Review: 'Mutant Mayhem' is a fresh, authentic take on the Ninja Turtles

Radioactive ooze generated the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and "Spider-man: Into the Spider-Verse" has helped birth "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem," the new animated feature about everyone's favorite rambunctious, pizza-loving reptiles.

Directors Jeff Rowe and Kyler Spears showcase the turtles in a way we've never seen them before, utilizing a blend of 3-D and 2-D animation to create a unique, rough-hewn (on purpose) style that blends children's book illustrations with teenage sketchbooks.

That edgy look is paired with a script that's funny and fresh, a soundtrack filled with classic New York hip-hop and a stunning industrial score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross.

"Mutant Mayhem" is both a new direction for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and a return to the past, symbolically, locating the material in the land of teenage imagination, memory, nostalgia and emotion.

The animation style doesn't quite nod to the comic book series by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird, but rather looks like a messy drawing that a fan might scribble in a notebook, with lopsided heads and visible drawing lines, as if done by crayon or pastel.

The color palette is dark with pops of neon, giving it an early '90s look. Sprinkled throughout are video clips that nod to the cultural touchstones of the creators: snippets of "Ferris Bueller's Day Off," a salute to John Hughes, to whose vision of American high school the teen turtles cling, and instructional karate training videos, which is how the rat Splinter (Jackie Chan) teaches his young turtle sons to defend themselves against the terrifying outside world.

The creators get back to basics with the story, focusing on the question of fathers and sons, mutants existing within humanity and the universal desire for acceptance.

Splinter, a New York City street rat, is already inured to human rejection when he adopts the four adorable turtles covered in radioactive ooze. He raises them in a loving environment, away from the hustle and bustle (and malice) of the city, and Leonardo (Nicolas Cantu), Donatello (Micah Abbey), Raphael (Brady Noon), and Michaelangelo (Shamon Brown Jr.) grow up in a tight-knit quartet, though they long to be part of the world.

On the other hand is supervillain Superfly (Ice Cube), a mutant who doesn't hide from humanity, but harbors genocidal impulses toward the people who have deemed him and his mutant brethren unacceptable. He wants to make every creature on Earth a mutant, tipping the balance of power away from the humans and toward the mutants, believing it to be the only way they'll find their place in the world.

With the help of intrepid reporter April O'Neil (Ayo Edebiri), the turtles decide to stop Superfly in the hopes that if they're seen as heroes, they'll be celebrated and integrated into society in order to fulfill their dream of going to high school (they're teenagers, they've got teenage dreams).

The themes are broad and universal but the writing is remarkable — the dialogue feels natural and authentic to the age group, and it's filled with modern slang and references to pop culture, rap songs, anime, comedy and more. Their desire for community is a resonant message, but it's expressed in layered dialogue that feels like the way real teens talk to each other, and it's beautifully performed by the four actors voicing the turtles.

The filmmakers manage to balance the contemporary feel of the writing and innovative visual style with their own nostalgia for childhood cultural touchstones, which makes "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem" a fascinating and highly entertaining blend of old and new.

'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem'
3½ stars out of 4
Rated: PG for violence, language and impolite material.
Where: In theaters Wednesday.