Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Trilogy 4K UHD Review

5 stars

Cowabunga, they’re back!

In the early nineties, a group of mutated turtles came out of the sewers and onto our cinema screens, bringing a generation’s favourite comic book and cartoon heroes to noisy, action packed, pizza fuelled life.

With incredible animatronics from Jim Henson’s Creature Shop, as well as tons of great and genuinely well choreographed martial arts and stunt action, these films are a joy for fans of the genre. A big hats off to the guys fighting in full costume, no doubt a huge challenge and brilliantly executed. There are lots and lots of pop culture “easter eggs” sprinkled throughout all the films to keep you happy trying to identify them all. This 4K restoration really makes the action pop, and while it struggles with the darker sequences, for the most part it all looks great. Packed with special features and dripping with nineties music and nostalgia, this boxset is a must own for fans of “Turtle Power”!

These three films have all enjoyed a 4K UHD restoration, courtesy of Arrow Video and are available as a Limited Edition 4K UHD box set and streaming exclusively on the Arrow Video Channel from 15th December 2025.

“Wise man say: “Forgiveness is divine, but never pay full price for late pizza.”

First released in 1990, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is a superhero comedy film, based on the comic book characters created by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. It is written by Bobby Herbeck and directed by Steve Barron (Supervised). A little darker in tone than the animated series, this film is an excellent origin tale, but still manages to be extremely funny.

In it we meet a group of young turtles for the first time, Leonardo (David Foreman – Nuns on the Run) the leader of the group, Raphael (Josh Pais – Joker) the fiesty one, Michelangelo (Michelan Sisti – The Muppets) the fun loving one and Donatello (Leif Tilden – Buddy, Lifeform) the brains of the operation. Since their creation, they have lived in the sewers alongside their rat master Splinter (Kevin Clash – Sesame Street (Elmo)), who has taught them the ways of the Ninja.

They are forced to put their skills to the test when they witness the mugging of TV news reporter April O’Neil (Judith Hoag – Armageddon, Roll With It) and find themselves pitted against the mysterious “Foot” organization, led by Splinter’s old enemy “The Shredder” (James Saito – Breathe, Love Hard). We also meet fellow vigilante Casey Jones (Elias Koteas – Devil’s Knot) who lends a helping hand.

“If I had a face like that, I’d try to balance it out with some kind of a personality.”

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze was released in 1991, written by Todd W. Langen (The Wonder Years (TV Series)) and directed by Michael Pressman (Frankie and Johnny Are Married). This film really brings back the fun, with plenty of action and comedy and some hilarious new mutants in the form of Rahzar (Mark Ginther – The Acolyte, Solo: A Star Wars Story) and Tokka (Kurt Bryant – The Hitcher, Logan). There is also a fun performance from Vanilla Ice.

It takes place soon after the end of the first film, and we see the boys Leonardo (Mark Caso – Mortal Kombat), Raphael (Ken Scott – Showdown), Michelangelo (Michelan Sisti) and Donatello (Leif Tilden) are now living with April O’Neil (Paige Turco – Books of Blood, American Gothic (TV Series)), along with their master Splinter (Kevin Clash). The Shredder (François Chau – Boy Kills World) is back and this time he has his sights set on “The Ooze”, the mysterious substance which created the turtles. A toxic waste leak has led to interest in Professor Jordan Perry (David Warner – Time Bandits, In the Mouth of Madness), who must try and help the TMNT to save the city once again.

“Children are such a pest aren’t they. Especially when they side with the enemy. Oh, dear. Damn nuisance. I just keep birds now.”

The third and final film Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III was originally released in 1993 and is written and directed by Stuart Gillard (Avalon High, Riverworld). Although quite a departure from the other films, it is still really good fun and a great way to finish.

It’s a year since the events of the previous film and the boys Leonard0 (Mark Caso), Raphael (Matt Hill – Tobot (TV Series)), Michelangelo (David Fraser – Spotlight) and Donatello (Jim Raposa – Newsies) now have their own place in the sewers with their master Splinter (James Murray – The Muppets).

One day April O’Neil (Paige Turco) brings them a series of gifts from a flea market. One of them is a mysterious sceptre, which somehow transports April back in time to Feudal Japan 1603, where she finds herself in Norinaga Castle. In exchange, Kenshin (Eidan Hanzei – No Saints For Sinners), the son of Lord Norinaga (Sab Shimono – Waterworld, The Shadow) is swapped into April’s place and her clothes. The TMNT realise that they must follow in order to save her, so they leave Casey Jones (Elias Koteas) in charge and off they go. Off course, nothing goes to plan and they find themselves pitted against the English trader Walker (Stuart Wilson – Hot Fuzz). Once again, lots of action and excellent fight sequences, great fun!

“How did you get in April’s pants?”

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles trilogy is available on Limited Edition 4K UHD, and streaming exclusively on the Arrow Video Channel, from 15th December

3-DISC 4K ULTRA HD LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS

Brand new 4K restorations of all three films by Arrow Films
4K (2160p) Ultra HD Blu-ray presentations in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible) of all three films
Perfect bound collector’s booklet in the style of a Roy’s Pizza menu, featuring new writing on the films by Simon Ward, John Torrani and John Walsh
Reversible sleeves featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Florey
Double-sided foldout poster featuring original artwork from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and the “Map of the Kappa Realm”, a stylised re-creation of the ancient scroll that appears in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III
Two additional double-sided foldout posters featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Florey
Eight character trading cards
Roy’s Pizza loyalty card
Four character stickers

DISC 1 – TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES

4K restoration of the film from the original camera negative by Arrow Films approved by director Steve Barron
Two lossless stereo mixes (original theatrical mix and alternate “warrior” mix) plus newly remixed Dolby Atmos audio
Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
Brand new commentary with director Steve Barron
Brand new commentary with comic book expert and podcast host Dave Baxter
Rising When We Fall, a newly filmed interview with director Steve Barron
Turtle Talk, a newly filmed interview with actors Robbie Rist, Brian Tochi, Ernie Reyes Jr and Kenn Scott
O’Neil on the Beat, a newly filmed interview with actor Judith Hoag
Wet Behind the Shells, a newly filmed interview with producer Simon Fields
Beneath the Shell, a newly filmed interview with puppet coordinator and second unit director Brian Henson, and Rob Tygner, puppeteer for both Splinter and Leonardo
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turf, a newly filmed featurette exploring the film’s locations in New York City and North Carolina
Alternate UK version with unique footage prepared for censorship reasons, presented in 4K via seamless branching
Alternate ending from VHS workprint
Alternate Korean footage
Theatrical trailers
Image gallery

DISC 2 – TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES II: THE SECRET OF THE OOZE

4K restoration of the film from the 35mm interpositive by Arrow Films
Original lossless stereo audio and optional DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround audio
Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
Brand new commentary with director Michael Pressman moderated by filmmaker Gillian Wallace Horvat
John Du Prez to the Rescue, a newly filmed interview with composer of the trilogy John Du Prez
Hard Cores, a newly filmed interview with Kenny Wilson, mould shop supervisor at Jim Henson’s Creature Shop
The Secret of the Edit, a newly filmed interview with editor Steve Mirkovich
Behind the Shells, an archive featurette from 1991
Theatrical trailer
Image gallery