Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Review
Score: 85
from 7 reviewers
Review Date:
Mutant Mayhem revitalizes the TMNT franchise with striking 2160p/Dolby Vision video, Dolby Atmos audio, and engaging humor; extras are underwhelming but it's highly recommended.
Disc Release Date
2K Upscale
HDR10
Dolby Vision
Dolby Atmos
Dolby TrueHD
Video: 94
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem's 4K UHD Blu-ray from Paramount boasts an exquisite 2160p transfer with Dolby Vision HDR. The disc’s 2.39:1 HEVC-encoded image highlights intricate details and vibrant colors. The dynamic color grading and deep blacks render this animation with stunning clarity and depth.
Audio: 95
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem's Dolby Atmos soundtrack delivers a first-rate audio experience with crisp dialogue, substantial LFE moments, and impressive spatial awareness. The dynamic score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, immersive sound effects, and active surround channels make it a standout presentation.
Extra: 52
The 4K UHD release of 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem' includes engaging yet brief featurettes focused on casting, character development, and animation style, bolstered by a fun 'Learn to Draw Leo' tutorial, though it lacks depth and a Blu-ray copy.
Movie: 81
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem is a visually daring, dynamic revival of the franchise that brilliantly combines nostalgic elements with cutting-edge animation and modern sensibilities. With a superb voice cast led by Jackie Chan and Ice Cube, the 4K UHD Blu-Ray offers excellent detail, bolstered by an invigorating Reznor/Ross score. This film represents a bold step forward in animation, while authentically capturing the teenage spirit of the Turtles.
Video: 94
Paramount's 4K UHD Blu-ray release of "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem" stands as a remarkable showcase of modern animated filmmaking. The 2160p/Dolby Vision transfer, framed in the original 2.39:1 widescreen aspect ratio and encoded using HEVC (H.265), brings unprecedented clarity and sharpness to the screen. This high-resolution presentation enhances core details, from the distinctive textures on the Turtle skin and shells to the intricacies of their costumes, resulting in a finely detailed and vibrant image. The seamless integration of Wide Color Gamut (WCG) and High Dynamic Range (HDR) technologies underscores the animation’s textured, sketch-like aesthetic, making every frame pop with life and color.
The Dolby Vision HDR implementation particularly excels, bringing to vivid life the saturated palette central to the film's visual flair. Reds, blues, greens, and purples are rendered with incredible accuracy and intensity, making iconic elements like the Turtle bandannas and their vibrant environment magnificently eye-catching. The depth of black levels is critical for this visually darker film, providing necessary contrast and supporting the rich, neon-infused hues that define many scenes, such as the 'glow bowl' alley. The contrast peaks during moments like the Times Square sequence, where signage reaches near-maximum brightness, enhancing the dynamic range and giving a sense of almost three-dimensional depth.
The animation style, characterized by its angular, gritty design, benefits immensely from the 4K resolution. The simulated hand-drawn lines and textures are unmarred by noise or compression artifacts, offering a pristine viewing experience. Scenes are detailed from close-ups to wide shots, ensuring that elements such as sketch marks remain clear and immersive throughout. Despite lacking a 3-D option, the sense of depth in this 2-D transfer is superbly maintained, making "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem" a reference-quality disc in modern animation presentations.
Audio: 95
The Dolby Atmos audio track accompanying the 4K UHD Blu-ray release of "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem" excels in delivering a detailed and immersive sound experience. Filled with sonic intricacies, the track brings clarity and dynamism that enhances the movie’s energetic pace and layered storytelling. Dialogue is delivered clearly, predominantly through the frontal array but also effectively dispersed through the surround channels when needed. This ensures that even rapid exchanges remain coherent. The integration of the score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross is a notable highlight, blending seamlessly with action sequences and offering substantial bass impact. The sound effects, from the cacophony of chase scenes to the impactful grand finale, are handled with precision and weight, supported robustly by the LFE channels.
