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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows

Mikey tries "squirrel" formation and it doesn't go so well. Source: Paramount Pictures

4 Reasons Out of the Shadows Failed To Impress Some Audiences

by Justin W June 7, 2016

written by Justin W

“It’s never a good sign when you can’t pull in a full house for a free screening.”

That is an actual quote that I overheard at the premiere for the film. Nobody wanted this movie to succeed more than I did. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows is perhaps one of the most accurate representations we have ever seen of the Ninja Turtles on the big screen, but not every audience agrees with that.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows poster. Source: Paramount Pictures.

After dismal numbers during its opening weekend, I recently reported that the movie had bombed – and that’s a fair statement to make. Although the term “box office bomb” typically refers to a film’s entire theatrical run, one only needs to look at the history behind foreign box office numbers to see that even in the greatest situation, it will be difficult for this movie to earn its money back at the box office.

I have no doubt that Out of the Shadows will manage to justify its production budget within the next few weeks, but the production budget does not account for the costs of advertising and distribution. All told, it’s likely that this movie will need to earn at least $500 million to truly be considered successful by the studios, and that looks to be very unlikely.

The first movie made $65 million during its opening weekend in domestic markets alone, and it only managed to pull in a total of $493 million total at the box office. So far, Out of the Shadows has performed far worse than its predecessor, indicating that it might not even earn that much once all is said and done.

If you’re trying to figure out what happened here, you’re not alone. With that in mind, I’ve decided to provide my own list of reasons that Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows might have failed to impress certain audiences, resulting in numbers that don’t look very awesome.

1. Too Much Advertising

If the first TMNT movie suffered from a lack of advertising (and it most certainly did), the second movie actually had too much of it. There were dozens of TV Spots, trailers and clips for the movie, resulting in a market that was almost over-saturated with all things TMNT 2.

Some reviewers even stated that they felt like they had already seen the entire movie in the advertisements, and it’s not difficult to see where they are coming from. Even one of the biggest moments in the film was shared on Youtube via clips, which might leave some audiences asking why they should even go to see the movie.

2. First Film Soured TMNT Fans

Although a lot of shellheads absolutely loved the 2014 film, the truth is that many audiences did not enjoy it. Several fans outright refused to support Out of the Shadows simply because it was a sequel to that movie. The relative authenticity of TMNT 2 simply wasn’t a factor for this audience, as they took issue with other aspects behind the production of the film.

For instance, a lot of people really dislike Michael Bay, and they simply refuse to see anything with his name on it – even if he’s just an executive producer. The look and feel of these CGI Ninja Turtles was also a big problem for many potential viewers, and neither Paramount or Platinum Dunes were willing to change much about that.

3. Focused Too Heavily On One Audience

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have changed a lot over the years. One might even say that they are in a constant state of flux. Some fans prefer the original Mirage comics, others like the 1987 cartoon; some swear by the 4Kids series while many fans are enamored with the original films of the 1990s. Each of these representations of the Ninja Turtles is wildly different in its own way, which means that it is difficult to produce anything related to the franchise without potentially offending or disappointing at least one of those fan communities. Nickelodeon managed to pull it off quite well, but that kind of success is difficult to recreate on film.

This was not the Shredder that some fans wanted to see in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows. Source: Paramount.

It’s not as easy as you might think to please all TMNT fans at once; believe me, I’m always unintentionally offending someone with almost anything that I write. Out of the Shadows focused heavily on recreating the ’87 cartoon in live action, leaving little room for any other representation of the Ninja Turtles. This appears to have alienated a lot of fans who prefer a more gritty take on the turtles, with many saying that they would have preferred something closer to either the Mirage comics or the 4Kids series. When it comes to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, you simply can’t please everyone.

4. Too Much Competition

While the first movie came out in the late summer, this one is smack dab in the middle of summer blockbuster territory. The 2014 film was released the week after Guardians of the Galaxy – which was pretty stiff competition – but Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles still managed to produce pretty good results.

Movie poster for upcoming movie Finding Dory. Source: Disney/Pixar.

Out of the Shadows was released the week after X-men: Apocalypse, which was definitely more successful during its opening weekend, but it wasn’t as much of a runaway hit as GOTG. That being said, it’s important to remember that Captain America: Civil War is still in theaters as well, which means that there are currently no fewer than three comic book movies in theaters at the same time.

