Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990) Movie Info
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Movie Name | Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990) |
| Director | Steve Barron |
| Screenplay Writer | Todd W. Langen, Bobby Herbeck |
| Based on Novel by | Based on the comic book characters created by Kevin Eastman & Peter Laird |
| Lead Actors | Judith Hoag, Elias Koteas |
| Cast | Judith Hoag, Elias Koteas, Josh Pais, David Forman, James Saito, Michael Turney, Brian Tochi (voice), Corey Feldman (voice), Kevin Clash (voice) |
| Genre | Action, Adventure, Comedy, Superhero |
| Release Date | March 30, 1990 (United States) |
| Duration | 1h 33m (93 minutes) |
| Budget | ~$13.5 million |
| Language | English |
| Country | United States, Hong Kong |
| Box Office (Worldwide) | ~$202 million |
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Summary
Four turtles and their rat mentor, Splinter, are transformed into a humanized state by mysterious ooze in the N.Y. City sewer. Splinter teaches them martial arts, while the turtles act like teens, making wise cracks and eating pizza! Together they form a talented and unique crime fighting team.
Review
Released at the peak of its title characters’ comic book and TV series mania in 1990, TMNT somehow cruised to $133M in box office earnings. Maybe it isn’t that surprising, though. Despite some obvious shortcomings, the film is very much watchable and entertaining. The dark undertones and mythological elements remain true to the Turtles’ comic book roots (rather than to the Saturday morning cartoon series), while the action and dialogue are good enough to make it work.
The plot is simple, which is a good thing, since trying to make up something overblown would take away from the things TMNT has going for it. Donatello, Leonardo, Raphael and Michaelangelo must rescue their mentor, Splinter, after he is abducted by the Foot Clan a gang of ninjas threatening to take over all of New York City, and whose leader, Shredder, is shrouded in mystery throughout. They get some help from moderately hot newswoman April O’Neil (Hoag) and charismatic street hockey thug Casey Jones (Koteas) along the way.
As the gang pieces together the mystery and moves closer to the epicenter of the city’s escalating crime spree, the tension builds. Will the identity of the Shredder be exposed? Will Splinter be saved? Do the turtles enjoy making smart ass comments more than eating a New York Style pie? Is the lighting always dark as to hide the terribly fake looking costumes, or for effect? Will the anonymous early ’90s-style rap song played during the end credits ever be equaled?
You will have to find the answers to these questions yourself – and I highly recommend that you do.
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