Great style, solid fun—but not quite the cowabunga I was hoping for.
I went into Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem with cautious optimism. The trailers promised a fresh, stylistic take on a beloved franchise—and in some ways, it really delivered. The animation style is fantastic—gritty, vibrant, and full of comic book energy. Visually, it’s one of the most creative TMNT projects to date.
The voice acting is another highlight. The teenage turtles actually sound like teenagers this time around, and the chemistry between them brings some genuine fun to the screen. There’s also a stacked supporting cast—Seth Rogen, Jackie Chan, and Ice Cube all bring something unique to the table, with Ice Cube’s Superfly adding just the right amount of ridiculous villainy to keep things entertaining.
But for all the style and charm, the story didn’t totally land with me. Part of that may be due to timing—it came out the same year as Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, which raised the bar for what an animated film can be: visually daring and emotionally resonant. Compared to that, Mutant Mayhem feels more surface-level.
The story is fun and fast-paced, but it doesn’t quite hit the emotional beats I’ve come to expect from modern animated films. While it definitely appeals to kids and longtime TMNT fans, it lacks the deeper layer that would have made it resonate with adult audiences on a more meaningful level.
Still, there’s a lot to admire. The comic-book-inspired look is a blast, the action sequences are energetic, and the film does a great job reintroducing these iconic characters to a new generation. It just didn’t click for me the way I hoped it would.
Not a bad movie—just one that didn’t quite find its footing with this particular viewer.
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