Turtle Power Nostalgia

Seeing old stories made new is fun

Me as Michaelangelo, Age 5

1 min read

I took my two oldest kids to see the new TMNT: Mutant Mayhem movie in the theater recently and it was such a great experience.

I grew up watching TMNT every Saturday morning, had all the toys, watched all the movies and even had my Grandma make me a Michelangelo costume from a pattern. It's a lot of fun to connect with your kids over a shared, nostalgic experience like this.

The soundtrack for the film is groovy. The score was composed by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross of NIN fame. There are lots of similarities to the electronic feel of the Social Network with the glitchy sawtooth beats and synth driven melodies. The music in the movie also pulled from a lot of great 90s East coast hip hop history and included groups like A Tribe Called Quest and De La Soul.

The animation style is similar to the recent Spiderman movies — with an unfinished, sketched aesthetic laid over three dimensional shapes. It makes everything feel really gritty and adolescent.

Overall, I highly recommend the new TMNT movie. It was one of my favorite movies of the year because of the power of nostalgia and the connection I was able to make with my kids.