In addition to the comic book movies, Angry Birds also presents a bit of competition. Next week, Out of the Shadows will be facing off against Warcraft, a movie based on a video game franchise. The week after that, we are likely to see a large drop off in box office numbers for the film as Pixar’s Finding Dory will be hitting the silver screen.

Shortly thereafter, you can expect to see Independence Day: Resurgence in theaters alongside Steven Spielberg’s BFG. These are huge titles that are likely to make it difficult for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows to compete in the box office.

In comparison, the 2014 TMNT movie only had titles like The Expendables 3, The Giver and Let’s Be Cops to face in the weeks following its release. As you can see, the competition for Out of the Shadows is going to be a lot more difficult to overcome, and chances are that even a strong showing in foreign markets won’t help the studios earn back all of the money they have invested. The competition is simply too fierce right now, and that could have a seriously negative impact on the film’s performance in the box office.

Conclusion

The last thing I want to do is call this movie a failure when it still has a chance to prove successful after all is said and done. We still have yet to see the numbers from China, and that is likely to represent at least $40-$60 million in ticket sales. However, even when you factor in the potential foreign sales for the film, that figure isn’t likely to be enough to represent a significant ROI.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows movie poster. Source: Paramount Pictures.

Even if it manages to perform well during its second weekend at the box office, chances are that by the time Finding Dory comes out, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows will be struggling to compete in any meaningful way when it comes to domestic numbers.

I absolutely loved Out of the Shadows, but we need to be realistic about what is happening here. Not only is this movie likely to perform worse than its predecessor, but there are several reasons for that which need to be addressed.

Several TMNT fan communities feel under-represented, and that is truly a shame. For those of you who believe I am being preemptive, I apologize if anything that I have written has offended you – but for those who are still waiting for a silver screen representation of your favorite turtles, I can’t necessarily blame you for being upset.

Ultimately, there are many reasons that Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows underwhelmed at the box office during its opening weekend. Some of these issues will continue to affect ticket sales in the weeks to come, while others could slowly dissipate over time.

Paramount is likely to make a lot of money off of merchandise related to the film, so chances are that they will earn a decent profit in the end. Unfortunately, that profit isn’t likely to reveal itself until several months have passed and the film is no longer in theaters.

What do you think? Will Out of the Shadows manage to turn a profit in the end? Are these valid reasons for the results we have seen thus far? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below or on facebook/twitter.

June 7, 2016 13 comments

Despite projections and expectations, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 failed to impress at the box office. Image source: Paramount Pictures

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 Bombs at Box Office

by Justin W June 6, 2016

written by Justin W

After months of writing about the film and even speculating how successful it might be, it is truly disappointing to see how poorly Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 has performed at the box office. Even the experts were baffled about this result, as it was expected that Out of the Shadows would earn at least $50 million over the weekend. In reality, the movie only managed to pull in $35 million in North America and $33 million in foreign markets. This is a significant and unexpected failure for a lot of reasons, and it could have a negative impact on future ventures into the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise.

First of all, it’s important to note that Paramount worked with distributors all over the world to get this movie out in as many markets as possible for its release. Despite the reach that this film had, it still failed to make more money in foreign markets than it did in North America. That’s fairly surprising, because most superhero/action flicks see much better foreign numbers. For example, more than 70% of the opening weekend earnings for X-men: Apocalypse came from foreign markets, which is actually fairly typical at this point in the film industry. By comparison, only 48% of the earnings for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 came from the foreign box office.

Raph and Leo discuss a major plot point in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2. Image Source: Paramount Pictures.

As you can see, this is a really strange occurrence. To put it bluntly, this kind of failure rarely ever happens nowadays, especially when there are a lot of fans and viewers who genuinely seem interested in seeing the film. Heck, even Fantastic Four earned more money in foreign markets than it did in North America. Considering the amount of effort that was put into marketing Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2, it’s actually quite bewildering to see these kinds of results. Although there were genuine complaints about the film from some TMNT fans, it’s difficult to understand how a movie like this could fail so hard at the box office.

