“Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem” is a fresh and crisply animated take on the classic ’80s cartoon lifted by the teen cast’s voice performances. While fans might get a bigger kick out of the easter eggs and references to the show, the film is curated in a way that you don’t need to be one in order to enjoy it at its maximum capacity, even if a couple of narrative threads get resolved more rapidly than I would have liked to.
Whether arriving from Cartoon Network or Nickelodeon, there were plenty of cartoons that shaped our respective childhoods. We woke up early on Saturday mornings just to them, probably eating some kind of sugary cereal. You spent all week at school, anticipating the weekend to relax and have fun. Those were the days were nothing mattered. You sat on the couch for hours just watching the various shows that appeared on screen (some of mine were “Fairly OddParernts,” “Scooby Doo,” “Teen Titans,” “The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy,” and “Spongebob Squarepants”). Many ’80s creations had a significant impact and connected with the kids. Yet one of the most popular ones that, to this day, remains popular in mainstream media is the “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” (also known as TMNT).
A Cartoon Reshelled for a Fresh Take
Created in 1983 by cartoonists Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird, TMNT reboots repeatedly happen, being “reshelled” every couple of years, both in animated and live-action formats, since its invention. Ever since the 1990 film based around them (technically one of the highest-grossing independent films of the 90s, believe it or not), you have seen plenty of renditions, for better or worse. You would think children would grow tired from seeing them. Each interpretation significantly changes the turtle’s look. But no. The public treasures the titular turtles. They have a gigantic fan base that has remained loyal to them. Even if the product they received back wasn’t up to par with the classic cartoon series, they stayed with them.
Because of the poor quality of some of the franchise’s recent cinematic products, Seth Rogen and director Jeff Rowe teamed up to finally give the turtle-heads something worthy of their appreciation – a token for their patience and gratitude. They thought about different ways to bring them back to the big screen. Their main priority was telling a story that felt different from the other features of the turtles. After some time, Rogen, Rowe, and company came up with “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem,” a film that goes back a few years to the titular turtle’s early-teen years and intertwines coming-of-age story tropes with a tale of acceptance and the importance of family. Steer clear of any skepticism toward the film. It is a surprisingly fun time with its unique style and a sharp-witted comedic sensibility for modern pop and geek culture.
“Mutant Mayhem” begins by explaining why there are mutants in that world. The famous green ooze spreads across the sewers of New York City, creating several lusus naturae. Some of those creatures were the titular turtles – Leonardo (Nicolas Cantu), Michelangelo (Shamon Brown Jr.), Donatello (Micah Abbey), and Raphael (Brady Noon) – who were rescued by another mutant, a rat named Splinter (voiced by Jackie Chan). They chose Jackie Chan for this specific role because it occasionally references classic martial arts pictures, including some in the aforementioned actor’s filmography. It is an homage to his work as a stuntman and daredevil for all his work for our entertainment. Splinter has a disdain for the human world, as it has betrayed him repeatedly throughout the years. Because of his experiences, he has been very strict with his kin turtles, making him a shut-in and overprotective.
Acceptance and Solidarity Amidst the Mayhem
The boys just want to be a part of this vast world. They only seek acceptance from humans. They don’t want to remain hidden for all of their lives. Leonardo specifically is growing increasingly down because of his moral compass shifting. Either he follows his dad’s instructions or spends a few more hours outside where they people might notice them. “Why can’t we be loved like Ferris Bueller?”, one of the turtles quotes on a night out watching “Ferris Bueller Day Off.” The story begins to pour touches of melancholy drip by drip. The tactility of the animation fuses with the trashiness of the turtles’ daily living. You begin to feel for them. This hints that the movie is actually doing some effect on you when you least expect it.
I’d never expected that a movie based around the “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” would ever even touch those types of emotions. But I’m glad it does so. The mending of coming-of-age tropes with the upcoming action sequences will serve as liberation for them. There are scenes in which it reaches an “on the nose” emotional tangibility. In addition, you see a couple of vague moments where things character’s resolve plot threads too quickly for my liking. Yet the screenplay doesn’t throw it together poorly. Rowe didn’t make these scenes in a way that feels like they want to get to the action stuff rapidly. The turtles might be down in the dumps right now. But their day will come closer than they anticipate. And it all begins when they make a human friend named April O’Neil (Ayo Edibiri), a teen who wants to become the next big thing in journalism.
In the same vein as the turtles, April wants acceptance. To help each other with their own (yet similar) problems, April and the turtles team up to uncover the mysteries behind the criminal menace, Superfly (Ice Cube), who wants to destroy all of humanity because of what they have done to him and his creator. This paves the way for a narrative we saw sparks of during the previous incarnations and renditions of the cartoon. Yet there wasn’t any dedication to this due to their focus on action. In “Mutant Mayhem,” there’s a division between the ninja skills and story development. This fifty-fifty split creates a more refreshing and entertaining feat when compared with other animated films like this.
Well-Curated Pop-Culture and Nostalgia Quips
Some cliched moments appear so that younger audiences can connect and feel the story on a more personal level. However, the film never feels too dumb things down for them. “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem” always remains with the knowledge that animation is not only for one specific age group. The story stays at a level both adults and kids can find engaging. This is a particular dilemma that happens in modern children’s entertainment. But the array of screenwriters, alongside director Jeff Rowe, know better than to submit themselves to that. Another reason why the film succeeds early on and continues to flow easily is because of its comedic sensibilities.
This aspect uses elements of both Gen-Z pop culture and 80s nostalgia to create a hilarious combination. From callbacks to Vanilla Ice’s ‘Ninja Rap’ to talks about the attack formations of “Attack on Titan”, we get a range of references without being irritating. Those quips and references lift the voice performances of these young actors giving life to the turtles. In essence, this teen voice cast is the reason why it all ends up working in the end. And while fans of the “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” might get a bigger kick out of the references Jeff Rowe and the animators throw at us, what’s brilliant about “Mutant Mayhem” is that you don’t need to be one to enjoy it at its maximum capacity.
The cast and crew make sure that audience embraces the film by various means – the crisp and flashy animation, the charismatic voices performances of the actors interpreting the titular turtles, a story that many can correlate to, well-selected quips from the Rogen-esque humor, the Nine Inch Nails duo’s score, as well as a reenergized (and reinvigorated) take on an IP that slowly has been growing tired. Most of its aspects are finely tuned to concoct a surprising animated feature you never thought would be this good. Although with some faults, “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem” is more than a franchise reset or potential cash-grab. Jeff Rowe and Rogen did this project with care, skill, and tactility. It’s a movie that’s thought out from its piercing animation to its plethora of modernized wisecracks.
“Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem” hits theaters worldwide on August 2nd, 2023.
