What Would YOU Do?

[Bry]

In one of the many raging thread debates in the past week, amongst speculation and criticism, someone threw down the gauntlet and asked: “Well, who would you get to write and direct a Ninja Turtles movie? Huh? Huh, tough guy!?” [citation needed]

The box office results are far from settled yet, but based on Friday’s take and the weekend projections it looks like this one’s got about a 50% drop from the last movie. Assuming that’s how things work out, the idea of another movie reboot is sounding like a possibility.

Considering that, the question started mulling around my head until a few names bubbled to the surface. So let’s do that! Hypothetically assuming Paramount decides to start fresh in a couple years, who would you want to write and direct the next TMNT reboot?

My picks:

Writer: Douglas Petrie

He’s written a bunch of things, but I was introduced to him as a long-running writer/producer on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Buffy was a very comic-booky show, one with great characters, genuine emotion, and a damn solid balance between drama, comedy, and action. More recently (and most importantly?) he’s a writer and current showrunner of the Netflix Daredevil series. And anyone who knows the TMNT’s history knows why this is so ideal. TMNT began as a sharp satire of the Frank Miller comics that Petrie has brought to life, so he’s someone that can be trusted to understand how that core of the TMNT concept works. Mix that and his “Buffy” sensibilities and you’ve got someone who could write a movie that’s true to the concept’s roots while also delivering a well-rounded experience that appeals to as wide an audience as possible.

Director: Stephen Chow

Chow has a terrific track record directing martial-arts action and comedy, and has developed a cult following and a lot of respect in the west. But maybe the experience of helming a major Hollywood release would be enough to hook him for this project.

For example: remember the Raph vs. Foot rooftop battle in the 1990 movie that’s still a franchise highlight? Well, imagine Raph in the opening part of this scene:



One of the major problems with the Platinum Dunes movies is they’ve forgotten the “ninja” in “Ninja Turtles”, so hiring someone who truly understands and respects (and is highly skilled at) martial-arts filmmaking is exactly what this property needs.

As an added bonus, Chow is also one of the most popular directors in China. Studios are vying hard for that market, usually by stuffing in as much explosive CGI spectacle as possible. But TMNT has a chance to stand out here, and hiring Chow could be a different, more effective way to tap into that market.

As for the production? Keep the budget relatively low: $50 million should be the limit. Learn from Deadpool and do as much as you can with that amount. That means you have to keep the action as “real” as possible and can’t rely on flashy, over-the-top CGI instead of a truly strong script and direction. This would work very well with Chow’s skills as a director, and would let them take more risks as they don’t need to recoup a budget nearly three times the size. (And it would also help save money for a killer marketing campaign.)

As for the Turtles, remember what worked in the first place — martial artists in suits. Save the CGI budget for motion-capture facial acting, and focus on making that look as realistic and expressive as possible.

That's mine. How about you?

[Ramboraph4life aka Matt]

Steve Wang to Direct it.

1. The guy has a background in Make-Up/Creature Fx...working on films like The Monster Squad, Hell Comes to Frogtown, and helping Stan Winston on Predator.

2. The guy knows how to blend buddy humor & Crazy martial Arts...even with a tiny budget (like the $2 to $3 million flick Drive with Mark Dacascos)



3. The guy knows how to blend monster/creature FX with Martial Arts (which he did with The Guyver 2: Dark Hero for only $500,000)




4. The guy knows how to manage a budget...if he could do the above movies for a mere $2.5 million for one, and $500,000 for the other...then imagine what he could do with, say, a $70 million or $80 million budget. Mixed in with handling of Martial Arts AND a background in Creature FX...for me, he'd be the perfect guy.


To write it?

Shane Black. At least in the vein of his writing in movies like Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang, everything that I've seen so far with The Nice Guys, and his work from flicks like Lethal Weapon.

