3. 122 and an 8th? And I thought I delivered everywhere - The Use Of Setting
As with any story, the setting in any incarnation of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is important, and the 1990 film uses it excellently. New York City is known as a city of immigrants, and is frequently used as a stand-in for the United States and even the world. People from innumerable backgrounds are interacting with one another in one relatively compressed metropolitan area. It is the ultimate intersection of world cultures, at least from a movie standpoint. And unless youre Macaulay Culkin, being lost in New York sucks. Its huge efficiency can be overwhelming, and is perfect for representing apathy, which in the Turtles case is important both in terms of crime and being outsiders. Every citizen in a city that big is a stranger. Peoples hopes, needs, and terrariums can fall through the cracks without a second glance. It will always be what it is, and doesnt give a rats posterior as to what becomes of anyone there. This atmosphere is consciously imprinted upon almost every shot of the 1990 film. This is the other side of Carrie Bradshaw and Edward Burns. Peripherally, its very Spike Lee, and in terms of Turtles mythology, its very cool. This tone is not created subtly. Much as the original Star Wars Trilogy is made more believable through a dirty, used look, the Turtles New York is old and lived-in, made all the more distinct because of the movies interest in tactile imagery. The pedestrians, cars, and significant amounts of garbage tumbling around the sidewalks are thickly textured and unsettlingly close. One thing Platinum Dunes has yet to demonstrate is a similarly interesting use of setting. Michael Bays settings may look very cool for the sake of looking very cool, in front of or behind explosions, like pyramids, or they may look exactly like the original, as in various cabins or caves or Pearl Harbors, but what does it mean to the story? As far as adapted mythology, is the setting used to say something about it while bringing anything new to the table? Platinum Dunes should find a good use for New York to fit their Turtles movie. Sure, not all iterations of the Turtles use the potential of setting as vividly as the 1990 film, but it certainly couldnt hurt the movie to try. So what should the characters of the new Ninja Turtles film focus on once they get an interesting New York?