TMNT 2:Out of The Shadows (Film Review)

Reviewed by Curtis ‘Big Boy Holloywood’ Boyland

I recently went to see Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows and there were some good, bad and nerdy but overall I enjoyed the movie very much.

First let’s go over the good, being an old school TMNT fan I am happy to see Bebop, Rocksteady and Krang in a movie for the first time. The way they were placed into the movie was amazing and brought a great sense of nostalgia for me. Another plus about the movie was the fact that unlike the first movie this movie was more about the Turtles themselves. Now you’re probably wondering why I say this, well in the first movie didn’t focus on them so much therefore you didn’t really get to know them a whole lot. This movie however you got to know the turtles in their personalities, their energy and a great look in their internal struggles. The roles of April O’Neil (played by Megan Fox) and Vern Fenwick (played by Will Arnett) didn’t overshadow the Turtles like in the previous movie. While they were involved, it was done so wonderfully as supporting roles as they should be. Stephen Amell did a good job as Casey Jones and while he was a supporting role it was simply a good introduction to the character while not giving out too much at one time. Finally I must add that Tyler Perry did a great job playing his role of Baxter Stockman, while there are some gaps in the plot in between his time in the movie it still connects together well with the plot.

With any movie when you have the good of course comes the bad. There wasn’t a lot of bad things about the movie however there are things that simply could have been done better. First off while there were lot of plots to juggle and take on. When you have the return of Shredder, the debut of Bebop and Rocksteady, the introduction of Casey Jones, the debut of Krang and even a plot involving the police it can be a lot to take in all at once. There are times where there are even plot twists that are missing where it can have you thinking “Oh right…this character is in the movie”. One big thing that baffled me was the role of Shredder. While Shredder was played wonderfully he didn’t seem to do much not to mention he didn’t interact with the Turtles at all, which is something you expect in a Ninja Turtles movie. Another issue was simply the battle between the Turtles vs. Bebop and Rocksteady, while the battle was a lot of fun to watch…I felt that there should have been more interaction between them. Finally an issue, that while personally didn’t really affect my thoughts on the movie being an old school Ninja Turtles fan it could affect someone who is not necessarily a fan, was the way the elements that were put together. While it was a fun thing to experience some people who aren’t fans may get confused.

Finally let’s get to the nerdy part, which most Turtles fans will be able to relate to. There were some interesting cameos including Kevin Eastman (co-creator of the series) in a “if you blinked you missed it” portion of the beginning of the movie as well as some snippets of the 1990s theme song which was nice. The Technodrome while brief in its appearance it was put together wonderfully just like in the cartoon series. The movie had its share of cheesy one-liners and jokes but it was done nicely and it had a tone that it committed to and followed it all the way through.

In conclusion the movie in general was done better than the first one. The movie focus much more on the Turtles as it should, the addition of new characters and plot twists definitely catered to old school Turtle fans. Unfortunately the gaps in the plot at different times can confuse you if you’re not necessarily a fan of the series but if you’re a fan you should be able to connect the dots. Also the movie also gave a good dose of nostalgia to older Ninja Turtle fans that they will enjoy. I believe that most fans that were disappointed in the first movie will enjoy this one. I feel like the movie also left a couple of things out to tease for perhaps a third movie which could provide some more possibilities. I gave Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows 4 out of 5 stars.