Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie
review by Bobby Blakey
For over 20 years the Power Rangers have been fighting the intergalactic threat of strange monsters with no signs of slowing down. While there have been many iterations of the series none are as popular as the original series The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. During the height of its popularity they released the first big screen adaptation in 1995 featuring the original cast from the TV series, but with some upgraded armor. Now Shout Factory is bringing home to Blu-ray for the first time ever, but does the film hold up or is it no longer morphin time?
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie follows six incredible teens who out-maneuver and defeat evil everywhere as the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers! But this time, the Power Rangers may have met their match when they face off with the most sinister monster the galaxy has ever seen – Ivan Ooze. Unleashed upon the good citizens of Angel Grove after six thousand years of imprisonment, Ivan Ooze strips the Power Rangers of their powers! Now they must journey to a distant planet to learn the secrets of the ancient Ninjetti. Only then will they become empowered with strength enough to restore their Morphin ability and defeat the evil Ivan Ooze. Join the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers and their new Ninja Megazord as they fight to save Angel Grove and the world from evil!
Despite being older when this series started my love of comics and martial arts got me right into this instantly. I was pretty stoked when they
announced the movie and remember seeing it in theaters. They did the rare thing of making it actually feel like a feature version and stepped things up as opposed to just making a big episode. That being said it still was silly and over the top with the monsters and craziness. I haven’t sat down and watched this in a long time so wasn’t sure how well it was going to hold up and while there are elements that struggle it is still a ton of fun.
I really wish they had done more with the new armor as it looked pretty cool, but is understandable that it likely not only was too expensive for the series and obviously wouldn’t match up with the Japanese stock footage. Knowing this franchise you know the villains and monsters are going to be a bit cheesy and that is part of the fun, but they totally missed the mark on the Zords. They opted for some horrible looking CGI chrome things that just didn’t work on either side. In the end this is still at film that is a ton of fun and offers up entertainment for the whole family.
This release not only features the film, but also bonus content including trailer, original featurette and an all new look back with new interviews with cast and crew. Whether you are a fan of the new series or the original this is a must have releases. Join the team and morph to get your copy of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie when it hits Blu-ray for the first time on May 28th from Shout Factory.
For more information head over to www.shoutfactory.com