Vigilant �Turtle� power brings the city to a halt
Bakang Israel | Thursday October 23, 2014 15:20
The most anticipated movie Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT) finally graced our big screens last Friday, after the long wait since its worldwide release in August.
Mutant ninja turtles from Manhattan sewers also made Gaborone come to a halt with theatres like Masa sold out on premiere night, as movie enthusiast came in numbers to watch the movie.
This film is derived from the hard-hitting Nickelodeon cartoons of the same name and the movie does emulate them (cartoons).
The film has a lot of action, with a touch of comedy, and a bit of adventure. This film also has a sci-fi feel to it.
Turtle characters are super enhanced into human figures; all these features blend in and make TMNT a blockbuster that caters for different tastes. As for the cast and the crew behind this great movie, TMNT stars Megan Fox as (April O’Neal). Fox is synonymous for her amazing performances and big movie temperament.
In her TMNT role, she soothed big screen lovers as a fearless news reporter. Although the turtles were voice actors, they also delivered.
Credit has to go to director Jonathan Liebesman who pieced together this smash hit. It is so impressive to see African actresses such as Charlize Theron, Lupita Nyongo and award-winning cinematographer Dion Beebe (from Collateral) doing so well in Hollywood.
Liebesman hails from South Africa. The director and his screenwriters brought something fresh to the eyes of the viewers as all aspects of TMNT are original.
The cinematography is well done, and the turtles looked real. The gadgets are amazing- most notably the taser guns that Shredder’s foot-clan soldiers were using against the turtles.
The electricity from the guns is one of the commendable special features that enhanced the film’s overall image and appeal.
The battles were also astronomical, for example the sewer fight between Master Splinter and Shredder as well as the snow chase downhill between Karai and the turtles.
Such locations as the snowy hill, the sewers of Manhattan and the rooftop of the New York skyscrapers complemented the interesting cinematography. The storyline starts off with Shredder and his evil Foot Clan harassing everyone, from the police to the politicians.
The future is grim until four unlikely outcast brothers rise from the sewers and discover their destiny as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
The turtles must work with fearless reporter April O’Neil and her cameraman Vern Fenwick to save the city and unravel Shredder’s diabolical plan.
This great storyline and screenplay makes this movie one of the best films of 2014.
A look at the book office and reception indicates that TMNT stood at the 17th spot last weekend on the chart simply because this film was released in August in the USA.
Its best highlight is the fact that TMNT pocketed a whopping $65 million in its premiere weekend back in August, which skyrocketed it to second spot behind the then number one blockbuster, Guardians Of The Galaxy.
So second spot was its highest rank.
The film has enjoyed quite a fair share of the market as it has now raked in a staggering $374 million worldwide including Botswana since its release, tripling its budget of $125 million.
TMNT has made a success to a point that the makers have considered a sequel, which is scheduled for release on June 3, 2016.
It is safe to award it 9/10 rating, because it absolutely brought the house down thrilling viewers in every direction with action, adventure, comedy, and sci-fi.