It’s also difficult to figure out if this will have a negative impact on the franchise. Although the first film failed miserably last year, Fox is still working on a sequel to Fantastic Four; if Fox is willing to put that kind of stock into a franchise, we might see Paramount doing the same for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Another big factor to consider is all of the movie tie-in merchandise that is currently hitting the shelves. If the toys sell well enough, they might actually make enough money overall to consider this sequel a success.

That being said, you have to figure that those toys will need to sell very well in order to make up for investments not only in production of the film, but also in advertising. Unlike the 2014 film which had notably sparse advertising that was indicative of a lower budget, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 had a lot of ads being pumped out. Heck, that might even be one of the big reasons that the movie failed to impress during its opening weekend, but I’ll save that discussion for another day. For now, suffice it to say that a worldwide opening weekend of less than $70 million for a film with a production budget estimated at $135 million is definitely a disappointment.

What do you think? Are you disappointed that Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 failed to impress at the box office? Did the movie deserve to fail? Why were the box office earnings so low? Share your thoughts and opinions on this subject either in the comments below or via facebook/twitter.

June 6, 2016 19 comments

Movies Reviews

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows (2016) – Movie Review

by Justin W June 3, 2016

written by Justin W

Remember the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animated series? Compared to the comics, it was a very lighthearted and goofy take on the characters. Much like many of the other cartoons that came out of that era, the TMNT series served as both entertainment and advertisement. After all, who wouldn’t want to get a turtle blimp after seeing it in action on TV? As long as you remember these particular aspects of the original animated series, chances are that Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows will hit you right in the nostalgia.

It’s difficult to critique a film like this without putting it into the right context. If you’re not familiar with the original animated series, chances are that you’re going to take issue with a few scenes in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows. There are plot details that are somewhat silly and unrealistic, but everything about that original cartoon was silly and unrealistic. For crying out loud, there is an episode where they make the bull in a china shop joke, and that episode is filled with puns so bad that even your dad would groan.

Movie Poster for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows. Source: Paramount Pictures.

Out of the Shadows definitely has its fair share of groan worthy jokes and puns, but that’s the way I like it. If you want a faithful adaptation of the cartoon that you watched back in the 90’s, this movie is perhaps even more faithful than you’d expect. I saw a few reviews complaining that Shredder doesn’t do much in this movie, but if you actually go back and watch that goofy cartoon, you’ll notice that Shredder was a fairly ineffective villain back then as well.

When one reviewer described this film as “critic-proof,” they were talking about the fact that any complaint you can make about the film is more than likely tied to something that is directly referencing the Ninja Turtles properties of the past. In other words, you can say that the plot is ridiculous and sophomoric, but that’s part of the charm behind the whole franchise.

We’re talking about a story where four mutant turtles take on a group of ninjas led by an ego-maniacal master who is covered in blades. Oh, and the turtles were mutated with the help of a mutagen that came from another dimension after a group of aliens came to earth. Nothing about this story is realistic or serious in any way, shape or form. If you’re feeling like the movie should have a tighter plot and be less goofy, you’re missing the point of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Limited Edition TMNT 2 poster sold exclusively at WonderCon. Source: Paramount.

With that out of the way, allow me to say that Out of the Shadows was an absolute blast. It literally felt like the original TMNT cartoon had come to life on the big screen, and that is really a dream come true for me. If you’re still hoping to see something that more closely replicates what we saw in the Mirage comics, you might be disappointed in this movie; however, if you’re feeling nostalgic for that old school animated series and all the toys that came with it, this is going to be right up your alley.

Although a lot of shellheads took issue with the first film in this series, it’s safe to say that the filmmakers went back to the drawing board with the sequel and attempted to give the fans everything they wanted. Fans were asking why there was a lack of focus on the turtles themselves and why shredder looked like a robot; they wanted to see characters such as Baxter Stockman, Krang, Casey Jones, Bebop and Rocksteady. Now that the movie is out, it’s clear that the head honchos at Platinum Dunes actually listened to these concerns from the fans and literally fixed all of these problems.

Of course, when you shove this many new characters into a sequel, sometimes the result can feel like a jumbled mess. Thankfully, this film manages to introduce each new character while also providing a decent sense of their characterization in the film. Baxter Stockman comes across as an egotistical nerd; Casey Jones is headstrong and hyper-focused on his own brand of justice; Bebop and Rocksteady are both strong, bumbling buffoons. Everyone has enough time to develop and show us who they are in Out of the Shadows, and that’s definitely nice to see.

