Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 - The Secret of the Ooze

After the defeat of the terminally evil Shredder in the first movie, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 - The Secret of the Ooze picks up pretty much where the story left off. Leonardo, Donatello, Michaelangelo, Raphael and Splinter are hiding out in April's apartment, awaiting confirmation that the coast is clear to move back into the sewers. But the turtles have had a taste of freedom, and boy did they like it. Nevertheless, under the watchful eye of dojo rat Splinter, the boys more or less behave themselves. However, when a new threat emerges in the form of a biological contaminant, they are forced to once again hide below the surface. It's not long, however, until the selfish acts of one of the turtles forces the boys into a premature conflict that will reveal the real truth behind their mysterious origins.

Revisiting the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise is kind of like gorging oneself on licorice. It's curiously tasty and undeniably nostalgic, but too much of it and sooner or later you're going to do the ten yard porcelain dash.

Such were my conflicting emotions while viewing this film. At first the kung fu and wisecracks helped me remember why the franchise was so popular in the first place. I smirked, sometimes even giggled, but soon the same elements resulted in frequent checking of the timer. Still, if the characters were refined a little for the modern day Dragonball Z obsessed kids, then there's no reason why they wouldn't appeal.

"It's quiet." "Yeah, a little too quiet." "Look, it's Raph!" "Yeah, a little too Raph."

It's not exactly the type of film that I would call a timeless family classic, but it really is just as much fun as the original. There's plenty of decent action and lots of light humour, but above all, the puppetry and great creature costumes are what most people will enjoy.

Oh, and don't forget the 'timeless' cameo from Vanilla Ice. Don't worry, you're not likely to miss it, he prances around in the background for about ten minutes. Thank the maker!

There's not a hell of a lot to say about this transfer, except that it's acceptable. Some film grain here and there is about the only major problem that the average user is likely to pick up on. There are a few small flecks and other assorted film artefacts present, however they aren't distracting enough to become any real issue. Colour reproduction throughout is surprisingly good, but there are some sections of film that appear a little pale.

The video quality certainly won't pip your copy of Toy Story off the rack, but it won't make you kick in the face of your DVD player either.

The film is presented in a 1.85:1 ratio that is 16:9 enhanced.

There are no real problems to report on the audio side of this DVD either. All five Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtracks are relatively clean, with appropriate dialogue and and music levels. Unfortunately, this also means that Vanilla Ice's Ninja Rap is clearly audible throughout the film's nightclub finale.

"Go ninja, go ninja, go!"

Theatrical Trailer - I'm pretty certain this is actually a video trailer and not the original theatrical version. Regardless, it's of poor quality and not the slightest bit stimulating.

Overall, a pretty far from essential purchase. It might pique the interest of those wishing for a bit of nostalgia, and if so, then rest assured that the video and audio quality is acceptably solid.