Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is a 1990 film about a quartet of humanoid turtles trained by their mentor in ninjitsu who must learn to pull together in order to face the menace of Shredder and the Foot Clan.

Directed by Steve Barron. Written by Todd W. Langen and Bobby Herbeck.
Heroes in a half shell! taglines

Turtles

Leonardo / Leo

  • [To his brothers.] He's alive! Splinter's alive!
  • I don't think. I know.
  • [Regarding Shredder.] Does anybody have any idea about who or what this is?

Michelangelo / Mikey

  • [as he is watching "The Tortoise & The Hare" with Donatello] Go! Move it, will ya? Aw, you're letting him blow right by ya! Can you believe this guy? Come on! Don't just...! Ninja-kick the damn rabbit! Do something!
  • [He avoids an attack by retracting his head inside his shell. He then pops his head out again and punches the ninja.] God, I LOVE BEING A TURTLE!!!!
  • Wise men say, 'forgiveness is divine, but never pay full price for late pizza'!
  • Oh, but no anchovies. And I mean, no anchovies. You put anchovies on this thing and you're in big trouble, okay?!

Raphael / Raph

  • [repeated line] Damn.
  • [As he is fighting the Foot Clan on a rooftop.] You guys must be studying the, uuh, abridged book of ninja fighting.
  • [As he is fighting Casey Jones] A José Canseco bat? Tell me you didn't pay money for this.
  • [Chasing Casey Jones] Come back here! I'm not finished with you! DAAAAAAAMN!
  • [After shoving Casey, preventing him from killing the thieves] How 'bout a five minute game misconduct for roughing, pal?
  • I do hope there's more o' them.
  • I lost a sai! But, I can get it back!
  • [After Casey pulls out a cricket Bat] Cricket? Nobody understands cricket! You gotta know what a crumpet is to understand cricket!
  • [When asked why he brought April to the sewer lair] Why? Oh, I don't know! Because I wanted to redecorate! A couple of throw pillows, a TV news reporter - what do you think?
  • [After defeating some Foot Ninjas] I mean come on how do you guys expect to beat me? [then more ninjas show up] good answer!, good answer!

Donatello / Donnie

  • [Turtles are watching April on TV, Michelangelo's teasing Raphael] I think he's actually turning red! [Raphael throws sai, sticks to floor between Donatello's legs] Uh, maybe not.
  • [Casey Jones and the Turtles are inside April's apartment fighting the Foot, who's numbers are continuing to increase.] Hey guys? I'm not so sure this is uh, structurally speaking, such a good time for your ah, buddies to drop in...
  • [April and Casey fight then go into different rooms, slamming the doors after them] Gosh, it's kind of like Moonlighting, isn't it?
  • [After losing at a rock paper scissor match against Michaelangelo] Damn!

April O'Neil

  • [Opening Lines] Much more than just a series of small, isolated incidents, it's now apparent that an organized criminal element is at work and at the moment, business is good. So good in fact that there appear to be no eyewitnesses to any of these crimes. With complaints ranging from purse snatching to breaking and entering, police switchboards have been swamped with the angry voices of more and more citizens who have fallen prey to the recent surge of crime that continues to plague the city. Instead of getting better, things are actually getting worse. Even more alarming is the baffling and often bizarre nature of these crimes. Merchandise of every size and description from skateboards to stereo systems has been disappearing from store shelves and storage areas at an alarming rate. Even the victims themselves rarely catch a glimpse of the thieves. Many don't even know they've been victimized until it's too late. In fact, police have yet to come up a single eyewitness. Only a few vague reports of young boys or teenagers at the scenes have been filed, but whoever is behind these crimes, one thing is certain, these are much than just a series of random isolated incidents. Crimes without criminals? An invisible gang at work? Who are we gonna call? Unfortunatly the police are the only ones to combat what some are already dubbing the silent crime wave. But perhaps the most disturbing silence is that coming from city hall. April O'Neil, Channel 3 Eyewitness News.
  • And then there's Casey Jones, a 9-year-old trapped in a man's body. He might almost be cute if it wasn't for that pigheadedness.
  • [to Chief Sterns] Would you mind repeating that again... in English perhaps?

