Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem
PARAMOUNT*This piece was written during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Without the labor of the writers and actors on strike,
the movie being covered here wouldn’t exist*
Right off the bat: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem is the best Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie ever made and possibly the greatest adaptation of Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird’s creation yet. It took three film reboots to get there, but there’s finally a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie that understands the core tenet of what made this franchise so memorable in the first place: the turtles are teenagers. The 1990 Steve Barron-directed film adaptation of the Turtles didn’t paint the titular characters as such, but rather as immature grown adults. This was subsequently pushed to the extreme by director Stuart Gillard in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III, which retroactively killed the film franchise of the characters before Warner Bros. was revived in 2007. Then Michael Bay’s Platinum Dunes took a crack at it in 2014.
These reboots were critically reviled and, once again, killed the respective franchises they wanted to build. Now, Paramount is desperate for a proper franchise involving the Turtles, enlisting Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg to shepherd its new franchise, with two seasons of a Paramount+ animated series, Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and a sequel already in the works. The Mitchells vs. The Machines co-director Jeff Rowe helms the first installment, Mutant Mayhem, whose style has already been compared too many times to the one of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and its sequel.
While the Spider-Verse movies are consistently hyperactive and change their artistry from shot to shot, Mutant Mayhem is more akin to a cinematic explosion than a consistent, in-your-face, almost epileptic animated affair with the Spider-Verse films. The style is far more refined and less overwhelming than Spider-Verse, allowing Rowe and head of cinematography Kent Seki to craft some truly dazzling action setpieces without ever discombobulating the audience. However, compared to Into the Spider-Verse, the use of 3D is extremely disappointing, and its animation does very little with the format. It only makes murky scenes at night even murkier, but that’s not necessarily the filmmaker’s fault: it’s those damn glasses that make everything so dark all the time.
Aside from that, the film’s action sequences are consistently inventive and always a thrill. An early police chase scene involving Baxter Stockman (Giancarlo Esposito) sets the plot in motion, which leads to more of this incredible visual dynamism once the Turtles get introduced and attempt to take down Superfly (Ice Cube). Leonardo (Nicholas Cantu), Donatello (Micah Abbey), Michelangelo (Shamon Brown Jr), and Raphael (Brady Noon) want to be perceived as heroes after their master Splinter (Jackie Chan) consistently warns them of the danger humans pose.
With aspiring journalist April O’Neil (Ayo Edebiri), the Turtles believe humans will accept them as part of society if they do a good deed, which means defeating Superfly, who plans to turn all humans into ooze and mutate all wildlife on Earth. It’s a classic coming-of-age tale meshed inside a superhero action/adventure film. And even if it’s been done to death countless times before, the film is consistently fresh thanks to its terrific vocal performances and jaw-dropping action scenes.
The film’s biggest skill is how it consistently enthralls audiences through its action, which perfectly blends high-stakes thrills, beautifully timed physical comedy, and perfectly fitting needle drops. Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross’ score is incredible to hear on its own, and they’ve made their magnum opus here. Yes, it’s better than The Social Network and Gone Girl, and it’s a complete shift in tone and genre from what they’re usually known for. It feels like a dream collaboration between Giorgio Moroder and Oneohtrix Point Never and always stays fresh from scene to scene. Its musical breadth through its needle drops is also even more impressive, with M.O.P.’s Ante Up, De La Soul’s Eye Know, and Ol’ Dirty Bastard’s Shimmy Shimmy Ya accompanying many of the film’s action setpieces.
But the most hilarious use of music in this film is during an extended car chase, where the filmmakers dare to accompany its action with the HEYYEYAAEYAAAEYAEYAA. And guess what? It works. It works and is the best action setpiece of the entire movie, equal parts laugh-out-loud funny and kinetic. It’s also perfectly in line with the freeing spirit imbued by the Ninja Turtles, all voiced by real-life teens. Their chemistry is off the charts, and they’re paired incredibly well by an amazing supporting cast, with Edebiri, Chan, and Paul Rudd being massive highlights. Rudd is the only one who can match the Turtles’ teenage spirit – he may still be a teen at heart with his ageless demeanor – and plays the film’s funniest side character as Mondo Gecko, one of Superfly’s henchmen.
As a reinterpretation of April O’Neil, Edebiri isn’t only very funny (as expected) but brings great emotional depth to her portrayal. The same can be said for Chan’s Splinter, whose character acts more like a father figure than any other character iteration thus far. Even the repositioning of iconic TMNT villains like Bebop (Seth Rogen) and Rocksteady (John Cena) as anti-heroes instead of menacing antagonists. Rogen and Cena are having fun, and everyone else is game for a more liberating adaptation of the Ninja Turtles.
As a fan of the Ninja Turtles, this adaptation was a long time coming. While some of the jokes – the ones that have to do with the word “rizz” – don’t work, and the 3D presentation should be avoided, the rest of Mutant Mayhem is a total blast from beginning to end. The animation style is dazzling, never overwhelming, and continuously pushes its aesthetic to new horizons. If the Paramount+ and its sequels are just as good, if not better than Mutant Mayhem, then the future of the Ninja Turtles has been secured to greatness.