Spatially, the Atmos track fully exploits the potential of 3D sound design, creating a vibrant 360-degree soundstage. Scenes such as the opening raid in the lab showcase seamless movement and discrete usage of overheads to convey debris and other environmental effects. Throughout the film, subtle ambient sounds like echoes and dripping water in New York’s sewers lend authenticity to the urban setting. Despite its dynamic and at times frenetic nature, the mix maintains excellent separation and balance, with action elements never compromising clarity. The soundtrack also stands out with its marriage of 80s synth influence and contemporary beats, enhancing every scene it punctuates. The soundstage broadens impressively during key action sequences, with side, rear, and height channels contributing to an enveloping auditory experience.
Overall, this Dolby Atmos track offers rock-solid performance, making full use of each available channel to create a thorough, engaging audio environment. With punchy low-frequency effects, perfectly placed musical elements, and articulate dialogue throughout, this track exemplifies how modern surround sound can elevate a viewing experience. Whether it’s for the intense action or eclectic score, "Mutant Mayhem" ensures an audibly thrilling adventure that matches its vibrant visual flair.
Extra: 52
The 4K UHD Blu-ray release of "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem" delivers a concise yet enjoyable set of extras. While the depth of content might be limited, the supplements are engaging and cater to both fans and newcomers. Particularly notable is the casting featurette that highlights the authenticity brought by using actual teenagers for the Turtles' voices, which captures their unique personalities and camaraderie. The exploration of mutant characters and the intricacies of the film's animation and visual design provide a behind-the-scenes look at the creative process. The disc also includes an extensive drawing tutorial that stands out as both educational and fun, particularly for younger audiences.
Extras included in this disc:
- TEENage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Casting teenagers to play the turtles and exploring their unique qualities.
- The Mutant Uprising: A look at new and returning mutant characters and their voice actors.
- New York, New York: The Visual World of Mutant Mayhem: Insights into the film's animation style and production design.
- Learn to Draw Leo: A drawing tutorial with the Art For Kids YouTube Channel team focusing on Leonardo.
Movie: 81
**Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem is a visual treat that successfully modernizes the franchise while retaining its beloved core elements. Inspired by "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse," this film embraces a daring stylized animation that deviates from standard polished CGI to a more gritty, sketchbook vibe. Directors Jeff Rowe and Kyler Spears anchor the visual aesthetic in a way that recalls concept art brought to life, creating an energetic, raw, and captivating experience that echoes the comic book origins of the Turtles. Notable contributions from Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg in the script development imbue the film with pop culture-infused wit reminiscent of "Superbad," infusing the narrative with both humor and heart suitable for a teenage audience. The film’s stunning artistic choices are accentuated by a Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross score, bolstering the film’s vibrant energy and emotional depth.
Plot-wise, Mutant Mayhem focuses on the Turtles' quest for acceptance in the human world, with April O'Neil, voiced flawlessly by Ayo Edebiri, acting as their bridge to society. Jackie Chan’s portrayal of Splinter is both poignant and humorous, reflecting a genuine father-figure dynamic enriched by Chan’s signature martial arts style. The film notably introduces Superfly (Ice Cube) as a multi-dimensional villain whose end goal parallels the Turtles' desire for societal acceptance, albeit through vastly different means. The inclusion of a diverse cast of characters—each with unique voice performances from talents such as John Cena, Seth Rogen, and Paul Rudd—adds layers of charm and relatability. Rather than rehashing old narratives, this iteration provides a fresh origin story intertwined with themes of belonging and camaraderie.
Mutant Mayhem captivates with its high-energy action sequences and heartfelt quieter moments which both young audiences and long-time fans will appreciate. The innovative animation style and compelling storytelling set it apart as the most relevant Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie to date, successfully bridging generational gaps while delivering an engaging, visually arresting spectacle. It's a commendable step forward for the franchise, promising exciting future installments.
Total: 85
"Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem" is a compelling revitalization of the iconic franchise that seamlessly blends charm, action, and character depth. This animated reboot excels at creating a visually awe-inspiring experience, with 2160p/Dolby Vision video and Dolby Atmos audio providing a striking and near-pristine presentation. The narrative frames the epic action sequences within a character-driven story, leveraging the teenage angst and interpersonal dynamics that define the Turtles. Despite its occasional reliance on extensive exposition, the screenplay's witty banter and creative animation elevate it beyond its predecessors. The film delivers humor and heart, making it an enjoyable entry for both new viewers and long-time fans.
