When Comic Book Movies Became Dark

During the late 1980s and early 1990s, independent films were often disregarded by moviegoers, but with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, that sure wasn't the case. Many fans did not realize that the first live action Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle movie was actually an independent film. That may come as a shock to some, but in reality what major film studio would want to distribute an unusual movie about four mutant turtles? The film's overall budget was 13 and a half million dollars and its worldwide gross was a whopping 200 million dollars. This was a very high grossing film for its time considering the absence of CGI films (which tend to gross over 200 million domestically). What was even more bizarre about this film was that it was highest grossing independent film of all time in 1990. The Ninja Turtles generated positive reviews, but prominent critics such as Siskel and Ebert downright bashed the Turtles despite of its monstrous success calling it "marketing to the ultimate degree" and "depressing". Even though they did make some good points, it was clear that both of them have never heard of the comics because the film was closely based on it. Since the Internet wasn't a household tool in 1990, fans were basically surprised to see the turtles in live action form because nobody at the time believed it was possible to make a movie about giant mutant turtles. The costumes were designed by the legendary Jim Henson who passed away from streptococcus pneumonia two months after the movie was released.

Several months prior to Eastman and Laird's live action Ninja Turtles movie release, the first highly acclaimed Batman film also made its debut to comic book fans. The one thing that these two films have in common was the dark atmosphere surrounding the vigilantes. Prior two both these movies releases, dark comic book films were non-existent. We had movies such as Superman that were remotely dark. You can actually say that Tim Burton's Batman and the first TMNT film were pioneers of dark comic book films.

Jim Henson was best known for his creation of the much-loved Muppets during the 1960s and 1970s. Many young fans overlooked the fact that the turtles' costumes along with Master Splinter were produced by Henson's famous Creature Shop. The same shop that was responsible for giving birth to iconic puppets costumes for movies such as Labyrinth, The Dark Crystal, and the 90s TV series Dinosaurs. Many fans believe that if it weren't for Henson's help to design the turtle costumes, the movie would have likely fallen into mediocrity. The costumes/heads proved how extensive Henson's creativity was in terms of animatronics since his methods were ahead of its time. The heads of the Ninja Turtles consisted of wires that allowed puppeteers to control their faces by the use of both a computer and radio controls. Basically each creature had one puppeteer who was charge of controlling their faces, but it gets a little complicated from their on because you still have the actors inside the costumes. These actors were in charge of the turtles' high-flying stunts. At times, the actor's sweat would add at least 30 pounds to the turtle's body suit since they were made out of latex. Last but not least are the voice actors of the turtles. Josh Pais, the voice of the hotheaded Raphael, was also the stuntman inside the suit. He was the only voice actor who had the privilege to provide both the voice and the body of a Ninja Turtle out of TMNT trilogy. Jim Henson's turtle suits were the best around and no designer came close after his unexpected death. In fact, what made his turtles so real was the fact that you believed them.

Judging by their odd appearances, the Ninja Turtle's heights ranged from 5'2'' to 5'8'' with Michelangelo being the shortest and Leonardo the tallest. All of them come off as very friendly yet serious creatures with the exception of Raphael who seemed is basically angry and confused throughout the movie. Their home lies deep beneath the sewers, we see hands with unusually long fingers laying down a cup of tea. That creature turns out to be the Turtle's sensei Master Splinter. As Splinter finds out about the turtle's first battle, he warns them about being seen by the public because of the fear they may inject on them. Splinter was the only animatronic based character that was actually a puppet.

For more informaiton on these movies, check out the Internet Movie Database.

Detailed information regarding Jim Henson's creature shop and death can be found at his wiki page.