Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows (2016)

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows (2016) Full Movie HD TS

The turtles face a new challenge when Shredder escapes from custody and joins forces with Baxter Stockman, a mad scientist who plans to use a serum to take over the world. Along for the ride are Bebop and Rocksteady, two dimwitted henchmen who provide plenty of muscle. Luckily, the turtles have their own allies in April O’Neil, Vernon Fenwick and Casey Jones, a hockey-masked vigilante. As the pizza-loving heroes prepare for battle, the notorious Krang also emerges to pose an even greater threat.

There’s an inexplicable, deliberate sadness to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows. I’m not just saying that because the Turtles earnestly root for the New York Knicks, whose combined record since the 2014 reboot of the franchise is a sad 49-115. Rating I’m not just saying that because three-time Academy Award nominee Laura Linney not only appears in the movie but has to mutter the phrase, “Well played.” Or because Tyler Perry shows up to cosplay as an evil version of Neil deGrasse Tyson. No, I’m saying that because the Turtles seem a bit depressed. They live like vampires, only coming out at night and never letting their true selves be seen. Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael, and Michelangelo don’t like the way they look, and believe in their hearts that even if they save the world, humanity will never accept them. At best, they only barely resemble the fun-loving reptiles many of us remember from the ’90s, when kids wanted to be the Ninja Turtles because the Turtles’ lives — centered on martial arts, pizza, nunchucks, and cowabungas — seemed like a blast. Instead, in the eyes of Out of the Shadows director Dave Green, the heroes in a half-shell are the bête noire of society. It’s not that people won’t gravitate to the idea of the Turtles being lonely outsiders; that approach has worked for superheroes like the X-Men and Batman. But I’m a little puzzled as to why Out of the Shadows utterly lacks joy and silliness and prioritizes scowl, when the entire Ninja Turtles franchise is built on having fun. Indeed, if the movie accomplishes anything, it’s that it makes “It’s Turtle Time” feel more like a threat than a battle cry.