Review of Ninja Assassin (2009) by Bj P — 29 Nov 2012

Few things in life are guaranteed to be Awesome but two things in film that qualify 9 out of 10 times are Ninjas and Violence. Alone they are great, but when their powers are combined it is an unequaled combination.. In the early 80?s as a young child I wanted to be a ninja primarily from seeing the blueprint for all ninja films ?Revenge of the Ninja? starring the great Sho Kosugi. . At the time a throwing star in the eye was fantastic in this day and age we need a little more for it to register on the violence meter and that is where Ninja Assassin comes in. You can typically judge a ninja film off of the opening minutes and Ninja Assassin is no exception when a Yakuza member gets his head sliced in half you know the goods are about to be delivered, The following opening scene features enough dismemberment and CGI blood to appease even the most avid gorehound.

There is a story somewhere in Ninja Assassin that involves Ninja clans being hired by governments for 100 pounds of gold to assassinate people. That however is completely secondary to what a ninja film is about. Training sequences, a loved one being killed and thus revenge being in order and lots and lots of violence. The thing that makes the Ninja so cool is they are mercenaries, they have the best toys they don?t just punch and kick they hide in the shadows and then attack the whole honor of facing your opponent is lost on them it?s all about getting the job done and not showing weakness.

Ninja Assassin stars Asian sensation Rain as Raizo the orphan taken in by the ?black sand? Ninja Clan and taught to become a lethal killing machine. His father Ozuna (played by noted ninja badass and godfather of the film genre Sho Kosugi) orders the killing of a fellow student who Raizo has romantic feelings for which leads Raizo to begin to reconsider his commitment to his clan and ultimately the catalyst for Raizo going against his adoptive father. This is mostly told through flashbacks while Raizo is protecting a Europol researcher Mika (Naomie Harris) who has discovered the truth about the Ninjas and there connection to world governments. The story is ridiculous and does just enough to keep the flow going from one action sequence to the next; but thats the point the movie is called Ninja Assassin the title sells you what the film is all about.

While not for everyone in fact if you don?t have an affinity for Ninjas chances are you will think this is horrible, but for what it is, it?s fantastic a true ode to Ninja Awesomeness.