If not, then perhaps someone like James Gunn for his work on The Guardians of the Galaxy. The writing and handling of those characters in that flick is what Ninja Turtles SHOULD be. Stars of the film, 3 Dimensional with a bit of heart and actual wit.

[TMNTInsighter]

I would probably hire Alejandro Inarritu to direct. I don't know who I'd get to write it, but it has to be someone with the same sense of poetry and characterization that he has. Throw in a little motivation (something a lot of blockbusters and Bay films have lacked--how hard is it to give your main characters motivation?!), genuine emotions, insight, and you've got something to match the best TMNT stories of the franchise.

[Powder]

-Jackie Chan styled movie that perfectly blends kung fu action with emotional themes & humor
-Practical costumes with CGI additions
-Actual ninja stuff
-Very New York, not Metropolis, Any City, USA
-Visually dark
-Funky original score with traces of hip-hop & punk rock
-Mirage guys like Murph, Berger, & Lawson as creative consultants

[pdizzle]

Originally Posted by Bry

In one of the many raging thread debates in the past week, amongst speculation and criticism, someone threw down the gauntlet and asked: “Well, who would you get to write and direct a Ninja Turtles movie? Huh? Huh, tough guy!?” [citation needed]

The box office results are far from settled yet, but based on Friday’s take and the weekend projections it looks like this one’s got about a 50% drop from the last movie. Assuming that’s how things work out, the idea of another movie reboot is sounding like a possibility.

Considering that, the question started mulling around my head until a few names bubbled to the surface. So let’s do that! Hypothetically assuming Paramount decides to start fresh in a couple years, who would you want to write and direct the next TMNT reboot?

My picks:

Writer: Douglas Petrie

He’s written a bunch of things, but I was introduced to him as a long-running writer/producer on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Buffy was a very comic-booky show, one with great characters, genuine emotion, and a damn solid balance between drama, comedy, and action. More recently (and most importantly?) he’s a writer and current showrunner of the Netflix Daredevil series. And anyone who knows the TMNT’s history knows why this is so ideal. TMNT began as a sharp satire of the Frank Miller comics that Petrie has brought to life, so he’s someone that can be trusted to understand how that core of the TMNT concept works. Mix that and his “Buffy” sensibilities and you’ve got someone who could write a movie that’s true to the concept’s roots while also delivering a well-rounded experience that appeals to as wide an audience as possible.

Director: Stephen Chow

Chow has a terrific track record directing martial-arts action and comedy, and has developed a cult following and a lot of respect in the west. But maybe the experience of helming a major Hollywood release would be enough to hook him for this project.

For example: remember the Raph vs. Foot rooftop battle in the 1990 movie that’s still a franchise highlight? Well, imagine Raph in the opening part of this scene:



One of the major problems with the Platinum Dunes movies is they’ve forgotten the “ninja” in “Ninja Turtles”, so hiring someone who truly understands and respects (and is highly skilled at) martial-arts filmmaking is exactly what this property needs.

As an added bonus, Chow is also one of the most popular directors in China. Studios are vying hard for that market, usually by stuffing in as much explosive CGI spectacle as possible. But TMNT has a chance to stand out here, and hiring Chow could be a different, more effective way to tap into that market.

As for the production? Keep the budget relatively low: $50 million should be the limit. Learn from Deadpool and do as much as you can with that amount. That means you have to keep the action as “real” as possible and can’t rely on flashy, over-the-top CGI instead of a truly strong script and direction. This would work very well with Chow’s skills as a director, and would let them take more risks as they don’t need to recoup a budget nearly three times the size. (And it would also help save money for a killer marketing campaign.)

As for the Turtles, remember what worked in the first place — martial artists in suits. Save the CGI budget for motion-capture facial acting, and focus on making that look as realistic and expressive as possible.

That's mine. How about you?

