Review of Ninja Assassin (2009) by Halfwelshman — 11 Jun 2012

Alright, we get the message - ninjas are cool! Most of the action in the film is extremely well handled (other than a frankly quite laughable chase on foot through speeding traffic) and for the most part the fight scenes are creative, stylised and brutal, with copious assistance from CGI.

The film is very obviously a McTeigue/Wachowski collaboration, with similar aesthetics and an identical central theme of revenge as their previous joint effort, V for Vendetta, though it lacks that film's darkness and political subtext.

Lead actor Rain, with his dance background, can handle the stunts without difficulty, but he isn't a particularly good actor and his vengeful ninja outcast Raizo doesn't make for a very compelling protagonist.

The rest of the cast, particularly Naomie Harris are a little bland and their performances underwhelming. Sho Kosugi, however, makes for a decent, extremely menacing antagonist, the diabolical ninja Lord Ozunu, though Kosugi is simply once again playing the kind of character that made his name.

The film's script leaves a lot to be desired, and the story is conventional, occasionally verging on dull. In addition, the finale, though technically accomplished, makes it crystal clear that all you need to defeat an army of highly trained killing machines armed with swords is to carry a lot of guns.

Ninja Assassin may be action-packed and gloriously ultraviolent, providing sporadic perverse pleasure, but it's also as dumb as a bag of rocks.