Casey Jones

  • That was a crime, you purse-grabbing pukes. And this is the penalty. 2 minutes for slashing... 2 minutes for hooking... and let's not forget my personal favorite: 2 minutes for high stick.
  • [to the Foot Soldiers of Raph] You guys mind telling me what you're doing to my little green pal over there, hm? [sees April] Oh, who is the babe?
  • [to Tatsu] A little Primatene might just help to clear that up there.
  • [after knocking Tatsu out with a golf club] I'll never call golf a dull game again.
  • I look like I just called Mike Tyson a sissy, and all you can say is 'Hi'?
  • [After seeing Raphael for the first time] Hey, what are you? Some sort of punker? [Raphael: Huh?] I hate punkers. Especially bald ones with green makeup...who wear masks over ugly faces.
  • 'Class is Pain 101... your instructor's Casey Jones.'
  • [While activating the trash compactor with Shredder inside] Oops!

Splinter

  • [repeated line] Kids.
  • My Master Yoshi's first rule was:  Possess the right thinking.  Only then can one receive the gifts of strength, knowledge, and peace.
  • Some say that the path from inner turmoil begins with a friendly ear.  My ear is open if you care to use it.
  • Anger clouds the mind.  Turned inward, it is an unconquerable enemy.
  • All fathers care for their sons.
  • I too once had a family, Danny. Many years ago I lived in Japan: a pet of my master Yoshi, mimicking his movements from my cage and learning the mysterious art of Ninjitsu, for Yoshi was one of Japan's finest shadow warriors. His only rival was a man named Oroko Saki, and they competed in all things, but in nothing more fiercely than for the love of a woman, Tang Shen. Shen's love was only for my master and rather than see him fight Saki for her hand, she persuaded Yoshi to flee with me to America. But Saki vowed vengeance. I remember it well, as my master returned home to find his beloved Shen lying on the floor, and then he saw her killer. Saki wasted no words, and during the struggle, my cage was broken. I leapt to Saki's face, biting and clawing, but he threw me to the floor and took one swipe with his Katana, slicing my ear. Then he was gone, and I was alone.
  • I am proud of you, my sons. Tonight you have learned the final and greatest truth of the Ninja: that ultimate mastering comes not from the body, but from the mind. Together, there is nothing your four minds cannot accomplish. Help each other, draw upon one another, and always remember the power that binds you. The same is what brought me here tonight, that which I gladly return with my final words: I love you all, my sons.
  • [Confronting Shredder] Yes, Oroku Saki, I know who you are. We met many years ago, in the home of my master... Hamato Yoshi!
  • Death comes for us all, Oroku Saki, but something much worse comes for you, for when you die, it will be... [Shredder reaches for the back of his belt, takes out a knife and throws it at Splinter, who dodges it and releases Shredder, who falls, screaming, into the dustcart] ...without honor.
  • I have always liked Cowabunga! (laughs) I made a funny!

The Shredder

  • [To newly made Foot Ninja] Money cannot buy the honor, which you have earned tonight. You make us all proud. [To street gang] Only effort, discipline, loyalty, earn the right to wear the dragon dochi. You are here because the outside world rejects you. This is your family. I am your father. I want you all to become full members of the Foot. There is a new enemy: freaks of nature who interfere with our business. You are my eyes and ears; FIND THEM! Together we will punish these creatures. These... TURTLES!!
  • There will be no mistake this time. I go myself.
  • [To the Turtles] You fight well, in the old style. But you've caused me enough trouble. Now you face...the Shredder.
  • [Raphael: Where's Splinter?] Ah, the rat. So it has a name. It HAD a name. [Leonardo: YOU LIE!] [Smirks] Do I?
  • [To Raphael, Donatello and Michelangelo] He [Leonardo] dies. Weapons! [Gestures with his head] NOW!! [Raphael, Donatello and Michelangelo discard their weapons to save Leonardo.] Fools! The three of you may have overpowered me with the loss of but one! Now your fate... WILL BE HIS!! [Brings back his yari and prepares to stab Leonardo.]
  • [Removes his mask to face Splinter, revealing the scars underneath from their last encounter.] You. Now I will finish what I began with YOUR EAR! [Attempts to joust Splinter, but his yari is caught in a nunchaku chain and he is hanging over the edge of a building]

Tatsu

  • [after a teen bumps into him by accident] Go... play.
  • Never lower your eyes to an enemy.
  • Ninja vanish!