I don't know much about directors and producers but it's funny you picked that scene for a raph fight. Man I can still remember it was right after I had watched the 2007 movie of Tmnt that I had first watched kung-fu hustle and it was that paticular scene I was watching when I got really bummed thinking how epic it would have been to get something like that in the tmnt movie, or even something on the scale of the matrix 2 where reeves is fighting like 500 smith's with that bo-staff on the roof. I have always wanted a ninja turtles movie with that kind of martial arts quality...at least the final act leading up to the final battle if nothing else...

[ToTheNines]

Give the rights back to Marvel!

[d_osborn]

In my perfect world, I would want a Netflix or HBO series... a non-tongue in cheek throwback to low-budget 80's kung fu exploitation movies-- but with good creature FX. The cinematic equivalent to what early Mirage was to comics. Played completely straight.

[Allio]

I would do karai...

Oh, not that kind of thread

[The Deadman]

Let Tim Burton direct a TMNT film.

[MikeandRaph87]

Writters: James Gunn and Tom Waltz.

Director: Steve Barron.

Recast April.

Keep budget at 100 million altogether and work with it.

[Andrew NDB]

I don't know. I would say, "Whoever has a good understanding and love of the Turtles, with enough clout to make their movie with minimal interference from TPTB." If they don't have a good understanding of the Turtles they'll make a crappy movie and if they don't have enough clout, they'll just be a puppet director like the last 3, selling TPTB's toys and not making art.

I could rattle off directors' names (you know, who wouldn't want SPIELBURG'S TMNT or something) that I like but without knowing if they "get" the TMNT it would be a little pointless.

[Krutch]

Director: Guillermo del Toro
Writer: Joss Whedon, James Gunn, or Rob Thomas(no, not that Rob Thomas)

Their origin story is the tricky part. Preferably, I'd like to skip it all together. Whether it's being oozed, reincarnated, animal ancestor... I've always thought the origin of the turtles are the worst part of the whole franchise. They're all too silly, convoluted, or contrived for my liking. But by skipping or not addressing the origin, Shredder is the hang up. You need that personal connection with him and Splinter, and that's generally established through their origins.

Powder's list pretty much nails a lot of the tone I'd prefer.

At some point in the movie, I'd have the Turtles split up into teams of Leo/Mikey and Raph/Don because its just so rarely done there'd be some freshness to it.

I'd ease up on the more out-there things like some of Don's tech. I'd probably have the red bandanas until they meet April then switch to the multi-colored. The pizza addiction I'd include but not in dialogue; you'd just see a lot of pizza boxes and maybe Mikey can chow down on a slice during a scene.

I wouldn't cast April as an obvious supermodel type of actress like Megan Fox, that's for sure. I've always thought of April as the cute girl next door type. I wouldn't go the reporter route, either. She'd be Baxter's assistant not only because that's just more interesting to me, but because down the road she can feed into Donatello's science/technology character.

For the first movie I'd like to see a Shredder/Baxter/Mousers story.

I'd also consider setting it in the 80s, too. They've adapted amazingly well with the times but the whole TMNT universe just feels so much like a product of its time it'd be fun to set it there. Also makes them never being spotted a bit more plausible when every NYC citizen doesn't always have a phone camera on them to throw on YouTube.

A guilty personal pleasure would be to set it around Winter near Christmas. I just love the aesthetic of the lighting, and would be something new for a TMNT movie.

[Powder]

Originally Posted by Krutch

At some point in the movie, I'd have the Turtles split up into teams of Leo/Mikey and Raph/Don because its just so rarely done there'd be some freshness to it.

I'd ease up on the more out-there things like some of Don's tech. I'd probably have the red bandanas until they meet April then switch to the multi-colored. The pizza addiction I'd include but not in dialogue; you'd just see a lot of pizza boxes and maybe Mikey can chow down on a slice during a scene.

I wouldn't cast April as an obvious supermodel type of actress like Megan Fox, that's for sure. I've always thought of April as the cute girl next door type. I wouldn't go the reporter route, either. She'd be Baxter's assistant not only because that's just more interesting to me, but because down the road she can feed into Donatello's science/technology character.

