Of all the films that will come out this year, there are unlikely to be any whose style and soundtrack do as much heavy lifting as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem. The animation is vibrant and textured, with its rougher edges making the visual experience come alive in a way that the actual story itself struggles to the longer things continue. For every thrilling moment where the titular amphibious heroes leap their way through a scene, there are those that feel more tied down as the narrative efficiently goes through the motions without bringing the necessary emotion to make it into something greater. It is one of the better adaptations of the TMNT material, though its story remains quite safe even as its visuals are often spectacular.
Smartly making use of largely unknown young actors to believably voice the teenage turtles, we follow the anthropomorphic amphibians Leonardo (Nicolas Cantu), Raphael (Brady Noon), Donatello (Micah Abbey), and Michelangelo (Shamon Brown Jr.) as they spend their nights roaming New York City. Their outings are defined by running errands for their rodent patriarch Splinter, voiced here by action legend Jackie Chan, who is less wise sage and more crotchety loner living in the sewers. Being rebellious teenagers, the turtles will often linger in the city to catch an outdoor movie or take part in silly stunts under the cover of darkness, always longing to step out of the shadows.
They will get an opportunity to do so when they meet fellow teen and aspiring reporter April. Voiced by the delightful Ayo Edebiri (of the sublime series The Bear), April is working a story about a run of mysterious robberies being done by other mutants. After a bit of a rocky start to their relationship, the group decides to team up to look into what's going on and discovers a threat that only they will be able to stop before it is too late.
Written by collaborators Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg (Superbad) along with the film's co-director Jeff Rowe (The Mitchells vs. the Machines), there is a persistent sense the movie is often being driven by its IP rather than individual ideas. Even with the opportunity to start fresh with this story, it drags itself down by setting up things to be fully explored later rather than doing its best this go-around. It contains great music and plenty of flair — with one slow-motion shot toward the end which proves to be a standout as abundantly cheesy as it is goofy — but its potential gets slightly squandered far too often.
Both the majority of the jokes and the narrative itself begin rather promisingly before becoming increasingly wrapped up in more conventional confrontations. Where the relationship between the turtles is refreshingly authentic in its depiction of youth and light on its feet in its action scenes, the more standard steps Mutant Mayhem takes in its story dull what could've been a really special film. Much like the climactic scene where the shells of the turtles start to break under pressure, you can begin to see the cracks in the film itself. It doesn't fully shatter, but it comes a bit too close.
Though it's somewhat understandably drawn some comparisons to this year's visually magnificent yet messy Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, that is ultimately a superficial point of reference in many regards. Not only is the animation different — with the spider sequel proving to be far more ambitious as it explores a variety of visual styles even within a single scene — but the movies couldn't be more different when it comes to their substance. There are moments of thematic and emotional depth here — like one more joyous sequence near the end where the city residents join the fight in a manner that is reminiscent of Sam Raimi's spectacular Spider-Man — they're just still spread too thin to fully resonate. If this film were a pizza, to put it in a way these turtles will surely appreciate, it'd be one with a whole heaping of cheese and a single topping on some pieces. It makes for tasty enough eating, only to leave you a bit hungry by the end. ♦
TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: MUTANT MAYHEM