Although I enjoyed the film, it’s important to note that it definitely wasn’t perfect. Some of the cinematography was pretty bad and there are some plot points that don’t make any sense, but the source material was guilty of far worse offenses. Out of the Shadows managed to fix a lot of the problems that were present in the first film, so it’s difficult to complain about any of the minor problems you might see in this one. Ultimately, this film was a total nostalgia trip that both young shellheads and their parents will enjoy. With that in mind, I give Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows a…

7.5/10

Have you seen Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows? What did you think of the movie? Was our review spot on? Let us know your thoughts in the comments or on facebook/twitter!

June 3, 2016 0 comment

Kevin Eastman, co-creator of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Source: KPBS

Movie News News

Kevin Eastman Makes Cameo Appearance in Out of the Shadows

by Justin W June 2, 2016

written by Justin W

Embargoes are a pain in the butt, dudes. Although we can’t officially provide our review of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows until tomorrow, we will be able to share some interesting information about the film. As the title indicates, you can expect the co-creator of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to make an appearance in this latest TMNT movie.

Of course, this wouldn’t be the first time that he has made such an appearance, as both he and Peter Laird also showed up in the very first Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie in 1990. Both creators were a little more difficult to spot back then, so you’ll be happy to know that it’s hard to miss his cameo in this one.

Before anyone gets concerned about spoilers, it’s important to note that this is a minor role and even IMDb has it listed in the credits. I won’t be telling you much here that hasn’t already been shared by the studio in one way or another, so there’s no need to be worried about this spoiling the film in any way. With that said, make sure to be on the lookout for this cameo appearance very early on in the film, because you might miss it if you’re too busy getting popcorn.

So what is Kevin Eastman’s role in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows? He plays a pizza delivery dude, of course.

I really loved this little nod to the co-creator, as it was simple and small enough that it didn’t necessarily interfere with the rest of the film. It reminded me a bit of Stan Lee’s appearances in Marvel movies, because it wasn’t overstated and there was simply an implicit understanding from the fans that they had just seen the co-creator on screen.

Some fans will see this scene and think “wait a minute, was that who I think it was?” The answer is yes. Keep an eye out for Kevin Eastman when you go to see Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows this weekend!

Are you excited to see Kevin Eastman’s cameo appearance in Out of the Shadows? Will you be seeing the movie on opening weekend? Let us know your thoughts in the comments or via facebook/twitter!

June 2, 2016 1 comment

Screen cap taken from trailer for TMNT 2. Source: Paramount

Blog Movie / TMNT Movies

Will TMNT 2 Prove Successful at the Box Office?

by Justin W May 31, 2016

written by Justin W

As the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles move ‘Out of the Shadows’ and into theaters, fans and critics alike are giving mixed reviews of TMNT 2. Some are saying that the film fails to capture the essence of the Ninja Turtles, while others have referred to it as total nostalgia overload. I’ll reserve my criticism for Friday, when the film finally releases in theaters all over the United States – but I want to take a moment to discuss something that most critics and film buffs fail to acknowledge: the ever changing face of the global box office.

TMNT 2 poster to promote the new film Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows. Source: Paramount.

Throughout the history of Hollywood, studios have had a difficult time selling and distributing their films all over the world. Certain markets have been reliable, but others have proven rather difficult to enter until recently. In the late 90’s, worldwide distribution began to expand heavily into markets like China. As you can imagine, this expansion introduced millions of audiences to films they had previously been unaccustomed to seeing.

Even before this moment in film history, we were already seeing the world market opening up to Hollywood distribution quite a bit, which resulted in foreign numbers that sometimes outpaced domestic numbers in the United States. Even so, throughout the 90’s the studios still held a firm belief that the domestic market was the most important consideration. However, once markets like China began to contribute heavily to overall box office numbers, everything began to change. Suddenly, Hollywood blockbusters were making two or three times as much money in foreign markets as they did in domestic markets.

At this point, the studios began to shift their attention away from domestic box office numbers and toward foreign box office numbers. For evidence of this, one needs only look at the box office numbers for the Transformers franchise. Although the domestic and foreign numbers were somewhat evenly split for the first and second film, the performance of Dark of the Moon and Age of Extinction prove where things are headed. The third film made $771 million in foreign markets, while the fourth film made $858 million foreign. To put that into perspective, only 22.2% of the money earned from Transformers: Age of Extinction came from audiences in North America. As a direct result of this foreign success, we are now going to see three more Transformers films – despite the fact that the last film barely managed to earn back its production budget in the domestic market.

