Leofwine_draca
NINJA is a low-budget but kick-ass action vehicle for British martial arts star Scott Adkins, who continues to wow with his own unique brand of high-kicking, tough-punching martial arts fighting. The story for this one is simplistic and predictable in equal measure, with Adkins playing a "white ninja" (following in the footsteps of Franco Nero, Christopher Lambert and Richard Harrison!) who's tasked to protect a chest of rare weapons. Of course, various bad guys are soon after him.Anyway, don't worry about the story; focus instead on the plentiful action, both ninja and otherwise. I actually enjoyed the non-ninja stuff here more than the ninja fights, which are a little silly and sometimes use cheesy special effects. But the bits in the dojo early on are very good, and the highlight comes during a chase-cum-train-fight about halfway through which is really well handled. Of course, Isaac Florentine has directed loads of these things and I suspect he's starting to get rather good at this.The cast is about average for a DTV martial arts flick; Adkins is slightly wooden but an absolutely brilliant fighter, so you forgive him. Ihara's bad guy is readily menacing, while Mika Hijii (ALIEN VS NINJA) proves to be a delightful female sidekick/love interest/damsel in distress. Just watch out for Miles Anderson as a scenery-devouring cult leader and all-around bad guy. NINJA isn't perfect, and the flaws that do exist are pretty big, but it's more honest and exciting than the much bigger NINJA ASSASSIN.
S_Craig_Zahler
this is a warning to fight film fans who are looking for good martial arts. adkins is very talented...but (as in undisputed II and {dacascos} drive), most of the fights are sped up or slowed down.there are about 2 good minutes of fighting towards the end when he is attacked by a crew of dudes in the evil group. otherwise, the ego/stylistic hijinks of isaac florentine get in the way of the real time delivery of choreography (or cover up things that weren't actually working on the set). and lots of bad looking cg gore only adds to the overall feeling that this piece is trying to be like big budget Hollywood, which is not an admirable attempt either. other than a few blood capsules, it looks like none of the actors stained their clothes making this picture-- almost all of the bloodletting is a digital add on.i'm still waiting for adkins to get his own stellar showcase piece like michael jai white's 'blood and bone' and donnie yen's 'ip man' & 'flash point' or jeff wincott in 'martial outlaw.' whenever that gets made, it won't be directed by speed 'em up florentine.
alanrayford
Ninja is as simple, effective and to the point as its cover suggests. The word hangs at the top of the DVD cover all alone, avoid of such descriptors such as American, assassin, mutant, red, shoguns, teenage, turtles or warriors. Its only companion is a picture of a single man in a black costume wielding a sword that may very well be in mid swing. In both title and image, this cover tells you this flick delivers ninja…period, and that is no lie.At the heart of Ninja are bitter rivals Casey (Scott Adkins) and Masuka (Tsuyoshi Ihara). Casey is an all around good guy who, despite being a westerner (P.C. for white), just happens to be a top student at a prestigious ninjitsu school in Japan. To ensure we see him as sympathetic, the movie reminds you he's an orphan every fifteen minutes or so. Masuka is the other top student and (surprise, surprise) hates Casey with a passion usually reserved for pedophiles and fascists. When Masuka goes as far as to try and murder Casey during a sparring match, the school's headmaster sends him packing and sets things into motion.There are a lot of things which occur during the 86 minute running time of Ninja. There's a trip to New York City to retrieve an artifact for the school. There's also a secret society that feels straight out of a comic book and comes off as 1/2 cult and 1/2 mafia. There's even the budding romance between Casey and Namiko (Mika Hijii), the headmaster's daughter. But all of this is background to what we all want to see in films like this; ninja and action starring ninja.While there are only two ninja in the film, the sheer amount of badassery present dares you to feel shortchanged. Most of the action deals with Casey fighting members of a mysterious cult who're in league with Mazuka, and these scenes deliver. Name a martial arts move and, odds are, it's used to great effect here. Scott Adkins is the real deal and is effortlessly able to tread that thin line between believability, practicality and style often lacking in more mainstream action flicks. While the scenes with Mazuka take a back seat, they still do a damn good job of establishing him as an extremely viable threat and a reason to keep the lights on at all hours. While Ihara's not a martial artist in real life, you'd truly be hard pressed to know it by how well he compares to Adkins' physical performance.Between Casey and Masuka, more asses are kicked around the Big Apple than in the typical play through of Arkham City. And, I have to say, the beatdowns seen here veer dizzyingly close to being a live action version of that game. No matter how good that may sound to you, believe me, it looks even better in action. However, it all comes down to a bloodfued between two ninja that can only end with one left standing. When the finale comes around, this is when Ninja's ninja really starts to shine through. The hand to hand takes a backseat to the likes of caltrops, shuriken, katanas and even poison. Things definitely get ramped up as the two rivals leave an impressive trail of bodies in their wake as their final conflict looms. And, that climatic showdown does not disappoint. By film's end, there is only one ninja left standing. But, at several points, it felt like it could have gone either way.Now, while Ninja is everything you've been trained to believe a film with ninja in the title can't be (namely good), there are a few points of contention I had with it. First, the costumes looked like a cross between the Power Rangers and something from an old Sho Kosugi flick. While they worked within the context of the movie, I personally find the more traditional shozoku robes to convey a much more powerful image on screen. Then there's the ending. I think this movie would've benefited greatly by ending immediately after the final confrontation between Casey and Mazuka. It would've made a better, longer lasting impression by being more brutal, final and cutting edge (pun intended). Also, it would've kept things open for potential sequels. American Ninja was like smallpox on celluloid, yet it spawned four sequels. Relative Oscar bait by comparison, Ninja is easily of enough quality to warrant at least one follow up treatment as it's a sincerely entertaining film. All in all, Ninja stands heads and shoulders above the likes of similar fare such as the theatrically released Ninja Assassin. Also, I just want to say Scott Adkins may very well be the single best Bruce Wayne ever and, sadly, one we'll probably never get to see on screen. Still though, one can only hope someone at Warner Bros. might take notice of the obvious match between looks, age and skills, coupled with some solid acting chops, and have that proverbial light bulb go off over their head.
loogenhausen
The highest praise I can heap upon Ninja is that there is absolutely no fat on this thing. It's lean and mean and gets right down to the point: ninjas! It's a scientific fact that ninjas are way cooler than pirates and robots combined. Even dead people know this to be true. That's why it's hard to even muster the energy to attempt to try to bag on a movie like Ninja. The script is flimsier than a leaf in a hurricane, the dialogue is spotty at best and trying to make sense of every plot detail just outs you as an unpatriotic ninja hater. What the movie does do well is show you ninjas killing the crap out of everyone on screen. Scott Adkins and Tsuyoshi Ihara have a hellacious final duel and everything leading up to it is paced faster than a one hundred yard dash. Let's be honest, you didn't have any interest in this movie for its stern position on global politics and the humane treatment of thoroughly owned ninja victims. You came here for ninja-on-ninja action. It's way better than Casper Van Dien's suckfest Mask of The Ninja and in my opinion slightly better than Ninja Assassin. It is not, however, better than Chris Lambert's The Hunted. That one is the high water mark for trashy non-Japanese ninja movies.
