Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.0

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman December 21, 2025

Note: This version of this film is available on disc as part of Arrow's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Trilogy.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is arguably one of the just flat out weirdest phenomena to ever erupt into the public consciousness, and for those jonesin' for a raucous "Cowabunga!", Arrow is offering the first three films in the series in two new collector's editions, one with 1080 discs and one with 4K UHD discs, with both offering Arrow's typically abundant supply of on disc supplements and "extracurricular" swag.

Those interested can find plot information, lists of supplements and reactions to technical presentations in Ken Brown's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Blu-ray review from 2009's 25th Anniversary collection from Warner Brothers.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: Arrow sent check discs of the 1080 releases for purposes of reviewing, and I therefore don't have packaging for this format. I'm assuming that per Arrow's standard operating procedure, the booklet included with the 1080 version is the same as the 4K version, with attendant (irrelevant) information about HDR grades and the like.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. Arrow's insert booklet lumps all three films together on its page devoted to information about the presentations:

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1 with stereo and a new Dolby Atmos mix. The film is presented in 4K resolution in HDR10 and Dolby Vision.

The original 35mm camera negative was scanned in 4K 16 bit at Fotokem. A 35mm interpositive was also scanned for Reel 3, which was missing from the negative. A 35mm UK theatrical release print was sourced from the BFI for the content unique to the UK release.

The film was restored and color graded in 4K at R3Store Studios, London.

The original stereo mix was remastered by Þorsteinn Gíslason.

The Dolby Atmos mix was produced at Deluxe Audio Services, London.

All materials sourced for this new master were made available by Fortune Star, Warner Bros., The Academy Film Archive, and the British Film Institute.

The restoration was supervised by James Pearcey and James White, Arrow Films, and has been approved by filmmaker Steve Barron.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III are both presented in their original aspect ratio of 1.85:1 with stereo and 5.1 audio.

For both films, a 35mm interpositive was scanned in 4K 16 bit at Warner Bros. Motion Picture Imaging. The films were restored and color graded in 4K at R3Store Studios, London.

The stereo mix for Turtles II was remastered by Matt Jarman at Bad Princess Productions. The stereo mix for Turtles III and the 5.1 mixes for both films were remastered by Þorsteinn Gíslason.

All materials sourced for these new maters were made available by Fortune Star and Warner Bros.

A somewhat blurry looking New Line Cinema logo and then an extended credits sequence may be a less felicitous way to start things off, but once things get officially underway, this is an impressive 1080 presentation, though my hunch is reactions an often very thick grain field may be as variable as the grain itself (more about that in a moment). This new transfer's strengths are apparent virtually from the get go, with appealing detail levels and especially with regard to a very nicely suffused palette. The film's emphasis on dark, almost quasi-noir framings, may admittedly lead to some deficits in shadow detail at times, but blacks are often sumptuously deep and contrast generally consistent and helpful in providing pops of vibrant color in things like glowing neon signs. Fine detail on everything from the Turtles' rubbery suits to Splinter's hairy face is generally excellent. In terms of the variable thickness of grain, I've often stated how when any given shot on film production is released simultaneously in 1080 and 4K that I can tend to prefer the look of grain at the lower resolution and in SDR, but I have to say grain is pretty much just as variable and often chunky looking in this presentation as it is in Arrow's 4K release. For just one interesting example of how variant grain thickness and resolution can be, pay attention to how really nicely tightly resolved the grain field is in some outdoor material starting at just past the 39 minute mark, which then suddenly gets a good deal chunkier and considerably more yellow.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles has three audio options, Dolby Atmos and two 2.0 tracks, the original stereo track in LPCM 2.0 and an alternate "warrior" track in DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (see the supplements information about the South Korean version). Purists will probably want to stick to the original track, though the Atmos track has some fun intermittent engagement of the surrounds, as in the panning "whoosh" that accompanies the actual title logo zinging onto and off the screen, or a bit later when the frame goes totally to black when our heroes first enter the fray. That said, this really isn't the showiest Atmos track for probably understandable reasons, and a lot of even the outdoor urban material can tend to offer most of the dialogue front and center with only some residual background ambient spill emanating from the rear channels. The score is also noticeably more spacious in the Atmos rendering, with some fun discrete channelization of various synths. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentaries

Commentary with director Steve Barron




Commentary with comic book expert Dave Baxter

• Rising When We Fall (HD; 14:45) is a new interview with director Steve Barron.


• Turtle Talk (HD; 18:50) is a new interview with actors Robbie Rist, Brian Tochi, Ernie Reyes Jr. and Kenn Scott.


• O'Neil on the Beat (HD; 19:54) is a new interview with actress Judith Hoag.


• Wet Behind the Shells (HD; 11:01) is a new interview with producer Simon Fields.


• Beneath the Shell (HD; 16:07) is a newly produced featurette with Brian Henson and Rob Tygner which looks at Henson Creature Shop's work on the film.


• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turf (HD; 12:58) is a newly produced tour of filming locations in New York City and North Carolina.


• Alternate UK Version (HD; 1:31:15) is a "reconstructed" version of the censored British version, with interstitial uses of a theatrical print which leads to announced "unavoidable shift(s) in picture quality".


• Alternate Ending (HD; 2:10) is sourced from a now lost VHS workprint.


• Alternate Korean Footage (HD; 1:01) comes with the following prefatory information:

  In order to comply with South Korean law, the English language version released there was significantly redubbed to remove all references to Japan and Japanese culture, including replacing every instance of the word "ninja". This alternate soundtrack can be played alongside the film and accessed via the Set Up Menu.
  
  In addition, the film was retitled Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles and one shot replaced in Splinter's flashback, seen here.
  
  Ironically, this version was the one that was distributed on VHS and laserdisc in Japan.

• Theatrical Trailers

US Theatrical Trailer (HD; 1:28)




UK Teaser Trailer (HD; 1:05)




UK Theatrical Trailer (HD; 1:33)




UK Re-Release Trailer (HD; 2:06)

• Image Gallery (HD)

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

This first feature film with the heroes may well engender the most powerful wave of nostalgia among the franchise's fans, and this new edition from Arrow offers secure technical merits and some very appealing supplements. Recommended.