The 4K UHD release from Paramount is commendable, albeit slightly lacking in supplemental features. The extras, while satisfactory, do not match the high quality of the main feature. Nevertheless, the audio-visual quality remains exceptional, capturing the vibrant art direction and dynamic voice cast. The film not only stands out as this generation's best TMNT offering but also promises exciting futures with its potential sequels. Such excellence owes much to the pioneering animation styles seen in "Spider-Verse" and "The Mitchells vs. The Machines," while retaining its unique storytelling charm.
Conclusion: Is this the defining Turtles outing? Well, despite numerous attempts, nothing has quite achieved the right combination of action, comedy, charm, and visual majesty until now, nor tapped into that quintessential teen angst - forging a true origin story for this beloved quartet. Sure, it owes a lot to the success of "Spider-Verse" and the creators' own "The Mitchells vs. The Machines," but it is also very much its own thing, which is the beauty of just how much freedom animated filmmakers now have. Plenty more of this, please! Highly recommended. Paramount's 4K release of "Mutant Mayhem" is an excellent disc that comes highly recommended for both dedicated fans and those on the fence.
avforums review by Casimir HarlowRead review here
Video: 90
The detail afforded is stunning, the moulded shaping to the characters - the stop-motion-style Play-Doh shaping which lends a wonderful movement to the mouths in particular; the shading, the pencil-scratching,...
Audio: 90
Effects are thunderous when they need to be, from the Mad Max: Fury Road-esque street chase insanity to the superb song-set fighting montage, to the grandstanding double-whammy finale, with all the engine...
Extras: 60
The one disc 4K release, needless to say, includes all of the extras on the 4K disc itself, with a quartet of decent Featurettes that basically define this otherwise pretty limited package. ......
Movie: 80
The end result - coupled with another thrumming Reznor/Ross score, a bunch of excellent song tracks, and even someone with an eye for animated cinematography (there's a clear distinction between the more...
Total: 90
highly recommended Paramount's 4K release of Mutant Mayhem boasts unsurprisingly excellent video and audio, and, despite only a slender section of extra features ported over onto the single-disc 4K set,...
Blu-ray.com review by Martin LiebmanRead review here
Video: 90
The support background colors on city streets and in the sewers enjoy greater depth and accuracy, too, while black level accuracy and depth are improved here as well, vital considering that this is a dark...
Audio: 0
The top end is not used with discrete output with regularity, just as often performing in a supporting role as in a starring one, but the important thing is that this track is precisely engineered to take...
Extras: 90
The Mutant Uprising (1080p, 8:34): Exploring the slew of new and returning mutant characters and the actors who voice them....
Movie: 70
On the other hand, there's a potential for some audiences to find it off-putting because it is different: harder, less shiny, not as clean, going for a more crudely stylized look that accentuates the grim...
Total: 40
with some of the most epic action ever found in a Turtles film, yet even at its loudest and most monstrous the film always pushes back to that angle of character growth and depth in the pursuit of place...
Blu-ray Authority review by Matt BrightonRead review here
Video: 90
Even though we’ve had other Turtles movies, the freshened-up visuals help this one stand out in a positive way....
Audio: 90
While a movie like this will make more use out of atmospheric sound than, say, a romantic comedy – it’s done well....
Extras: 50
New York, New York: The Visual World of Mutant Mayhem— Take a deep dive into the breakthrough visual style of the film’s characters and environments and how they evolved over time....
Movie: 0
The turtles are on a mission to stop him, that is until a second villan, Cynthia Utrom (voiced by Maya Rudolph) comes along… Despite my backstory of the turtles, I’ve never been a huge fan....
Total: 70
Paramount’s disc looks and sounds pretty darn good, though the disc is a bit light on the supplements....
DoBlu review by Matt PaprockiRead review here
Video: 100
Backed by the black levels, Mutant Mayhem sports tremendous depth, close to actually being 3D even without the actual effect....
Audio: 100
Discrete motion is detectable even during dialog scenes; maybe a TV speaker spreads into a stereo, or the music fills the rears....
