Enter the Ninja
Mr. Parker: "I've made some notes. Ninjutsu: the ancient Japanese art of assassination. The ninjas were the private killers for the ancient Japanese clans."
Mr. Venarius: "That's preposterous. This is 20th century Manila, not feudal Japan."
Mr. Parker: "Well, preposterous or not, sir, we're dealing with a highly disciplined person who, like in ancient times times, excels in martial arts, swordsmanship, archery, and poisons. These men are able men in many parts."
release year: 1981
genre: martial arts/action
viewing setting: home Bluray 1/7/22 and home DVD 9/15/12 and home VHS 3/20/99 and other times before
synopsis: An evil businessman is pressuring a couple to sell their land, but they get a visit from an old friend who happens to have ninjitsu training.
impressions: This was pretty entertaining; it's the old "peaceful people just want to live their life, but evil people want to drive them away to get their land" situation. As often happens in these scenarios, some really bad-ass hero steps in to help, with violent results. In addition to the (standard but still cool) ninja stuff, there were some good fights and some good lines. The plot was simple and tight. Best of all, there was quite a bit of humor. It's also corny at times - the opening scene involves an actual ninja training exercise with the white ninja, the black ninja, and numerous red ninjas.
acting: Franco Nero did a good job as the lead, but Christopher George really stole the show with his over-the-top bad guy. Susan George was the tough wife of the farm/plantation, and Alex Courtney was her alcoholic, shadow-of-his-former-self husband. Zachi Noy was a sniveling henchman with a metal hook for a hand. Will Hare was an old street vendor who somehow got to help the good guys. And let's not forget Sho Kosugi, who (before he achieved fame and got to be the hero in a bunch of movies) was the glowering evil ninja here.
final word: Worth seeing, better than most of the ninja-fu movies that came out in the 1980s.
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