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'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows' Blu-ray Review: More fun than 'The Secret of the Ooze'

September 20, 2016Ben MK



FEATURE: 
As the second movie in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles rebooted movie canon, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows is bound to draw comparisons to 1991's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze. But while both films exist largely to serve the franchise's marketing and merchandise machines, Out of the Shadows is arguably a whole lot more fun — especially for fans of the Turtles' '80s cartoon series.

Picking up a year after the events of 2014's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Out of the Shadows finds the city of New York still oblivious to the Turtles' heroic deeds. Instead, cameraman Vern "The Falcon" Fenwick (Will Arnett) has taken credit for saving the city from the evil Shredder's (Brian Tee) reign of terror, garnering the adoration of everyday New Yorkers, and leaving our heroes in a half shell — Mikey (Noel Fisher), Raph (Alan Ritchson), Donnie (Jeremy Howard) and Leo (Pete Ploszek) — free to continue fighting crime from the shadows.

However, when reporter April O'Neil (Megan Fox) uncovers a plan to break Shredder out of prison, the Turtles are forced to spring into action once again. And this time, they'll not only have to face Shredder, but also his imbecilic, mutant minions Bebop and Rocksteady (Gary Anthony Williams and WWE wrestler Sheamus), who are trying to piece together the fragments of an alien device called the arc capacitor, so that the alien warlord Krang (Brad Garrett) can open up an inter-dimensional portal and attack the Earth with his war machine, the Technodrome.

What follows is a love letter to everyone who grew up on a steady diet of the Turtles' '80s cartoon adventures, as director Dave Green and writers Josh Applebaum and André Nemec have packed the movie to the gills with Turtles nostalgia, from Stephen Amell's Casey Jones to Tyler Perry's Baxter Stockman. Suffice to say, it's hard not to love Out of the Shadows, especially when so much of the movie pays homage to the Turtles' hand-drawn adventures.

AUDIO & VISUALS: 
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows cowabungas its way onto Blu-ray with a thoroughly crisp, film-like and ultra-vibrant 1080p transfer that should make Turtles fans very, very happy. From the CG characters, like Bebop and Rocksteady, Krang and the Turtles themselves, to the live-action elements, picture quality is highly detailed, with a richness of color that borders on sensory overload, especially when it comes to the at-times neon-looking orange, red, purple and blue of the Turtles' masks, or Bebop's bright purple mohawk and sunglasses. Likewise, the movie's Dolby Atmos sound mix delivers a fully immersive audio experience, from the sound of Leo's katanas slicing through the air, to the rumble of Bebop and Rocksteady's tank plowing through the Brazilian rainforest, to the Technodrome's thunderous arrival in the skies over New York City.

EXTRAS: 
Paramount's two-disc Blu-ray combo pack includes an iTunes/UltraViolet digital copy, a DVD and the following Blu-ray extras:

  • We are Family (8:15) - A behind-the-scenes look at the camaraderie between actors Noel Fisher, Pete Ploszek, Jeremy Howard and Alan Ritchson, and the brotherly bond between their TMNT characters on-screen.
  • Whoa! Expanding the Turtleverse (14:19) - A look at the characters who have made their way from the cartoons and comics into the Turtles sequel, from Bebop and Rocksteady, to Krang, to Casey Jones, as well as the performances of Laura Linney, Brian Tee and Tyler Perry.
  • House Party (6:18) - Production Designer Martin Laing and Set Decorator Debra Schutt give viewers a tour of the Turtles' new subterranean lair.
  • It's Tricky: Inside the Van (4:08) - A look at the production design behind the brand-new Turtle Van.
  • ILM - The Effects Beneath the Shell (3:04) - A VFX reel highlighting ILM's contributions to the Turtles sequel.
  • Did You Catch That? Turtle Eggs! (3:02) - A look at the various Easter eggs found throughout the film, from the sound effects, to the set design, to the props.
  • Deleted Scenes (4:54) - Three scenes ("Promotion," "Career Opportunities" and "Kiss Me").

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows is available from Paramount Home Entertainment as of September 20th, 2016. The Blu-ray features English Dolby Atmos, French, Spanish and Portuguese Dolby Digital 5.1, and English Dolby Digital 5.1 Descriptive Audio tracks. The film is presented with English, English SDH, French, Spanish and Portuguese subtitles. The total runtime is 1 Hr. 52 Mins.







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