For the first movie I'd like to see a Shredder/Baxter/Mousers story.

I'd also consider setting it in the 80s, too. They've adapted amazingly well with the times but the whole TMNT universe just feels so much like a product of its time it'd be fun to set it there. Also makes them never being spotted a bit more plausible when every NYC citizen doesn't always have a phone camera on them to throw on YouTube.

A guilty personal pleasure would be to set it around Winter near Christmas. I just love the aesthetic of the lighting, and would be something new for a TMNT movie.

Straight up perfection, really.

[Commenter 42]

Originally Posted by ToTheNines

Give the rights back to Marvel!

^^^this.

Or David Fincher.

Because he's David f*cking Fincher.

A TMNT film that dark would have all my attention.

[ZariusTwo]

Originally Posted by The Deadman

Let Tim Burton direct a TMNT film.

Burton has steadily become box office poison the last couple of years and phones it in considerably compared to how he used to do things.

[Leolead]

Originally Posted by Powder

-Jackie Chan styled movie that perfectly blends kung fu action with emotional themes & humor
-Practical costumes with CGI additions
-Actual ninja stuff
-Very New York, not Metropolis, Any City, USA
-Visually dark
-Funky original score with traces of hip-hop & punk rock
-Mirage guys like Murph, Berger, & Lawson as creative consultants

Pretty much this for me as well.

[Bry]

Originally Posted by Powder

-Very New York, not Metropolis, Any City, USA
-Visually dark

Originally Posted by Krutch

I'd also consider setting it in the 80s, too. They've adapted amazingly well with the times but the whole TMNT universe just feels so much like a product of its time it'd be fun to set it there. Also makes them never being spotted a bit more plausible when every NYC citizen doesn't always have a phone camera on them to throw on YouTube.

Excellent points here, and I definitely agree. That "dangerous '80s Manhattan" vibe is really where the concept works best, and IMO trying to evoke a "cleaner" modern NYC just doesn't fit the concept. (Example: the Daredevil show needed a dangerous city, so they used the events of The Avengers as a reason to make Hell's Kitchen into the crime-ridden hellhole of the Frank Miller comics instead of the very safe-and-friendly feeling area I stayed in a couple of years ago.)

I'd go kind of "timeless" with it. It doesn't have to be a full-on period piece. Just try not to pinpoint an exact year or era, mix up the human characters' fashions, show Donnie working on outdated technology, don't give everyone a cell phone, etc. If you establish the world they live in well enough, the audience will just go with it.

[neatoman]

Originally Posted by Commenter 42

^^^this.

Or David Fincher.

Because he's David f*cking Fincher.

A TMNT film that dark would have all my attention.

At first I thought you meant David Lynch, I always get those two mixed up.

Still, Lynch on a TMNT movie would be pretty sweet, if for no other reason than that he would probably embrace stuff like this.

[Commenter 42]

Originally Posted by neatoman

At first I thought you meant David Lynch, I always get those two mixed up.

Still, Lynch on a TMNT movie would be pretty sweet, if for no other reason than that he would probably embrace stuff like this.
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eNnsn_hQvZ.../madness03.jpg

Ha, Lynch might draw the whole thing on napkins, or crazier. There's meta, and then there's Lynch.

Nah I mean David Fincher: the Social Network, Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Fight Club, Gone Girl, Seven, Zodiac...

If you can make a movie about Facebook compelling, you can do anything.

[jenna]

The creative team behind season one of Marvel's Daredevil on Netflix.

- New York City, slightly hyper-realised so that it has its own character - a sense of an underground world
- martial arts, but realistic
- psychological insights into lead characters / character growth
- well plotted, well written
- neighbourhood level threat / turtles under threat

Someone willing to fully immerse themselves in the tmnt world, and extract its core themes and characters.

As far as I'm concerned, Daredevil gave me everything I always wanted from tmnt. I think they could do a good job.