Director: Kevin Munroe

Writer: Kevin Munroe (based on the characters created by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird)

Starring: Chris Evans, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ziyi Zhang and Patrick Stewart

The Shredder is dead. Leonardo has left New York City, with no intentions of coming back. The Foot Clan has returned. To be honest, the lives of the Turtles have seen better days. Now no longer heroes, each Turtle tries to deal with this in their own way. Enter Max Winters (Patrick Stewart). He’s a mysterious tech-industrialist whose multimillion dollar company has begun the acquisition of four rare stone statues, depicting ancient generals of war. Believing these statues are linked to the legend of a warlord made immortal more than 3,000 years ago, how long is it before that myth becomes reality? To make matters worse, a strange new vigilante is prowling the streets at night, and only Leonardo can bring him down.

What struck me most about this movie was the little details that are often overlooked in animated movies. For example, the movie emphasized Master Splinter being from Japan. You would think it was an obvious choice, but until now, it hadn’t really been touched upon in any of the other movies. I also appreciated that the sewer entrance where the Turtles live is in Chinatown.

Splinter even retains the cut to his ear that Shredder gave him in the original Turtles movie. It’s small moments like this that make the distinction between a good film and a great film. The choice to set this movie after the three other live-action films was a great idea, giving numerous references for avid fans to nerdishly giggle about.

The other strong element I must focus on is the voice acting. Yes, voice acting. The film is all animated, and I mention this because I didn’t realize it myself before going, and was pleasantly surprised. In some ways, voice acting is far more difficult than normal acting, since the only instrument to convey thoughts, emotions and intentions is your voice. Many actors have proven again and again that while they are talented thespians, once denied access to their body and their eyes, they suddenly seem not-quite-so-impressive. This is not the case here. And yes, the “big names” of the film do very well; I quite like Chris Evans as Casey Jones, but it is the fameless, unsung voices of the Turtles themselves that make this movie what it is. These are the Turtles we love, and the actors capture each of the Turtles’ personalities, down to the last slice of pizza.

If you haven’t realized it yet, I am a fan. The original “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” TV series was my bliss in Saturday morning cartoons. To the cry of “Turtle Power,” I ran down the stairs and dropped myself in front of the television. For the record, I always wanted to be Donatello.

Because of the passion already in me for the Turtles, I was willing to let unsuccessful moments go, but because I loved the series so much, I also came with a great deal of expectation, which was fulfilled. Any Turtles fan would be happy with this movie, I am sure of that. But would a non-Turtles fan?

To be honest, this movie is one thing: mindless fun. It’s on par with “Tomb Raider” for the amount of brain cells you must stimulate to follow the plot. Even without a passion for the original Turtles, many people will find this entertaining.

The fight choreography alone is worth the price of admission. It is certainly not a children’s movie, steering away from childish humor and becoming more about family. The emphasis of the movie is very much the relationships between brothers, mirrored by the brother issues of the villains themselves. It’s not trying to win any Oscars or comment on global warming. It’s there to entertain, and it does just that.

Wait a few weeks, then spare a dollar and take your friends to see “TMNT” at the Cinemark North Grand 5, 2801 Grand Ave. Relive the glory days with those four green ninja dudes: Leonardo, Donatello, Michelangelo and Raphael.

“Heroes in a half-shell, turtle power!”

Ellis J. Wells is a senior in performing arts from Portishead, England.