Beginning with the remarkably insane Enter the Ninja, starring Django himself, Franco Nero, alongside Sho Kosugi, Cannon rode the ninja train as far as it would take them. Following the surprising success of Enter the Ninja (directed by Cannon leader Menahem Golan), a sequel, Revenge of the Ninja was commissioned and director Sam Firstenberg was brought on board. Both Revenge of the Ninja, which brought back Sho Kosugi, this time as protagonist, and it's utterly unbelievable sequel Ninja III: The Domination were successful enough to make Firstenberg Cannon's go-to guy for these films. Then, in 1985, Cannon Films decided it was time to make an American ninja film, and history was made.
The American Ninja series lasted five films and eight years, but left permanent impressions on millions of impressionable minds of the late '80s, my own included. The first film, which introduced relative small-timer Michael Dudikoff to the world as an action star, is a perfect example of what '80s action meant to kids like me. From that point on, Dudikoff was no longer the comedy sidekick he'd been honing in films like Bachelor Party, he was an action star, a role he has relished ever since. That first film set a mold for the American Ninja series that would be revisited and repeated, with largely diminishing returns, until the series' demise following the half-assed semi-sequel American Ninja 5 in 1993.
The four films included in 88 Films' Ultimate Collection are pretty solid, with only the odd misstep of American Ninja 3: Blood Hunt to sully the set. Rather than talk about them in order of release, I'm going to talk about them in order of awesomeness. First up, the original American Ninja.
Michael Dudikoff is Pvt. Joe Armstrong, a quiet loner stationed on a Philippine military base beset by illegal arms dealers and ninjas. When a caravan transporting a shipment of heavy arms is attacked first by Filipino guerrillas and then by the infamous jungle ninjas of Manila, Joe takes out the lot of them while simultaneously saving the Colonel's daughter, Patricia, in a very wet, Romancing the Stone fashion while dragging her through the malarial jungle to safety.
It isn't long before his lone wolf tactics and great skills make him the target of both the Black Star Ninja (Tadashi Yamashita) and his own army brethren who don't like being shown up. Thankfully, he meets the impossibly muscular and jovial Curtis Jackson (Steve James), and the two best buddies proceed to punch, kick, and KI-YAY their way through a seeming endless army of color coordinated ninjas intent on destroying truth, justice, and the American way in the Philippines.
American Ninja is a ton of fun and ticks all of the '80s action boxes. Plenty of ninjas in unwieldy outfits that can't possibly be practical, impossible explosions that in no way match their causes, the perpetually oiled up super-man physique of Steve James, bratty women playing the damsel in distress, and plenty of Sansabelt slacks to go around. I truly love this film, and it definitely brought back a lot of memories. American Ninja is definitely the most grounded and plot heavy of the series, and while some of the others do a great job at pushing the envelope conceptually, I love the relationships in this film.
The Disc:
While it's fairly clear that American Ninja's Blu-ray comes from an existing HD master, it's not bad at all, and certainly looks and sounds the best of the bunch. Colors pop, detail is anywhere from good to great, and the audio is nice and punchy, moreso that I would've expected. As the budgets decreased throughout the series, the production value did as well, so 88 Films probably had more to work with here in terms of materials, and it's a solid package from an A/V standpoint.
The set's single major extra is also on this disc, a feature length retrospective on the series titled Ninja Gaijin: Remembering a Classic Cannon Franchise. The documentary, directed by Jim Kunz and produced by High Rising Productions, spans the entire series, with an understandable emphasis on the first two films in terms of talking heads. Director Sam Firstenberg and star Michael Dudikoff are the main interviewees, but the doc also brings in writers, producers, stunt and action coordinators, as well as co-stars and many others to tell the story of this legendary series. Conspicuously absent from the doc is David Bradley, star of American Ninja 3 and co-star of American Ninja 4. Also sadly absent is the late Steve James who left us far too young in 1993, but his daughter makes an appearance to tell some of his side of the story. The documentary is engaging, but it is extremely heavy on the first two films, and while the latter films are mostly a step down, they may have deserved more time.
Also included is a feature length commentary with Firstenberg and stunt coordinator Steve Lambert that is enlightening as to the lengths they went to to make the film in the Philippines and what it took to make the film as we saw it.
American Ninja 4: The Annihilation may not be the final film in the series, but it's definitely the last one that matters, and for my money the second best of the franchise. This film stars David Bradley and Michael Dudikoff as the duo of American Ninjas trying to stop an Arab terrorist from blowing up New York with the ever popular suitcase nuke. The plot and writing is all over the place, and the two co-star rarely share screen time, but this film has a few magical touches that put it near Ninja III: The Domination in terms of its outright madness.
David Bradley stars as Sean Davidson, a character introduced in American Ninja 3 (which I'll get to later), a military operative dropped into an unnamed African kingdom to take down the evil terrorist Sheik Maksood (Ron Smezarack), an Arab commanding an army of color-coded ninja assassins. When Davidson is caught, the military sends in the original American ninja, Joe Armstrong, to extract him and complete the mission. However, it isn't the main story line that makes American Ninja 4: The Annihilation so good, it's all the crazy detours.
Imagine a ninja film, mixed with The Road Warrior, smashed together with the surprisingly prescient Arab terrorist threat. That's kind of what you get with this madcap film that includes a skinny African American replacement for the sadly missing Steve James, a Bartertown-esque rebel alliance of vigilantes, and a ninja army commanded by Kely McClung's "Super Ninja", who looks like something straight out of an '80s ninja Halloween costume set. Put that together with some amazingly improbable kills (Dudikoff at one point catches a crossbow bolt in his teeth and uses it to slice the jugular of a hapless attacker), the old guy-who-looks-like-my-buddy-but-is-actually-a-bad-guy-in-a-latex-mask gag, and some startlingly un-P.C. Muslim crucifixion torture and you have a perfect storm of '80s action goodness.
