KravenMorehead™
Barrel Brothers.®
The first franchise I ever fell in love with from the day I was born is this one. I'm an '86 baby.
I grew up on the toys, the cartoons, the bedsheets, lunchboxes, clothes... I'm an artist and I think the first thing I ever drew in my life was a picture of raphael. At least that's the first thing I remember.
The funny thing is, when I was a kid I loved the sequel more than this one. Cause it was "funnier" Leo's bandanna was brighter, and Secret of the ooze's Donnie was my favorite version.
One day i got to a certain age and this one switched places and became my favorite. It's like I had outgrown the reasons I loved the second. I still love both for emotional reasons, but this one is miles ahead. And I didn't even grow up on the comic books/ source material.
Despite the absurdity of source material, you can still translate something faithfully without indulging in camp. You can have characters dressed in a way that no one in real life would dare to, and still have their behavior and the story serious to the point that no one notices. Matter of fact it's only when the elements of the film aren't doing what they're supposed to that you start to notice those little things. As far as film adaptations go, this is an example of flawless execution.
The characters in this feel alive and breathing. Even the ones who don't have much in terms of speech or an arc, like tatsu, feel like full characters.
Leo, Don, Mikey and Raph all have full distinct personalities with quirks and isms that run deep, without the descent into parody that subsequent iterations fall victim to. That takes dedication and some good fukking writing. These are actually my favorite versions of these characters, Only ones on the same level are the 2012 cartoon. (the 2003 i dabbled in but i was in my late teens/early 20s and didn't have enough time to devote to. I'm gonna have to take the time one day.)
The humor in the film doesn't feel like it's on the fourth wall's dikk like moderm films tend to. Each character is doing it's own thing in that regard. The whole movie is basically a string of quotables from top to bottom, and it doesn't feel like it's trying (that's one of the first things you notice about the sequel as an adult). It's hillarious and dramatic without one affecting the other. I always say movies are like people and all different emotions can exist, and I love when it's done right. This flick is a shining example.
My favorite version of the shredder. This villain has PRESENCE. You can feel that
when he shows up on screen and James Saito drives it home with his performance. Despite the fact that the central heroes (and rightfully so) never display any initial fear of him, and He is never shown killing anyone, he's still that nikka.
Late eighties New York City is one of the main characters in this movie, with a grit that sadly hasn't been recreated since. Modern NYC feels more Metropolis than Gotham City, So it's always great to revisit that old energy. The movie is a time capsule of influences. I do wish times square had been a part, but i can say that for every other flick that features NYC that I like, so...
Classic music.
From the themes like Shredder's suite
to the third party tracks made for the flick like 9.95, by Spunkadelic
The only things I hate about this flick, are that
The parents that complained about the first one robbed us of a classic trilogy, and the more I think about it the more irritated I get
We've had all these examples of great cinema since, and top notch technology, and yet Hollywood hasn't been able to top this one.
and those aren't really complaints.
My favorite film of all time.
I grew up on the toys, the cartoons, the bedsheets, lunchboxes, clothes... I'm an artist and I think the first thing I ever drew in my life was a picture of raphael. At least that's the first thing I remember.
The funny thing is, when I was a kid I loved the sequel more than this one. Cause it was "funnier" Leo's bandanna was brighter, and Secret of the ooze's Donnie was my favorite version.
One day i got to a certain age and this one switched places and became my favorite. It's like I had outgrown the reasons I loved the second. I still love both for emotional reasons, but this one is miles ahead. And I didn't even grow up on the comic books/ source material.
Despite the absurdity of source material, you can still translate something faithfully without indulging in camp. You can have characters dressed in a way that no one in real life would dare to, and still have their behavior and the story serious to the point that no one notices. Matter of fact it's only when the elements of the film aren't doing what they're supposed to that you start to notice those little things. As far as film adaptations go, this is an example of flawless execution.
The characters in this feel alive and breathing. Even the ones who don't have much in terms of speech or an arc, like tatsu, feel like full characters.
Leo, Don, Mikey and Raph all have full distinct personalities with quirks and isms that run deep, without the descent into parody that subsequent iterations fall victim to. That takes dedication and some good fukking writing. These are actually my favorite versions of these characters, Only ones on the same level are the 2012 cartoon. (the 2003 i dabbled in but i was in my late teens/early 20s and didn't have enough time to devote to. I'm gonna have to take the time one day.)
The humor in the film doesn't feel like it's on the fourth wall's dikk like moderm films tend to. Each character is doing it's own thing in that regard. The whole movie is basically a string of quotables from top to bottom, and it doesn't feel like it's trying (that's one of the first things you notice about the sequel as an adult). It's hillarious and dramatic without one affecting the other. I always say movies are like people and all different emotions can exist, and I love when it's done right. This flick is a shining example.
My favorite version of the shredder. This villain has PRESENCE. You can feel that
when he shows up on screen and James Saito drives it home with his performance. Despite the fact that the central heroes (and rightfully so) never display any initial fear of him, and He is never shown killing anyone, he's still that nikka.
Late eighties New York City is one of the main characters in this movie, with a grit that sadly hasn't been recreated since. Modern NYC feels more Metropolis than Gotham City, So it's always great to revisit that old energy. The movie is a time capsule of influences. I do wish times square had been a part, but i can say that for every other flick that features NYC that I like, so...
Classic music.
From the themes like Shredder's suite
to the third party tracks made for the flick like 9.95, by Spunkadelic
The only things I hate about this flick, are that
The parents that complained about the first one robbed us of a classic trilogy, and the more I think about it the more irritated I get
We've had all these examples of great cinema since, and top notch technology, and yet Hollywood hasn't been able to top this one.
and those aren't really complaints.
My favorite film of all time.
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