At the Movies with Fatwayne

If it were possible, someone should capture one of these Ninjas and study him in a laboratory! These guys can do it all! Invisibility, the ability of heal gaping wounds, agility beyond imagination that enables them to twist and leap into the air defying gravity. They are the real deal – or so we are asked to believe. They are proficient in a wide variety of weapons including a large knife blade attached to the end of a long chain which they use to “trim” people  like a weed whacker.

If it is unbelievable action that you are after and you can suspend your disbelief, you just may enjoy this martial arts boondoggle. All others – be warned.

The story centers around a young ophan boy, Raizo (Rain), taken in by the leader of the Ozuna Ninja Clan, (Lord Ozunu played by Sho Kosugi) for the purpose of training him to become a deadly assassin. There are quite a few other unfortunate children suffering a similar fate. All are treated cruely and live in a kennel like compound sleeping on mats spaced about a foot apart. They all sport various scars inflicted by Ozunu when they do not live up to his strict disciplines and some are even killed for disloyalty.

Despite their harsh surroundings, Raizo and another young girl still maintain their sense of humanity and are resistant to the teachings of Lord Ozunu. One night the girl decides to escape to the outside world in search of a better life. Unfortunately for her, she is captured and murdered in front of all the other students. This does not sit well with Raizo but he continues his training. He is eventually assigned his first mission and upon successfully completing it, he is asked (given the honor!) by Lord Ozunu to execute another young girl for the same reason his young friend was killed. Raizo refuses this task and after injuring Ozunu and killing several other members of the Clan, he vanishes swearing revenge on his former Clan.

He winds up in Berlin where two Europol agents begin investigating the existence of Ninjas and their involvement in a series of high profile murders. As their investigation brings them closer to the secret society they become marked for extinction. Mika Coretti, Naomie Harris, is the first one targeted. Lucky for her, Raizo is there to protect her from the assassin. And so the movie goes, battle after battle between Raizo and the seemingly endless ninjas of the Ozunu Clan.

This is an extremely gory movie with body parts flying everywhere and blood splatters galore. These characters have “ninja stars” which they manage to hurl at an alarming rate and velocity much like a 50 caliber machine gun! Somehow our hero manages to escape death even though he is pretty much at “death’s door” as he marshalls his inner strength to heal his vicious wounds as only a ninja can!

Look, this is a silly mishmash of martial arts stunts and storyline. If you just want to see some athletic actors “dance the dance” and exhibit proficiency in the use of ninja type weapons then maybe you would enjoy this flick. If not, you had better stay away and save your dietary popcorn allowance for another day. As for myself, I blew mine!

Rated – R -

Fatwayne’s rating  -    -