DVD Features Rain in Role Reminiscent of Bruce Lee
As a boy, Raizo (Rain) was kidnapped and turned into a cold-blooded killer by diabolical crime boss Lord Ozunu (Sho Kosugi) by the time he was an adult. Over the course of his imprisonment, Raizo was put on a rigorous daily regimen and ordered to master a variety of weapons and martial arts disciplines.
Furthermore, he was expected to internalize a number of mind-control mantras, such as "Pain breeds weakness." However, because of his blossoming romantic relationship with Kiriko (Kylie Goldstein), another captive at the orphanage, he never quite lost his sense of humanity entirely. And when she was subsequently slain for her stubborn refusal to capitulate to the demanding sensei's will. Raizo ran away to Europe where he managed to keep a low profile
Fast-forward a few years and we find him in hiding in Berlin, a city suddenly plagued by a series of mysterious political assassinations. The murders are being performed by a crack team of ninjas dispatched to Germany from the Far East by none other than Lord Ozunu and led by his evil henchman, Takeshi (Rick Yune). And the CIA and Interpol agents' superior firepower prove no match for these very elusive, shadowy targets.
Luckily, renegade Raizo recognizes the trademarks of his former comrades' work, and he's still smarting over squandering his last opportunity to save a damsel in distress. Therefore, he's pumped to spring into action when he realizes forensic researcher Mika (Naomie Harris) has been marked for death for attempting to crack the case.
This is the premise of Ninja Assassin, an old-fashioned, martial arts saga reminiscent of the best of Bruce Lee. The high body-count adventure might be best thought of as an East meets West splatterfest unfolding like a lethal cross of Crouching Tiger and Sam Peckinpah. For the film features both ballet-like fight sequences found in the former and the sort of gratuitous gore one would associate with the latter.
Excellent (4 stars)
Rated R for profanity and graphic violence.
Running time: 99 minutes
Studio: Warner Home Video
DVD Extras: Additional scenes.
To order a copy of Ninja Assassin on DVD, visit:AMAZON
To see a trailer for Ninja Assassin,
Kam Williams is a syndicated film and book critic who writes for 100+ publications. He is a member of the New York Film Critics Online, the African-American Film Critics Association, and the NAACP Image Awards Nominating Committee. Contact him through NewsBlaze.
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