American Ninja 4: The Annihilation, a title I just adore typing, is far from coherent. In fact, the two stars so rarely appear together that it feels like two short films soldered together in the middle, but what it lacks in narrative quality, it more than makes up in what-the-fuck-just-happened craziness. The budget definitely seems lower than the other films, even with two headlining stars, and the film feels it, but they make up for those shortcomings where it counts, in my opinion. Definitely my second favorite of the series.
The Disc:
This film looks and sounds pretty good on Blu-ray, certainly a step up from DVD, but its limitations from a production standpoint are apparent. No extras on this disc.
American Ninja 2: The Confrontation is a very close third in the series, largely due to the one-two punch of Michael Dudikoff and the endlessly engaging and charismatic Steve James. This time around, Dudikoff's Joe Armstrong and James's Curtis Jackson are dropped onto an island populated with corrupted military occupants and home to a genetic ninja factory teeming with former military men who've been improved upon by men with nefarious intentions.
As was their style in those days, the head honchos at Cannon Films were almost as fast to commission sequels for their successful films as they were to cut their budgets. As a result, American Ninja 2's production moved from the Philipines to apartheid era South Africa, an interesting move when one of your franchise stars is a giant African American actor. Steve James is definitely one of the highlights of the series, though, and it's in this film that he really gets to stretch out his character and flex not only his own impressive muscles, but also some comedic ones.
Where the first film dealt with the very real threat of illegal arms dealers, albeit in a ludicrous fashion, its sequel decided to go the genetically engineered ninja route. However, when Armstrong and Jackson appear on the island, they know nothing of this, and they, as Army officers, and unwelcome on this Marine base, which provides more than a little tension. They are soon informed that the reason they are there is to sniff out the villain who has been behind a recent rash of disappearing marines, which is when they come upon a thug who gives them the name of The Lion, and his hideout, Blackbeard Island. At this point it becomes difficult to contain my giggling, but it is exactly this kind of nonsense that makes American Ninja 2: The Confrontation so enjoyable.
After fighting their way through town, Armstrong and Jackson grab a boat and head out to Blackbeard Island, with incompetent ninjas temporarily blocking their path at every turn. Eventually, they find their way to The Lion and the battle commences. Lots of explosions, ninja stars, bulky ninja costumes, and beatdowns follow, all in the name of destroying this drug dealers SuperNinja genetic modification scheme. It works, all is well, and once again, our American Ninja is victorious.
This film is clearly ridiculous, but only in the best possible way. Michael Dudikoff's Joe Armstrong is given a lot more latitude in the sequel to his original, in which he was nearly mute. This time around, Armstrong opens up and we get a lot of clever buddy cop moments with him and the amazing Jackson, who could've been a huge star on his own. As only the third best of the four films in this set, you could be forgiven for thinking this one is a bit of a throwaway, but American Ninja 2: The Confrontation is still a solid '80s action film, and one that I'll be revisiting with my son in a couple of years time.
The Disc:
Though not as impressive as the first film on Blu-ray, The Confrontation is still an adequate A/V upgrade. I was completely satisfied with what I got in terms of the experience. This disc also contains an audio commentary with director Sam Firstenberg and stunt coordinator BJ Davies in which they talk about the challenges of working in apartheid era South Africa at a time when most of the world wasn't doing business there.
Part of me feels bad for David Bradley, the star of American Ninja 3: Blood Hunt. It can't be easy trying to fill the shoes of one of '80s action cinema's most beloved stars in a series that had become so associated with Michael Dudikoff's smoldering good looks. However, I have to say that Bradley isn't entirely innocent either, and some of the film's lack of punch can probably be traced back to him.
Dudikoff's Armstrong is MIA in American Ninja 3: Blood Hunt, but his sidekick, the effervescent gentle giant Curtis Jackson (Steve James) isn't. When Jackson runs into recent Karate magazine cover boy Sean Davidson (David Bradley) at a competition, the two strike up a friendship. However, when it turns out that the martial arts competition is merely a front to find an indestructible warrior on which to test a deadly virus, Jackson and Davidson must take down the evil mastermind, The Cobra, and his army of ninja led by female master, Chan Lee.
The plots of American Ninja 2 and American Ninja 3 are fairly similar, and a lot of the same elements are present in each film, the only major difference is the star. Unfortunately, with David Bradley we get a far less charismatic performance than the one we'd just gotten from Dudikoff, even though Bradley actual martial arts skills appear to outdo his predecessor's by a healthy margin. I guess it just goes to show that not every martial arts champ is a great actor.
Honestly, the less that is said about this film the better. I don't intend to spend a lot of words describing my disappointment, mostly because the four films included in the set have such a high average level of entertainment that it seems petty to pick on the runt of the litter. Yes, we get crazed drug dealers with genetically engineered ninjas, we get ninjas performing complex synchronized routines in primary colored uniforms, we get all manner of flashing lights, we get deadly viruses, we get muscly Steve James stealing the show with not only his imposing physical prowess but also his endearingly cornball delivery, what we don't get is a star who can pull it all together. Oh well, can't win 'em all.
The Disc:
American Ninja 3 looks and sounds pretty good on Blu-ray. It isn't a presentation you're going to shout about to your friends, but it's also the least likely to be rewatched, so consider it a bonus feature. Oh, and there are no bonus features on the disc.