Sarah Michelle Gellar

Turtle movie not terrible

Rated PG

Starring: Patrick Stewart, Sarah Michelle Gellar

Directed by: Kevin Munroe

Run time: 1 hour 27 minutes

For the first time in 14 years, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have jumped from the sewer to the silver screen, and for the most part, it’s a fun journey.

With a confusing storyline, great visuals and good voice acting, "TMNT" is a breath of fresh air in computer-animated flicks.

"TMNT" picks up where the last film left off. Shredder is long gone and the turtles have broken up. Leonardo has been sent to South America to learn leadership skills. Raphael has taken up another identity as an armored crime fighter, while Donatello works tech support and Michelangelo works as a children’s entertainer.

Reporter April O’Neil (Sarah Michelle Gellar) returns from South America with an artifact that a wealthy businessman, Max Winters (Patrick Stewart), is collecting. It turns out Winters is immortal and wants the artifact in order to right a wrong he committed 3,000 years ago. The rest of the plot is just confusing and convoluted, but it doesn’t have to be in-depth for a movie about ninja turtles and pizza.

The turtles return with their own distinct characteristics. Raphael is hard-edged and serious, Donatello is intellectual and technological, Michelangelo is a doofus and Leonardo is the reserved and cautious leader of the pack.

However, a majority of the plot is spent with conflicts between Raphael and Leonardo. The two constantly butt heads while the other two turtles are left on the backburner. While watching Raphael and Leo scrap is entertaining, the movie could have used a little more focus on all four turtles.

Another problem with the story is O’Neil. In "TMNT," she has suddenly become a treasure hunter who picked up some kung fu along the way. Add in her relationship with the scruffy Casey Jones, and her character feels like it has no direction.

Visually, the movie looks great onscreen and the turtles look awesome. The fight scenes are crisp and entertaining. The characters have a unique identity and look, though they might not be well developed story-wise. It’s a movie that looks way better than all previous chapters of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. It’s also different from most computer-animated flicks because it’s darker and more action-based, which is a good departure from the norm.

The movie works best by not making audiences think too hard about the plot. Instead, it works best when viewed as brainless eye candy. It’s also humorous at parts and offers up a few laughs.

For fans and children, "TMNT" is a great ride that is entertaining from beginning to end.