Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem (2023)

By: Mike Ward on Tuesday, August 01

PG Running Time: 99 mins

SHOULD I SEE IT?

YES

Fans of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles will likely love the new direction, tone, look, and feel of this reboot of the popular franchise.
Creative and vivid animation sets this film apart from most other animated films in the marketplace.
A terrific ensemble of voices, including some recognizable vocal cameos, keep the film engaging and fun in a go-for-broke approach.

NO

To enjoy this, you have to at least allow yourself the chance to like the idea of a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie.
Lots of throwback nostalgia and 1990s lore, but the story is instantly forgettable, thin, and predictable.
Some scenes may prove a little intense for the youngest of viewers, along with some elements of gross-out humor that families may not be anticipating.

OUR REVIEW

As someone ambivalent to all things Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, save the gloriously awful Vanilla Ice “Ninja Rap” from 1991, my bar was admittedly low for Mutant Mayhem, the seventh film in the Ninja Turtles cinematic franchise. However, much to my surprise, the seventh time is the charm as this new (second) reboot of the film series is refreshingly witty and stylishly animated.

An origin story, director and co-writer Jeff Rowe (The Mitchells vs. the Machines) reintroduces us to the four orphaned reptilian brothers - Donatello (Micah Abbey), Michaelangelo (Shamon Brown Jr.), Leonardo (Nicolas Cantu), and Raphael (Brady Noon) - raised in the New York City sewers by a wise old rodent named Splinter (Jackie Chan), also a martial arts sensei. After becoming exposed to a mutagen (a mutating agent), the Turtles become human-like/turtle hybrids and are trained to fight by their adoptive father who demands they never leave the sewers …unless they need to steal supplies for home.

Of course, teenagers are precocious and often defiant, a detail writing partners Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, along with Rowe and collaborators Dan Hernandez and Benji Samit, lean into in establishing a rampant curiosity that drives Splinter crazy but pushes the brothers towards a new and fascinating world.

They find a human connection in April O’Neal (Ayo Edebiri), a high school student who dreams of being a reporter. She first encounters the Turtle brothers attempting to recover her stolen moped. While April holds them at a distance at first, they soon become friends as the brothers begin attending the same high school. Together, they align around a common enemy, a mutant housefly known as Superfly (Ice Cube), believing that her reporting and their heroism will end their status as freaks and outcasts. Splinter, of course, is not so sure.

The most striking element of Mutant Mayhem is a richly rewarding animation style. In describing the style, the notion of comic book pages brought to life comes to mind. At times, the film resembles a frenzied, sketchbook. There is also a texture to the turtles in some scenes, which makes the film almost resemble animated claymation. To be fair, though comparisons can be made to the stunning 2023 film Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, this Ninja Turtle film retains its own distinct and unique look and feel. Edited with precision, Rowe and co-director Kyler Spears push the film’s story with urgency. Rogen, Goldberg, and team further populate their screenplay with countless pop-culture references and a 1990s throwback soundtrack featuring everything from BLACKstreet to A Tribe Called Quest and De La Soul and even a sing-along moment featuring the 4 Non Blondes’ anthem “What’s Up?”

For all the laughs and gags which keep us entertained, Mutant Mayhem is rather thin in terms of depth, with the science-fiction elements of the story proving to be rather forgettable. Toxic ooze is prevalent, as is a subplot around corporate corruption and a villain who wants to turn all of mankind into mutants. However, humor is in ample supply and the impressive vocal cast of cameos includes John Cena, Paul Rudd, Maya Rudolph, Rogen, and Rose Byrne.

You simply never know when the next good movie will find you. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem finds a way to infuse excitement into these characters and the rather nonsensical world they exist in. As animation largely begins to look and feel the same from the major studios who have ruled the medium for so long, films like this one and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse remind us that inventiveness and taking risks can reap some wonderful rewards.

CAST & CREW

Starring: Micah Abbey, Shamon Brown Jr., Nicolas Cantu, Brady Noon, Ayo Edebiri, Jackie Chan, Ice Cube, Hannibal Buress, Rose Byrne, John Cena, Natasia Demetriou, Giancarlo Esposito, Austin Post, Seth Rogen, Paul Rudd, Maya Rudolph

Director: Jeff Rowe
Co-Director: Kyler Spears
Written by: Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, Jeff Rowe, Dan Hernandez, Benji Samit (screenplay); Brendan O’Brien, Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, Jeff Rowe (story)
Based on characters created by Peter Laird and Kevin Eastman
Release Date: August 2, 2023
Paramount Pictures

Fans of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles will likely love the new direction, tone, look, and feel of this reboot of the popular franchise.

Creative and vivid animation sets this film apart from most other animated films in the marketplace.

A terrific ensemble of voices, including some recognizable vocal cameos, keep the film engaging and fun in a go-for-broke approach.

To enjoy this, you have to at least allow yourself the chance to like the idea of a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie.

Lots of throwback nostalgia and 1990s lore, but the story is instantly forgettable, thin, and predictable.

Some scenes may prove a little intense for the youngest of viewers, along with some elements of gross-out humor that families may not be anticipating.