Dialogue

Donatello: [skateboards in the sewers, and then stops to sit down next to Michelangelo] How are you doing?
Michelangelo: Fine.
Donnie: Nice night.
Mikey: Pizza dude's got 30 seconds.
Donnie: Hey, Mikey. Did you ever think about what Splinter said tonight? I mean about what it would be like, you know, not having him?
Mikey: Hmm. Time's up. $3 off.
Mikey: Yes, friends, the new turbo ginsu. Wa-hoo! [tosses the pizza while Leonardo slices it] It dices, it slices, and it makes French fries and 3 different.... [a pizza slice lands on Splinter's head] WHOOPS.
Splinter: Mmm, kids.
Casey Jones: New game, round-head: [pulls out a cricket bat] Cricket.
Raphael: Cricket?! Nobody understands cricket! You gotta know what a crumpet is to understand cricket!
Casey: I'll teach you! [swings and hits Raphael into a trash can] 6 Runs.
Raph: [struggles to get out]
Casey: [running] So long, freak! I've got work to do!
Raph: [finally free of the can and furious] FREAK?! FREAK?!?
[Casey leaps over wall and runs while Raph gives chase before he runs over a taxi cab]
Passenger: What the heck was that?
Cab driver: Looked like some sort of turtle in a trenchcoat. [passenger is silent] You're going to LaGuardia, right?
Raph: [still chasing Casey] Come back here! I'm not finished with you! [screams bloody murder] DA-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-AMN!
Chief Sterns: We are presently executing a plan of redeployment that will minimize response time while maximizing coordination between patrol units in a decentralized networking scheme.
April: Hmm, I'm not sure I understood all of that, Chief Sterns. Would you mind repeating it, in English perhaps?
[April is called into Sterns' office]
Chief Sterns: O'Neill, get in here.
April: [to the technician] Time me.
Sterns: Just what is it that you hope to accomplish out there, besides busting my chops?
April: I think you know just as much as I do about the Foot Clan and I don't think you're doing anything about it.
Sterns: You expect me to waste precious manpower because some immigrants are reminded of something that supposedly happened years ago in Japan?!
April: Have you got anything else?
Sterns: Are you tryin' to tell me how to.... [screams bloody murder] DO MY JOB?!
[April walks out of Sterns' office as the door shuts]
Technician: 1:07, a new record.
Splinter: For 15 years now, we have lived here. Before that time, I was a pet of my Master Yoshi, mimicking his movements from my cage and learning the secret art of Ninja. When we were forced to come to New York, I found myself, for the first time, without a home, wandering the sewers, scavenging for whatever I could find. And then, one day, I came upon a shattered glass jar and 4 baby turtles.
Mikey: That was us.
Raph: Shut up.
Donnie: Oh, no.
Splinter: The little ones were crawling into a strange, glowing ooze from a broken canister nearby. I gathered them up in an old coffee can, and when I awoke the next morning, I received a shock, for they had doubled in size. I, too, was growing, particularly in intellect, and I was amazed at how intelligent they seemed, but nothing could have prepared me for what happened next - 1 of them spoke.
Baby turtle in flashback: Pizza. Pizza!
Splinter: More words followed, and I began their training, teaching them all that I had learned from my master.
Baby turtle in flashback: Radical, radical, radical, radical....
Splinter: And soon, I gave them all names - Leonardo, Michelangelo...
Mikey: That’s me.
Splinter: ...Donatello and Raphael.
April: You guys eat pizza?
Mikey and Donnie: [simultaneously] Doesn't everybody?
April: Will I ever see you guys again?
Mikey: Indubitably!
Leonardo: Well, that depends on how fast you stock your pizza.
Mikey: Ha-ha! No doubt about it. She loved us! It was the impressions, dudes.
Donnie: You wish.
Leo: Hold it!
[after Raphael gets a mention from April on the news]
Donnie: Hey, look. Nyuk-nyuk. I think he's blushing.
Raph: [angrily] I am NOT.
Donnie: I think he's actually turning red. [Raph angrily chucks a Sai into the floor between Donnie's legs] Uh, hmm. Maybe not.
[Watching an argument starting between Leonardo and Raphael]
Mikey: Fight?
Donnie: Fight.
Mikey: Kitchen?
Donnie: Kitchen.
Mikey: Yeah.
[Later, while eating pork rinds]
Mikey: [hands him a pork rind] Pork Rind?
Donnie: [takes the pork rind] Pork Rind.
[2 Foot Ninjas are left after Raphael defeats a large number. They look at each other in fright and confusion.]
Raphael: I mean, come on, how do you guys expect to beat me? [Camera pans as an overwhelming number of Foot Ninjas leap onto the rooftop.] Good answer. Good answer.
April: Hasn't Raph been gone a long time?
