Based on the late 1990s Canadian children’s TV show, Franklin’s big-screen debut is a baffling attempt to breathe new life into a formula which should have been left by the wayside. Staring at the faded pastel hues of the lethargic animated animals and hearing the drone of hackneyed dialogue is like going back in time — a time before the Shreks, before the Toy Stories, hell, even before The Jungle Book.
The TV series aired in 11-minute episodes, and this feature has barely enough plot to sustain one of those — young turtle Franklin searches in the forest for a cure for sick Granny Turtle. A curiously depressing throwback.