Limited Edition TMNT 2 poster sold exclusively at WonderCon. Source: Paramount.

Before you ask what this has to do with TMNT 2, allow me to explain. In a world where studios can rely on foreign markets – not only to pick up the slack for domestic markets, but to outsell the domestic market entirely – the game has completely changed. If you live in North America, the studios probably aren’t overly concerned with whether or not you will like one of their films. Their biggest concern at this point is making the worldwide audience happy, so you shouldn’t expect the studios to take note of any fan outrage over any particular movie when they are more than likely going to make their money back regardless.

With that said, I fully expect a lot of North American audiences to reject TMNT 2, but I don’t think it will matter. We’re already seeing quite a few negative reviews for Out of the Shadows, but somehow I doubt those negative reviews will have much of an impact on ticket sales. Although critics might have had a voice with the power to effect change in the industry many decades ago, that simply isn’t the case any longer. Whether you’re a proper film critic or an audience member that is representative of millions of dissatisfied audiences, chances are that the number of satisfied audiences throughout the world will still manage to speak louder than any criticisms you might have of the film.

This won’t stop me from being critical of Out of the Shadows when and if it is necessary, but it’s important to recognize that there may be no stopping this gravy train. With the amount that Paramount has spent on marketing this film, chances are that every parent in the world with a young shellhead will be taking their kids to see this movie very soon. Even if the movie only made $65 million during its opening weekend in North American markets, chances are that the foreign gross would be at least double that number – if not triple. For those who are curious, that’s the number that 2014’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles managed to pull in during its first weekend.

Considering all of the marketing attached to this film, something tells me that number is going to be much higher. I would not be surprised to see a $300 million worldwide opening weekend for TMNT 2, but even if it didn’t fare that well, it’s likely that the movie will earn back its production budget during that first weekend. As is tradition in Hollywood, if the film manages to make back its budget within a few days, chances are that the studios will immediately greenlight the sequel.

Even though some critics have already said a lot of negative things about Out of the Shadows, I think the words of one particular critic from ScifiNow are fairly prophetic in regards to the potential success of this movie:

Dave Green’s sequel will keep youngsters and nostalgic fans more than entertained, for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows is a prime example of undemanding popcorn cinema.

It won’t change the face of comic-book movies forever – but then it was clearly never intended to do so. A Saturday-morning cartoon created for the big screen, it’s virtually critic-proof.

Whether you like it or not, this is the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles film universe and it doesn’t appear that any amount of complaints from critics or fans will stop them from continuing the franchise. As long as it continues to make money all over the world, Paramount will continue to fund sequels and we will continue to see more Ninja Turtles action on the big screen. Although I find it distressing to consider that the voices of critics and audiences in the North American market may be largely ignored, I’m also a little excited to see what comes next.

What do you think? Will TMNT 2 prove successful at the box office, or will it bomb? Is the foreign box office more important than the domestic box office? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below or on facebook/twitter.

May 31, 2016 0 comment

Newer Posts

Older Posts

1. Too Much Advertising

2. First Film Soured TMNT Fans

3. Focused Too Heavily On One Audience

4. Too Much Competition

Conclusion

What do you think? Will Out of the Shadows manage to turn a profit in the end? Are these valid reasons for the results we have seen thus far? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below or on facebook/twitter.

What do you think? Are you disappointed that Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 failed to impress at the box office? Did the movie deserve to fail? Why were the box office earnings so low? Share your thoughts and opinions on this subject either in the comments below or via facebook/twitter.

7.5/10

Have you seen Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows? What did you think of the movie? Was our review spot on? Let us know your thoughts in the comments or on facebook/twitter!

Are you excited to see Kevin Eastman’s cameo appearance in Out of the Shadows? Will you be seeing the movie on opening weekend? Let us know your thoughts in the comments or via facebook/twitter!

What do you think? Will TMNT 2 prove successful at the box office, or will it bomb? Is the foreign box office more important than the domestic box office? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below or on facebook/twitter.

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