Donnie: Nah, he does it all the time. He likes it.
[scene cuts to Raph being assaulted by the Foot.]
April: Are you sure?
Donnie: Ah, don't worry. He'll probably be back any minute.
[An unconscious Raph is thrown through the skylight, landing at Donnie's feet]
April: Raph! Is he...?
Leonardo: No, he's alive, barely.
April: Oh, God.
Leo: [about Casey] Who the heck is that?
Mikey: Wayne Gretzky, on steroids?
April: What did you do, did you take classes in insensitivity?
Casey: Hey, I was just trying to break it to you easy, that's all there is to it.
April: Oh, well, you failed miserably!
Casey: Hey, Broadzilla, you wouldn't even be standing here if it weren't for me, OK?
April: And what do you want, do you want a 'thank you'?
Casey: No, it's me who should thank you for that privilege, right?
April: Fine!
Casey: Yeah.
April: Thank you.
Casey: No, thank you!
April: You're welcome!
Casey: You're welcome! [they each march to their separate rooms slamming the doors behind them]
Donatello: Gosh, it's kind of like Moonlighting, isn't it?
Casey: Not even close, Zip Neck. Professor and Mary Ann. Happily ever after.
Donnie: No way, Atomic Mouth, Gilligan was her main man. They'd be married and have 6 kids by now.
Casey: Gilligan was a geek, Barfarooni!
Donnie: You're the geek, Camel Breath!
Casey: Dome head.
Donnie: [self-consciously rubs his bald head and gasps] Elf lips!
Casey: [finishes fixing the engine] Okay, let's give this a try, Funkoid!
Donnie: Here it goes.... What are we on?
Casey: Uh, G.
Donnie: Here it goes, Gakface!
Casey: I'm ready, Hosebrain!
Donnie: You're a claustrophobic!
Casey: You want a fist in the mouth? I've never even looked at another guy before!
Mikey: [yawns] Oh, man, I could go for a little deep dish action right about now.
Danny: I had some pizza here the other day. There might be some left over.
Mikey: [runs over to the table as April laughs, Donnie takes a look at it] Well?
Donnie: Question.
Mikey: Ugh. Yeah?
Donnie: Do you like penicillin on your pizza?
Mikey: D'oh! [he and Donnie start humming "Taps"]
[while fighting The Foot]
Mikey: Hey, Donny, looks like this one is suffering from shell shock.
Donnie: Too derivative.
Mikey: Well, I guess we can really shell it out.
Donnie: Too cliché.
Mikey: Well, it was a shell of a good hit!
Donnie: I like it! [to next opponent] Step up!
Leo: [Shredder shows up] Does anybody have any idea about who or what this is?
Mikey: I don't know. But I'll bet that it never has to look for a can opener.
The Shredder: You fight well in the old style, but you've caused me enough trouble. Now you face.... the Shredder.
Donnie: The Shredder?
Mikey: Uhh.... maybe all that hardware's for making coleslaw.
Raph: Where's Splinter?
Shredder: Ah, the rat. So, it has a name. It had a name.
Leo: [angrily] YOU LIE!
Shredder: [evilly smiles] Do I?
[Leo angrily charges toward Shredder, but Shredder flips Leo, and points his yari to Leo's neck]
Shredder: [To Raph, Donnie and Mikey] He [Leo] dies. Weapons! [Gestures with his head] NOW!! [Raph, Donnie and Mikey discard their weapons to save Leo.] Fools! [chortles] The 3 of you may have overpowered me with the loss of but one. Now your fate.... [screams bloody murder] WILL BE HIS!! [brings back his yari and prepares to stab Leo]
Raph, Mikey, and Donnie: [scream bloody murder] NO-O-O-O-O-O-O-O!!!!!!!!
[Suddenly, Splinter appears startling Shredder]
Mikey: Splinter!
[Leonardo seeing Shredder in shock rolls away back to the other Turtles]
Splinter: Yes, Oroku Saki, I know who you are. We met many years ago, in the home of my master.... Hamato Yoshi!
[Shredder removes his mask, revealing the scars underneath from their last encounter, revealing him to be Oroku Saki.]
Raph: It's him [Oroku Saki].
Oroku Saki: [angrily] You. Now I will finish what I began with YOUR EAR!! [attempts to joust Splinter, but his yari is caught in a nunchaku chain and he is hanging over the edge of a building]
Splinter: Death comes for us all, Oroku Saki, but something much worse comes for you, for when you die, it will be.... [Oroku Saki reaches for the back of his belt, takes out a knife and throws it at Splinter, who dodges and grabs it and, at the same time, releases Shredder, who falls, screaming, into the dustcart] ....without honor.
Casey: Oops! [activates the trash compactor with Shredder inside]
Leo: We were awesome!
Mikey: Bodacious! Ha-ha-ha-ha!
Raph: Bitchin'!
Donnie: Uh.... mmm-mmm.
Mikey: Gnarly!
Leo: Radical!
Raph: Totally tubular, dudes!
Mikey: Wicked!
Raph: Hellacious!
Donnie: Uh.... mega....
Splinter: Ahem.
The Turtles: Huh?
Splinter: I have always liked.... 'Cowabunga'.
Turtles: Hmm? COWABUNGA!!
Splinter: [laughs] I made a funny! [laughs again]

