Tartarughe Ninja II - Il segreto di Ooze

Well, this second film was more kid-oriented and played more for laughs, but I still got a kick out of it. Paige Turco made a better April than Judith Hoag (and what a cool apartment April has!) and Ernie Reyes Jr. (whatever happened to him?) is a lot of fun to watch too. What WAS the secret of the ooze? I haven't seen the film in years!

Re: Vanilla Ice. Yes, his very presence is laughable, let alone his "performance". But in his defense, he's less embarrassing here than in 1991's other blockbuster smash hit, Cool As Ice!

When I saw the first debut of the turtle's movie I did not want to miss a second. And I did'nt. When the 2nd one came out I loved every second as the 1st, and to this day I still have the collection, and the credit I want to give to is the puppeteers and the suit performers they were awesome bringing those characters to life. Great Job. My full respect for these movies is still strong. Some say I'm too old to watch it still. I don't think so! TMNT Rocks. Let's keep it that Way!

This film opens with tremendous confidence and energy. The humor of the Turtles may be so 1990 but I still dig it. The opening scene in the shopping mall is way funny and a great way to introduce is to the sequel. At the time the style of the Turtles wasn't so stale, so the plot may seem a bit childish or dumb now.

I have no doubts that if this movie were made today it would not be subtitled 'The Secret of the Ooze'. One can hardly expect high art from a movie called Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II but they could have subtitled it something a little less crass. Apparently taking place right after the first movie (where's Casey) it wastes no time bringing back the Shredder and the rest of the Foot Clan.

This time Shredder aims to steal the cannister of ooze that mutated our heroes so he can make his own monsters to avenge his defeat. The result is Tokka and Rahzar and it seems like a half-attempt at a live-action version of Rocksteady and Bebop. As you can imagine, this plot isn't very clever. But the movie never really lulls so long as our heroes are on screen.

Look out for a cameo by Vanilla Ice (looking alarmingly like Dolph Lundgren) at the end. It's so dated it may be difficult to watch but as long as your alone you won't have to cringe.

The DVD has wonderful motion menus as well as a great 1.85:1 anamorphic picture with Dolby 5.1 sound. Extras are thin but still it's a great buy.

Looking for great lines and dialogue, there is none here. Looking for cool costumes that look extremely realistic, not here Looking for pure turtle fun… you have come to the right place

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the OOZE, oh boy when I was young this was the movie to see; there is nothing better than seeing something that you loved when you were young, and then just knowing all the lines before they are said.

Anywhere anytime, during my youth days I will sit down to see these guys take on Shredder again and bring down Tokka and Rahzar. The Foot Clan could not even measure up to the task of taking on these guys, as they have failed in the first part of this film.

The event in the movie follows the first film, after Shredder was believed to have been dead. The Shred-Master was not dead though and he reunited with the remainder his Foot Clan and he now wanted to take down the turtles, a revenge mission that he decided will be freak against freak.

So he kidnapped a professor who knew about the Ooze that made the turtles and he (the professor) was forced to create two monsters for Shredder, and they were named Tokka and Rahzar. Now Shredder has the upper hand and he promises to release the creatures into the city if the turtles do not come and face them.

The movie was received with mixed reviews totally because the movie was very tuned down from the dark theme of the first and also, many of the fight scenes featured the use of hands rather than weapons. All this was to make the film more appealing to younger audience, which worked in my case as I was young and found the comic references interesting and great.

The only thing that may have not made this movie so appealing to older viewers will be the fight scenes, removing the weapons was not just cool for me, and they changed the April, which to some was not needed. In the first movie April O'Nei, was played by Judith Hoagl who did a fine job if I may say so, but she was replaced in this movie by Paige Turco, who wasn't half bad.

Also the person I missed the most in this movie was Casey Jones, who was a prominent character in the first movie.

To put it like this, if you were my age when you saw this the first time you will have learnt the Vanilla Ice rap song, and be singing on the streets Villains you better run and hide…Go Ninja, Go Ninja, Go.., so reviewing it like I was watching it back in 1991 when Vanilla Ice was still popular I say this is a good movie.

www.lagsreviews.com

The fearsome foursome turtles go after the glowing cannister that mutated them as babies. While the turtles are trying to find the meaning of their lives and the ooze is slipped into the hands of the evil Shredder (Francois Chau). Shredder asks the help of an unwillingly scientist (David Warner) to make his mutant allies, Rahzar and Tokka. The Turles seeks help with the young pizza deliver boy-Keno (Ernie Reyes, Jr.). The Heroes dive into action and of course, Pizza!

Directed by Michael Pressman (Doctor Detroit, Some Kind of Hero, To Gillian on Her 37th Birthday) made an entertaining sequel. This is a bigger budgeted film than the first movie. As usual, the highlight is the animatronic characters by Jim Henson's creature shop. The plot of the sequel is extremely silly but never boring. Paige Turco replaced Judith Hoag from the original and Turco is appealing in the film. Too Bad, Elias Koteas didn't return for the sequel and Corey Feldman didn't return to voice Donatello also. The film was a hit like the original. The only flaw in the sequel is the ending, which it is a mess. Rapper:Vanilla Ice appears in a embarrassing cameo. This sequel is amusing for the kids and fun for the fans of the comic book series. (*** ½/*****).