Time to look at the movie with the really phony star... also the CG Turtles that play 2nd fiddle to her. TMNT Out of the Shadows Review: • TMNT: Out of the Shado... phelous.com / phelous #TMNT #TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles
Just hearing that one line from Splinter. "All fathers care for their sons." brought a tear to my eye. That's a powerful scene when just that 5 second clip can do that.
2:45 Michelangelo spinning his Nunchucks on one finger! I'm still not sure how they pulled that effect off! It's clearly not computer generated, so it impresses me a lot more than anything in the newer films!
From what I can tell that's a mechanical arm attached to the suit and there's some sort of switch mechanism that twirls the numchucks like a ceiling-fan. The way the arm bobs around if you specifically look at it highly suggest that.
The 1990 movie was like 85% from the Mirage series, which is very mature, and has a lot of pretty dark, noir-ish stuff at times indeed. It only added very few things from the cartoon, such as the turtles having unique colored headbands and love for pizza, April being a reporter instead of a computer engineer, and Splinter not outright commanding the turtles to kill Saki because of a honor debt.
He IS EASILY the favorite reviewer of both myself and my husband. I'll drop whatever I'm currently watching for a new phelous video. ESPECIALLY if it's a video game or animated feature review.
The problem with CGI is the animators have no restraint. It's all well and good having an image that looks real but if you make it move so unbelievably and over the top, it will make it look fake no matter how advanced the CG.
A self taught Splinter could be pretty cool, if done right. Like, what if Splinter mutated much earlier than the Turtles, so spent a lot of time in solitude, taking those fundamentals he picked up from a book and developing them into his own amateur style? His attempts to adapt the style to the Turtles bigger and less nimble bodies could also be a great vehicle for his coming down from his long hermit ways. It's a way for him to approach, understand and then adjust to another being, even if it is a fellow mutant, with the pretense of being impersonal. I'm not really a Turtles fan, though, so I have no idea how that idea will bounce off of a seasoned fan.
9:29 That's actually how I felt about Transformers in Bayformers as well. I'm pretty sure, Michael Bay believes, that humans are incapable of caring for any character, that is not a human being, while the truth is, his audience is incapable of caring for any husk of a character present in a Bay movie.
WHAT IS WRONG WITH THE 2014 TURTLES' MOUTHS?? WHY DO THEY HAVE LIPS LIKE THAT?? WHY DO THEY LOOK LIKE AN ANNOYING ORANGE CHARACTER?? WHY IS IT SO UNSETTLING??
You summed it up perfectly. When you compare this with the quality of the 90 film and the amazing Jim Henson work, there's just no question what's wrong with today's approach....Out of the Shadows was exactly what I was expecting going in to the 90's film as a kid and I was instead treated to a nice surprise..I agree whole heartedly when it comes to cgi/motion capture. It's an amazing tech that is useful and should be used to touch up where needed, but it shouldn't mean that we should completely throw out puppetry/animatronics and actual costumes.
Because a lot of people are idiots that look down on films for being animated. That's also why you don't see that many illustrated posters for live action movies.
@@skyblueblazes9332 ... Wait... THERE WERE REAL PEOPLE IN THIS? WHERE? There was that Transformers eye-candy chick but I refuse to believe she is "real"
This may not have been directed by Micheal Bay but, like the Transformer sequels, this movie is much more interested in over-the-top action and visuals than it is in story and character.
The most Bayish thing in this movie is that the Turtles look more like the Gears of War cast and come off, at least to me, a bit racist. Yeah I know, people are sick of hearing that argument, but seriously, all I see is a super buff generic xXx-style movie cast except green. All that's missing is the hip ho- oh wait there is the elevator scene and the shell shocked song, nevermind. Paired with the gangstah poses and the dirty talk shtick. Yeah I stick to my point. But noone seems to see it. Or dare to mention it.
If anything, this has to be the most Un-TMNT thing ever made for the franchise, even moreso than the third movie, the "Coming Out of Their Shells" Tour, and The Next Mutation. Not to mention the climax of the toxic gas being released over New York is nearly identical to the climax of The Amazing Spider Man, which was released a year earlier than this film. At least it's better than what the film's original script was, which was literally just a rehash of the first Transformers film but with TMNT characters (and Krang as Megatron, who had 4 arms for some reason), and Casey Jones essentially being Shia Lebouf's character in Transformers, so even with the problems this movie has, it's still better than what we could have gotten.
As for Michael Bay's influence on this movie, I still say even when not directing, it's kind of what you would joke a Michael Bayed TMNT would be like. I mean, Megan Fox as April, a Shredder that looks like a Transformer and weird huge turtles...come on. He worked his kinks in.
The IDW comics split the difference with Splinter origins by having him be mutated from a lab rat, but the rat is the reincarnation of Hamato Yoshi from medieval Japan. It's a weird case where making things more complex actually helps them make more sense.
@Shawn Payne Thought so. The style looks good and the designs for the turtles really make them stand out from eachother, but it was too good to be true. How is it spiteful?
