It is hardly surprising that Michael Bay’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles reboot has already succeeded in dividing critics. Some claim that Bay has captured something new in the origins of our heroes in the half-shell, while others have it that Bay has simply taken all the fun out of the franchise. It seems that each of us are going to have to make up our own minds about whether or not Bay has done right by the Turtles, or ruined them for all time.
One of the more acclaimed scenes from the film includes our mutated heroes in an elevator heading up to their climactic battle with Shredder. They take a brief respite from being serious turtles and spend a few light-hearted minutes beatboxing in a manner that recalls some of the campiest aspects of the early 90s films that many of us grew up with. It’s a charming little moment, and one which you can now watch in a clip from Yahoo.
I grew up loving Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, from the films to the cartoon show to the action figures, and so it gives me a bit of a pain to see the Bay-ification of my childhood heroes. I still don’t like the CGI, which makes the Turtles look more turtle-like but somehow less realistic. But we must remember that those early films were totally ridiculous at best, a far cry from the original and much darker comics that launched the characters. Maybe Bay has actually returned the Turtles to their origins in making a more serious-minded film. I’m not sure, but it could be worse, right?
You can decide if you want to give Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles a fair shake by watching the clip below. Be forewarned, however: this might be said to contain spoilers, especially there in the last few seconds.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles opens this Friday.