Revenge of the Ninja
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Movie Reviews of Revenge of the Ninja
Movie Review: "Only a Ninja can stop a Ninja"
Summary: 4 Stars
What we have here is collectively one of the most typically awesome Cannon Films productions, the strongest of all Sho Kosugi vehicles, and arguably the best ninja movie ever made, period. So much can be said for a film that simultaneously presents both bottom-of-the-barrel cheesiness and top-of-the-line action content, but for now, just know that if you're looking for quality fare in any of the three aforementioned areas, this is definitely one to pick up. If you're in it for good acting and basic realism, steer clear...but if you need a massive overdose of black hoods and shuriken, line up!
The story: after his family is murdered by a group of ninjas, ninjutsu master Cho Osaki (Kosugi, Ninja Assassin) and his young son and elderly mother travel to America to embrace entrepreneurship with the help of Cho's friend and business partner Braden (Arthur Roberts, Air America - The Complete Series), leaving behind the ninja lifestyle...but when a mysterious masked assassin makes his presence known in a black market war between Braden and gangster Tony Chifano (Mario Gallo, Raging Bull) and his own family is put in danger, Cho is obligated to embrace his deadly talents once again.
The first five minutes of the movie made me apprehensive: Kosugi's opening fight with the murdering ninjas is a practice in mediocrity: appropriately violent but sloppily choreographed from beginning to end. Luckily, the ensuing battles include a few for the ages. Kosugi himself doesn't don the enigmatic cowl and jumpsuit until the last 15 minutes, but right up until the end - with the aid of karate champion Keith Vitali (Wheels on Meals) and ninja double Eddie Tse - he supplies some stellar weapons-inclusive martial arts encounters as action choreographer, particularly the one he has with Vitali against a group of thugs on a playground, which can still match just about any fight done by other action heroes of his generation.
Be warned: the movie's camp value is worth its weight in gold but is likely to suffocate anybody who doesn't appreciate B-movie charm. Take your pick from at least a dozen heavyweight examples of bad acting and logic-bending character interactions, but my favorite is a scene in which little Kane Kosugi - Sho's real-life son, future star of D.O.A. - Dead or Alive, only eight at the time but looking more like six - demonstrates his legitimately advanced ninjutsu skills in a fully-fledge fight against Ashley Ferrare (Cyclone), a woman almost twice his size who literally gets thrown around the mat by him. It's a segment fit for a time capsule, but like many other instances in the film, it's guaranteed to alienate folks who only like serious martial arts fare, so know yourself well before indulging.
Oh, and be sure to get the DVD version, deal dogs - it includes the complete uncut version of the film, mainly inclusive of several violent killings that were censored in the VHS release (fall face-first on tiny metal jacks, anybody?). Get it any which way you can to introduce yourself to and revere one of action's all-time greats: six years after this was released, hearing Kosugi's name was a rarity, and even nowadays he remains obscure in the mainstream, despite being the very best at what he does. Get it!
Movie Review: The greatest bad movie ever made.
Summary: 4 Stars
If you were to look up the term "Guilty Pleasure" in the dictionary, Revenge of the Ninja is what you will find! I'm embarrassed to admit I saw this film three times in the theaters back in 1983. It's as good (and bad) as I remember. The film has something for everyone. A good ninja, a bad ninja, a hot babe, offensive stereotypical villains, and wall to wall action. Although the film takes place in Los Angeles, you'll laugh out loud when you see snow covered mountains in the background of several scenes! Sho Kosugi and real-life son Kane Kosugi provide most of the action, but the terrific Keith Vitali gets in a few licks as well. And the villains? How about a tomahawk wielding Indian man and a drug trafficking evil ninja? I love how the laws of physics are violated in nearly every scene. Leaping over brick walls in a single bound, tossing suriken stars like frisbees, and a crossbow-launched arrow drills itself into a concrete wall! This is all in good fun, of course. On the downside we get threadbare acting and a distracting music score, but those are minor quibbles for a really fun movie. The film's stunt coordinator plays the cowboy thug in the playground fight scene, and Kosugi's other real-life son has a cameo as the boy who is slain in the film's opening sequence. As for the DVD, the film is presented in full frame picture and mono sound, but still looks and sounds fine. Don't look for any extras, as there are none to be found. About four seconds of footage has been added to this DVD version - a quick shot of spewing blood at the film's conclusion. Other than that, this is the same good ole ninja flick we all remember. Hail Sho Kosugi!Movie Review: Great Movie!
Summary: 4 Stars
This movie was inadvertently recommended to me by Amazon (probably because I bought a couple of Jackie Chan flicks)and immediatly I was transported back to 1984 when I used to watch this on HBO after school. I must've seen it about 30 times when it was on then. So I preordered without question when it came out on DVD about a year and a half ago. Sho Kosugi is amazing! I couldn't believe I never sought these films out sooner (me being a huge Bruce Lee & martial arts films fan). The acting is pretty laughable but what martial arts film has GOOD acting? The music wasn't bad and I loved the theme that played while Cho (Sho Kosugi) was breaking the seal on his Ninja katana in the temple. That scene to this day sends chills up my spine. I got a good laugh out of how Bradon (the evil masked Ninja) had so many weapons on him, including a life sized decoy of himself! Even the Indian from Grizzly Adams fame made a cameo as one of the mob boss' goons. The biggest laugh of all was the gang in the playground. An unlikely group consisting of a biker, a martial arts thug, a cowboy, and a jive soul brother! YMCA anyone? LOL! The blond floozie was a waste of space... As Cho said, I think she forgot her pants. And who can forget the acrobatic Oba-san (granny?) The fight scenes and use of the Ninja weapons made the film.
Not much on extras as there's just the theatrical trailer. It's in mono and panscan. Would've been nice in widescreen but what can you do? It's a B movie...
Now all they have to do is release the other movies on DVD like Enter the Ninja and Ninja III: The Domination.
Movie Review: Who let the Ninjas out?!
Summary: 4 Stars
If you only watch one ninja movie all year, this should be the one. It's flawless. The action never stops and the kid who plays Sho Kosugi's son is especially good. He's a kid ninja! There's also a granny ninja! And the two main ninjas engage in some of the best fight scenes ever staged. Add to this a campy sense of humor(one of the Mob enforcers is dressed like Tonto and fights with tomahawks that he pulls from under his vest,and some of the fight scenes involve short funny slapstick bits. And did I mention the granny ninja?) and you have a movie that gives you a tremendous Bang for your entertainment buck.I'm going to say that this is THE definitive ninja film of all time. This is the movie that firmly established the ninja film as a legitimate sub-genre in American film.
Movie Review: Only a ninja can stop a ninja
Summary: 4 Stars
This movie is a classic & I remember watching this over & over again with my brother when we were kids. It's action star Sho Kosugi in his prime battling ninjas, thugs, flying onto cars, & doing acrobats on building rooftops. It was the 80's & ninja mania was well into full swing & I think this movie certainly defines that era pretty damn well. There was plenty of other crap martial arts movies out there too at the time but this one always remained the Shakespeare of them all. Obscurities like The Octagon, American Ninja, or Ninja Mission don't even come close. It's too bad Sho Kosugi's other movies aren't more readily available like Enter the Ninja & Pray for Death. The only downside to this DVD is there aren't any special features.