Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 1990 Vs Ninja Turtles 2014: A Comparison

I am very much a 90’s child. I grew up with Ghostbusters, Power Rangers, Thundercats, and of course, the Ninja Turtles. My first cinematic experience is still clear in my mind. Being picked up from school by my dad at age 5, going to an old school theatre (complete with stale popcorn and sticky floors) to see Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles on the big screen.

So imagine the pure excitement of my inner child upon seeing the trailer for the 2014 reboot. It showed that they were sticking to the right formula: four mutant turtles being trained in the way of the ninja by their “father” rat, Splinter. All so they can one day take on The Shredder and his Foot Clan, all the while eating pizza and cracking jokes. I’ve watched this film, and trust me, it is awesome.

Still, I feel the Steve Barron 90’s version is superior, and here are my three reasons why:

• 1. Supporting cast



Judith Hoag, for me, is the better April O’Neil. That’s not to take anything away from Megan Fox ,she just didn’t pull me in with her performance. Also, not really seeing Tohoru Masamune’s Shredder out of his suit was disappointing. William Fichtner did well with his character Eric Sacks, bouncing off of Megan Fox and cracking jokes. But who can forget the tough,wisecracking Casey Jones? Elias Koteas did superbly, and his relationship with April and the Turtles seemed genuine.

• 2. Special effects

The 2014 version is probably around 80 percent CGI, with the Turtles coming to life through motion capture suits. This is highly impressive and brings some amazing things to the silver screen. How, though, can you surpass the Jim Henson suits from the 90’s? Knowing that the actors are in those suits, acting, doing ninja stuff and all around being real, is awe-inspiring.

• 3. The Foot Clan

I know, I could have gone with the fight scenes, or the general storyline. However, the Foot ninjas are major players in each film. As menacing as the 2014 version are, I didn’t feel they got it right. When I think of Shredder’s army, I imagine trained ninjas who try to hold their own against Splinter and his sons. The new interpretation are just black clad mercenaries with guns, and they still didn’t get the job done.

All in all, I still hold the 1990’s Ninja Turtles in high regard. The film holds up after all this time, so much so that my kids (with all of their modern tech) are enthralled by it.

Cowabunga!