I watched Mutant Mayhem over the weekend (which was great). I haven’t watched the 1990 movie in years, but I was suddenly reminded how powerful this scene is for what is ostensibly a silly action movie for kids: the elongated shadow, the percussive score with ominous electric guitar accents, the camera tracking down from its starting position to sweep in behind him, the light gleaming from the blades on his helmet as he slowly turns to scan the room, and the ritualistic unrolling of the cape from his shoulders. All in a single, imposing 75-second take.
Great stuff.
This was borderline nightmare fuel for me as a kid. I hated these scenes–they were so scary.
I sobbed at 6 years old to the scene where Splinter is talking to the turtles through the fire. To the point my parents had to stop the movie and frantically explain that it’s not real, it’s just a story, the story will get happier, etc.