Taglines

  • Heroes in a half shell!
  • Hey dude, this is no cartoon.
  • Lean, Green And On The Screen.
  • They're mean, green and on the screen
  • This ain't no cartoon.
  • All fathers care for their sons.
  • Cowabunga Dudes

About Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990 film)

  • There’s no greater feeling than walking onto the set and seeing the costumes in full motion, being worn by an actor. These things weighed 80 pounds, and the way they brought them to life with the technology that Jim Henson created to make them work and be believable…
  • When I first heard of it, I thought it was a horror film. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ is such a strange name.
  • The animatronic Turtle suits created by Jim Henson's crew for the first TMNT movie were, quite simply, wonderful. I remember being blown away by how beautiful they were and how much the performers and puppeteers were able to get out of these clever and carefully-crafted agglomerations of latex, paint, leather and various fabrics.
  • Q: Being a martial artist and having to work with Donny’s head on and being unable to see fully–does that hinder your natural movement? Did it do anything to your hand-eye coordination?
A: You just had to rely on feel and not be so focused on what you were seeing. You had to rely on the feel of where your body would normally be. It was really difficult work. Plus, we were shooting down in North Carolina in the summer and there was 100% humidity all the time. It was tough. But we were also having a great time. It was one of the first times that Hong Kong stuntmen had come to work on an American production. I mean, these were guys that worked with Jackie Chan.

Cast

Encyclopedic article on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990 film) at Wikipedia

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES
  CREATORS     Kevin Eastman · Peter Laird  
  COMICS     Mirage comic series  (1984–2010) · Tales  (1987–2010) · Adventures  (1988–1995) · Mighty Mutanimals  (1991 spin-off) · Daily comic strip  (1990–1997) · Dreamwave comics
  series  (2003) · IDW comic series  (2011–present)  
  TELEVISION     Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue  (1990) · Turtles Forever  (2009)  
  SERIES     1987–1996 series · Mutant Turtles: Superman Legend  (1996) · Next Mutation  (1997–1998) · 2003–2010 series · 2012–2017 series  
  FILMS     Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles  (1990) · Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze  (1991) · Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III  (1993) · TMNT  (2007) · Turtles
  Forever  (2009) · Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles  (2014) · Out of the Shadows  (2016)  
  FAN-MADE     Casey Jones  (2011)  
  DOCUMENTARY     Turtle Power: The Definitive History of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles  (2014)  
  VIDEO GAMES     Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2: Battle Nexus  (2004)  
  SEE ALSO     Leonardo da Vinci · Donatello · Michelangelo · Raphael  
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