Despite being panned by critics and long-time fans of Eastman and Laird’s classic comic, Michael Bay’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles made nearly a half-billion dollars at the international box-office and already has a sequel in the works. Someone liked it.
You’ve heard it all before – Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was boring, the fab-four looked more like monsters than turtles, and in general the 2014 movie lacked the heart of the early 90’s films (as corny and low-budget as they were). But, Michael Bay’s film was also a disappointment beyond just the basics.
What fans have always wanted was a more mature film starring the Turtles. One that shared a vision with the early comics. Graphic tales that saw Leonardo slice and dice members of the Foot Clan with his katanas, blood flying. Dark stories dealing with revenge and fish (or turtles) out of water, that would kill for their righteous cause.
But no.
We may never get an accurate representation of those original comics from the 80’s, but Miguel Diaz-Rivera and his team at VXIII Productions have come close. Very close.
In mere minutes, Diaz-Rivera (who wrote, directed, edited and supervised the visual effects of this non-profit short) captured the grittiness of the original Turtles. And it could be better than the big-budget Bay movie.
Set years after the fall of the Foot Clan Ninja Turtles – Veterans of the Night sees a battle-weary group of Turtles still doing their thing, stopping crimes and killing the bad guys.
(Via Dorkly)
