 3-D, with the turtles effectively rendered through live action and motion-capture technology.
Fortunately, the script, by Josh Appelbaum, Andre Nemec and Evan Daugherty, honors the ridiculousness of the subject matter. Director Jonathan Liebesman (“Wrath of the Titans”) joins in the fun while slipping in lessons about honor and family.
The backstory and mythology surrounding the Turtles are extensive. Simply stated, there are four, each named for an Italian Renaissance artist: Leonardo (Pete Ploszek), Raphael (Alan Ritchson), Michelangelo (Noel Fisher) and Donatello (Jeremy Howard). Products of an experiment gone wrong, they’ve grown into rambunctious anthropomorphic teenagers, mask-wearing 6-footers who shout “Cowabunga!” and scarf down ’za.
The turtles live beneath the Big Apple with a wise Japanese rat named Splinter (Danny Woodburn), who has trained them in the martial arts. And when a reign of terror grips Gotham, thanks to the notorious Foot Clan, a gang of criminals led by a razor-sharp monster dubbed Shredder (Tohoru Masamune), the turtles fight back.
April (Megan Fox), an intrepid TV reporter, stumbles upon their ninja moves but has a hard time convincing Vern (Will Arnett), her cameraman, and Bernadette (Whoopi Goldberg), her boss, of the turtles’ existence.
She turns to billionaire industrialist Eric Sacks (William Fichtner) for help, not knowing that he has a wicked secret alliance with Shredder.
If it all sounds silly, it is. The film is more thrill-ride than serious drama, and most viewers will have a ball careening down sewer tunnels as though they were water slides on steroids.
The Catholic News Service classification is A-II – adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 – parents strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.
McAleer is a guest reviewer for Catholic News Service.