Yep... Always thought it was ridiculous that she goes and takes a photo of the Turtles on the roof, with flash to call attention to it. Idiot. She doesn't even know if they're friendly yet, AND... while three are celebrating and not paying much attention, do you NOT notice the rather large guy by himself off to the right, still very vigilant and on edge with two very large SWORDS in his hands? Still keeping an eye on things like a good big brother and leader. Yes, lets make THAT guy feel like he and his brothers are under threat. Smart move. Although given that he was facing her, you'd think Leo would have noticed her before she even took the photo. And then for some reason he runs off and climbs a water tower so he can be dramatic...
I think the thing that bothers a lot of folks with that is just how aged that joke will become since the only reason it's there is to highlight smartphones and how 'anyone can be a reporter now' just by using their camera but WHOOPS! It still has flash and sounds! Isn't that HILARIOUS?! I'm more bothered by just how HUGE the turtles are and how that takes away the stealth that they used to have when they were actually SMALLER than April. A ninja is about quickness and stealth. I mean, even if you're kinda tall you can still have grace but the movie doesn't hide that these turtles as massive AND heavy (one of them cracks bricks under his feet when he gets in April's way to stop her) so it loses the NINJA aspect of it.
In a movie so heavily reliant on CGI, it's hard for any actor to give a genuine reaction to something they know isn't actually in front of them. Actors for the Star Wars prequels complained about this a lot. The acting during the 90s turtles films were mostly better because they actually had actors in turtle costumes, and so actors could give more genuine performances. That said, Meghan Fox can't act her way out of a paper bag, but movies so heavily reliant on CGI don't do her any favors. Awesome review Phelous. I've been on a turtles binge lately, and you're the go to reviewer.
I like your ideas at the start. Use masterful practical effects, then ENHANCE them digitally to cover up things impractical to fix in real life that would cost too much or look funny. Probably cheaper than digitally drawing the entire movie, too.
Hi! Just wanted to say that I started watching your videos recently, and you're hilarious. Plus you got me into the real ghostbusters cartoon.... thank you for that. You're awesome!
I don't know why they chose to make the Turtles like 7 feet tall. I mean, you could take most of the design ideas for this ones, and make them smaller, and it'd be ok. Not just because they've never been particularly huge like here, or because it's not really part of at least 3 parts of the title, but because smallness suggest an implicit vulnerability. Which is helpful in stories where your character is an underdog. I mean, you could make Luke Skywalker as tall as Lebron James, but should you, though?
I don't even consider these things to be the Ninja Turtles. I refer to it as "The Bay Turtles" or "Adolescent Genetically Altered Karate Terrapins" to avoid association.
To be fair to the film what they ended up going for with Sacks could’ve worked Shredder having his own personal apprentice that isn’t just another member of the foot clan is a nice idea and could’ve given the turtles a run for their money
Why didn't they just reveal Sachs as a student of Shredder, setting Shredder up as the final fight/ next movie's villain But that would really only work if you had the history between Hamato Yoshi and Shredder... which they also still could've done by making him a person captured but w/e There are plenty of things to do with this material, come on
i love this. they thought having a hot girl do the sexy lips-parted model face was enough and then phelous is all "this character is boring! she doesn't do anything but stand around with a blank dumb look on her face!" lol. i wasn't attracted to the actress so when you take that away she really is just, nothing.
In all honestly, they at least knew the '80s cartoon well and the second one upped the nostalgia factor with the introduction of Bebop, Rocksteady and Krang trying to bring the Technodrome to Earth. (And Kevin Eastman's cameo...) I cannot say the same about "Jem", which is infuriating as the creator of that show WANTED to be involved. But I do agree, it dragged by the time they got to the Niagra Falls sequence. And I'm so glad the second one dropped Michaelangelo being creepy with April. But NOT having April's roommate be Irma is a BIG missed opportunity. (I am questioning why Del Taco did the tie-in for the next movie...)
Actually, this movie uses the IDW origin for the TMNT in which not only where the Turtles and Splinter were lab rats who were given names by April but also that Splinter was the spiritual reincarnation of Hamato Yoshi who was killed in Ancient Japan by Shredder so Hamato Yoshi is technically in this movie.
Ik I’m late but I hear from a review one of the suite actors said they were treated like shit on set like when they were done filming like at 3 am and they were all pooped he said the main actors and cast and crew all got into cars and took off and they got told that a van would pick them up and they sat there 3 hours before they got picked up so he said it was a nightmare set
If they were going to go with cgi couldn't they have used motion capture and have the actors actually do the moves? I mean I know it's not the same but you felt the weight of something when you knew that there was someone doing the actions. It's not as good as reality but it would still be more impressive than just ridiculous action scenes
....... Yeah, read up on how they treated the actors in the suits and you'll understand why this would have been a bad idea. It's part of the reason there wasn't a 3rd one even if the 2nd did alright.
