Credits

Director: James McTeigue Starring: Rain, Naomie Harris.,Ben Miles, Shô Kosugi, Sung Kang, Rick Yune Screenplay: Matthew Sand, J. Michael Straczynski Country: USA

External Links

Ninja Assassin tells two stories of the life of Raizo (K-pop singer Rain in his first Western role), a ninja assassin. One story, told in flashbacks, sees Raizo grow up in a form of barracks where children are taught the ways of the ninja by a cruel master named Ozunu (Sho Kosugi) where through the love of a woman, he becomes disillusioned with his way of life. The other story tells of Europol agent Mika (Naomie Harris) who is investigating the rumor of ninjas living in Berlin. Of course, the ninjas want their secret kept at any cost, and Raizo saves her, and the pair team up to tear the ninja clan down, leading Raizo in a war against his brothers and former master.

I really tried to enjoy Ninja Assassin. The acting in general was OK, I liked the appearance of Die Another Day's Rick Yune, 28 Days Later's Naomie Harris and especially 80s martial arts legend Sho Kosugi, and the fight scenes showcased some amazing choreography with a mix of martial arts and other acrobatic art displays. Unfortunately, the two things that pissed me off were hard to pass over.

Thing that pissed me off #1: excessive CGI blood. I don't have a problem with CGI effects, but this just got ridiculous. I can handle a blood spray enhanced with CGI, but this seemed to be nothing but CGI blood, which looked fake and occasionally flat as well. I am sorry to be an old fart, but give me traditional Asian cinema blood sprays anyday!

Thing that pissed me off 2: the script is essentially two generic martial arts tales, those being 'cop investigates hidden ninjas in a modern town' and 'rebellious student turns his back on cruel master' mixed into one story. One average story. The story and screenplay are written by Matthew Sand, and apparently rewritten by J. Michael Straczynski, but for this to be the accepted script, and from a well respected TV, film and comic writer, Sand's original must have been an absolute pile of crud. The script had one highlight, but it was actually a reference to actor Rain's 'other' occupation, a singer, but if you don't know that bit of trivia, you wouldn't even blink at it.

The Myth and Legend of Ninjas looks at the martial art of ninjitsu, ninjas in pop culture and the history of ninjas. It is a quite informative short, with some great sequences from other films and interviews with actors, Asian culture commentators and actual masters of ninjitsu.

The Extreme Sport of a Ninja is a look at the stunts of Ninja Assassin, and how they used everything from actual ninjitsu, parkour, tricking and acrobatics in additions to CGI and wirework to make the fighting look the way it does.

Training Rain looks at getting the actor who plays Raizo into the peak physical condition he needed to perform the role, as well as the fight choreography, which is obviously the cornerstone of a martial arts flick.