Extras: 40
Mostly for kids, the generic making of material, stuff about the characters, and a drawing tutorial make up the bonuses....
Movie: 80
It’s all written and performed with a delectable honesty and surrealism, that when paired with a masterful art style, makes Mutant Mayhem all the more grounded, albeit in its own weird, bizarre mutant...
Total: 80
A fantastic retelling of the Ninja Turtles’ origins, Mutant Mayhem is this generation’s best TMNT movie....
High-Def Digest review by Matthew HartmanRead review here
Video: 100
Even without a 3-D Blu-ray, I felt there was a terrific sense of depth to the image, especially for the really big intricate action sequences....
Audio: 100
This is a BIG-sounding film letting those front, side, rear, and height channels get plenty of attention....
Extras: 40
The coverage on actually using teenage actors for the voices and the design work of the mutants and the world is really cool, I just wish there was more to it than a few soundbites....
Movie: 90
All of the great action, story direction, and writing in Mutant Mayhem wouldn’t be worth a gallon of pizza grease without a talented team of art designers....
Total: 90
Now three times through, I still get a kick out of this flick with the great voice cast, terrific art direction, fun action, and great humor....
Home Theater Forum review by Neil MiddlemissRead review here
Video: 100
Detail is precise for the animation expression, bold lines, blurs, neon colors, the appearance of splashed or smeared colors bringing a playful dimension....
Audio: 100
It’s both a wonderful throwback to the Harold Faltermeyer action scoring days, with a wisp of Jan Hammer, and an assortment of other 80’s fueled influences ratcheted up a notch with grungier twinges and...
Extras: 50
The film doesn’t include a Blu-ray copy, only a digital code sheet along with the 4K disc that redeems the film in UHD (redeemed via VUDU) where it also includes the film’s trailer and how to dram Donatello...
Movie: 90
The emotion of the teenagers looking to be accepted resonates and the voice performances convey teenage doubt, inexperience, cockiness, and know-better attitudes well....
Total: 90
It may open with more than its fair share of exposition heavy dialogue, and wander about in that space a few more times, but the screenplay riffs and plays with a dense amount of overlapping humorous banter...
Why So Blu? review by Brandon PetersRead review here
Video: 100
Depth: Being computer generated animation, it lends itself to a more 3 dimensional look and feel with plenty of spacing and pushback....
Audio: 100
As mentioned, the music in the film really hits, but so does a lot of the action and the nice accents on natural foley stuff as well....
Extras: 40
Though, altogether, it makes for a pretty solid package for a modern movie releasing on home video for the first time....
Movie: 80
This take on the Turtles is a refreshing one as it envisions a new way of things while feeling true to who and what the series is....
Total: 80
Director: Jeff Rowe, Kyler Spears
Actors: Micah Abbey, Shamon Brown Jr., Nicolas Cantu
PlotIn New York City, beneath the bustling streets, four unconventional brothers emerge from the sewers. They're not your typical teenagers; they're a quartet of genetically mutated turtles with a penchant for martial arts and an unbreakable bond as brothers. Named after Renaissance artists, Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello, and Michelangelo were raised and trained by their rat sensei, Splinter. Hidden from the world, they've grown up on a heavy diet of pizza and brotherhood, honing their skills and forming a vigilant team under the cover of darkness.
The turtles' routine life is upended when a surge of strange, mutated creatures start wreaking havoc on the city. Alongside this chaos, the existence of mutants becomes widely known, leading to fear and unrest among the citizens. Eager to prove themselves as heroes and win the acceptance of the public, the brothers venture out regularly to fight crime and face the rising tide of evil. During their adventures, they encounter a tenacious reporter, April O'Neil, and a host of other allies and adversaries. The turtles must navigate the complexities of friendship, trust, and the clash between the desire for open lives versus the safety of secrecy. Meanwhile, a sinister figure with a personal vendetta emerges, challenging their efforts to protect the city and posing a threat that may unravel the fabric of their very existence.
Writers: Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, Jeff Rowe
Release Date: 02 Aug 2023
Runtime: 99 min
Rating: PG
Country: United States, Japan, Canada
Language: English