One of the turtles: “so Sensei, I’ve been wondering this for a while, you gave us our names, but what are you actually called” Hamato Yoshi: “sensei” The turtle: “no, no, sensei is a title, position, what’s your name?” Hamato Yoshi puts his hand on the table: “well you see- AHHH! Splinter! Splinter!” The turtle: “I’m proud to be your disciple Master Splinter” Hamato Yoshi: “THAT WASN’T MY ANSWER TO YOUR QUESTION!” The turtle: “oh . . . I see, let me get that out for you” Splinter: “thank you my son, my name is actually Hamato Yoshi, but if you can call me Splinter if you like” I just randomly came up with that in my head
LOL, that was a perfect Krang. I agree with every point you made Phelous. It still pisses me off to see that they adorned the turles with pieces of flair just to add character and then never actually develop any character through the film.
Hey Phelous, I know it's annoying to read a bunch of "You should review whatever and stuff", but seeing as you made a bunch of TMNT videos before and showed us that TMNT is a beloved series for you, I think it would be pretty cool to see your thoughts on Dragon Ball Evolution. As you are also a big Dragon Ball fan.
Not sure he’d have anything else to add that the countless other reviewers haven’t already talked about (even hypocrite NC, who said he’d never do it and even made a vid of him manipulating others to do it for him, only to turn around and do it anyway with Little Kuriboh and MasakoX as his experts in a collab in order to make it seem more legit and not a bandwagon review)
@@JThom529 There are some interesting stories about how it got made, and just interesting stuff to say about the movie in general, but I even find myself disinterested reading about that stuff because I'd rather just forget that the movie existed.
The exact thing that was described about enhancing practical effects with CGI is the exact thing that they did in the Dark Crystal series. And guess what, that show looks amazing!
+philipnova798 I do agree that the 90's costumes are far better than this movie, but I get annoyed when people constantly point out that the CG effects aren't really there and look fake. Unless of course they look like they look like Food Fight or The Spawn.
The problem isn't the animators, it's the directors using CGI as a crutch and replacing any special effect with it instead of using it to complement practical effects.
Another problem with using CGI for living creatures, at least for the whole movie (as opposed to using it for far shots like Jurassic Park did) is that the filmmakers expect us to buy that it's as realistic as the human actors and, well, by its very nature, it's not. A practical suit or animatronic machine, even when done poorly, still looks real because it's actually a physical thing with weight and consistence. THEN you can add CGI on top of it to make it look better and give it a more organic feel or add stuff that couldn't be done practically.
I think if bulk of the movie is going to be CG, might as well have the human characters to be CG too. Just be an animated movie. I think that's what bugs people. It's more of an animated movie that just happens to have some real actors in it than a live action movie. CG can be great to do effects that can't be possible with practical effects or a scene that could possibly be a danger to an actor/stunt person. But I can understand people's complaints when it's over done. Sometimes the CG character isn't blended well with the real set and when interacting with an actor so it stands out too much. CG is actually more expensive than practical effects. I'm often surprised by movies that use CG for almost everything that can be done with practical effects (a good example would be blood which would be costly to animate and render in CG vs fake blood that can be made with things you can find at the store.).
Hi Phelan, i'm a huge fan, i've been watching your content on and off for almost ten years now (yes, it's been that long). I just wanted you to know that i apreciate the work you've put out for this long, it's awesome to see that the old guard is still doing the work and keeping the masses entertained and educated. Thank you and keep on doing what you do! :D
Having Mikey as my favorite character and seeing him especially stripped from everything that made him so fun and still believable in the original movie and over most of the animated series got me really mad. Seeing you vent about the movie helped a lot. Thanks for that! Great review, as always!
Something I want to see is Phelous doing a ranking video about all TMNT movies there are. I’m curious to hear his thoughts on each one and why he puts it in that ranking. Not a tier list, but a top ten style with all TMNT films.
You are my absolute favorite reviewer, and this was spot on! I hope you know how beloved you are, Phelous! My whole "Suggested" list on here is filled with your videos, haha. Keep up the great work and thanks for years of entertainment!
You're brilliant and I love these videos. I hope my videos are half as good as what you do. Also, sometimes I fall asleep listening to you and have Ray Ramono / ninja turtles dreams AND I loves it. Keep up the good work my friend.
I don't get why everyone says the Turtles look so ugly - I mean, no, I do get it - but I don't understand why noone ever mentions the absolutely horrifying, trumatising, Foodfight-level-gross hideousness that is Splinter in this movie. I'm unable to look straight at him most of the time.
Great job, I'm glad you finally reviewed this one. I will admit, while I would have preferred a good TMNT movie made by someone who actually cared, a part of me wanted the so-bad-it's-good movie where alien turtles fought General Shraidder :D
Granted, as you said, it didn't really help things at all, but I love the fact that it was fanboy reaction that caused the Shredder re-shoots. They got their Japanese Shredder, alright! Hahaha
There was an entirely CGI TMNT movie in 2007, that pretty much disappeared due to poor ratings. But it was a heck of a lot better than this movie. (gonna review it?)
The animation was good in that, but the story was weird. The best part of it was that Mako voiced Splinter. (He's the voice of Iroh in Avatar the Last Airbender for the first two seasons before he passed away from lung cancer.)
25:31 Well the baby turtles and the little girl playing April as a child are really adorable. Maybe they were hoping the audience would just go aaw and not think.
