Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles REVIEW *SPOILERS*

Warning.....Spoilers are involved in my review....read at your own risk!


Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles did not blow me away, but it was not terrible either. Going into the film I was hoping that Michael Bay did not ruin my childhood, and thankfully he did not. The turtles looked good, obviously a more modern version of what most of us are used to. They were funny, and each one had the correct characteristics that they needed. I did think that Donatello reminded me a lot of  Steve Urkel with his glasses and mannerisms. Megan Fox was actually good in this movie, HOWEVER, she was not believable as April O'Neil. It felt to me like she was playing a different character role in the film, not the iconic news reporter. She just doesn't fit the role in my opinion. William Fichtner was very good as Erick Sacks, probably the best actor in the film. 

Great job with the origin story of where the Turtles came from. I thought it was cool that April O'Neil knew them and took care of them when they were babies, and saved them from the building. Other than the turtles though, not much character development for anyone else. No origin on Shredder or where he comes from, and not much about Erick Sacks accept that he worked with and killed April O'neil's father. The story itself felt shallow and not developed enough, although one can argue that more story could be brought in during a second film. 

One of the biggest disappointments was the Foot Clan, because they did not have the look and feel of the what the true Foot Clan represent. They were not ninjas, they were basically thugs with guns, which to me doesn't fit the story. They are supposed to be trained ninjas and not assassins, and they were barely relevant in the entire film. Shredder's debut was incredible, as he was introduced by training himself by fighting a member of the clan. He was seen on his knees with his arms TIED behind his back, and he was able to counter the attack of the Foot Clan member with just his legs. It was great intro because you knew right then that he was Shredder and he meant business. The Shredder suit was not as good as I hoped from the trailer. He was a combination of Ironman meets Edward Scissorhands. The fight scenes between the Turtles and Shredder were ok, not long enough in my opinion. I was expecting more individual battles between each turtle and the Shredder, especially when Raphael came to rescue them as Sacks home. The scenes with the Turtles and the Foot Clan were also very minimal, which failed to showcase the rivalry between the two groups. 

The action was great, but the camera seemed to jump around too much during the fight scenes. Towards the middle of the film when Shredder and the Foot Clan attack the Turtles in the sewer, there is a really cool fight scene between Splinter and Shredder. This is my favorite part of the film, because it showcases the skills of both men. Easily the best fight scene in the entire movie. Splinter's character was very good, but his look was a little off. I'm not sure why anyone can get his look right, because even in the 1990s turtle movie he looks like a stuffed animal. In this film he looks like he was cut from a computer screen, which I know he is CGI, but the Turtles blended much better than Splinter. Seeing the movie in 3D was pointless because there was nothing that really "caught my eye or jumped out." Just falling debris from crashing buildings but that was nothing extraordinary.     

Not a bad movie, but not a standout blockbuster, I recommend to check it out in theaters, and if you go in with low expectations, you will enjoy the film.

7/10