This movie is being released on Blu-ray by Olive Films (www.olivefilms.com – www.facebook.com/olivefilms) on August 16th, 2016.
Remember the glory days of Cannon Films? Well, I’m not sure they were ever really glory days, but American Ninja probably came right around the time of this company’s peak. As goofy as the concept sounds (and is), back in the day this little action B-picture made the studio some serious cash. In fact, it grossed $10.5 million domestically against an estimated $1 million dollar production budget (although truth be told, the movie probably cost less than that figure). Of course, the film was an even bigger hit on home video and it earned significantly more money internationally.
This week, Olive Films are releasing the entire series on Blu-ray. The news will no doubt bring joy to nostalgic viewers who watched these films over and over in their childhood. As for the American Ninja Blu-ray, it’s a great looking disc; the picture quality is as sharp and crisp and the disc itself comes with several notable extras. Truthfully, the movie is no classic. However, it is a fascinating window into a different time period, when the over-the-top action picture was at its zeitgeist.
Ridiculous pretty much sums up the entirety of the loosely constructed story. Get this… Joe (Michael Dudikoff) is an amnesiac worked into the US Army as a mechanic and stationed in the Philippines. For reasons he can’t explain, he has razor sharp reflexes that can take anyone down in an instant. His loner attitude puts him at odds with superiors and others at the base, but the lead does earn the respect of a fellow soldier named Jackson (Steve James).
After ninjas appear and attempt to steal a convoy containing military supplies, Joe and Jackson take a stand against the bad guys. Our hero saves the Colonel’s daughter (Judie Aronson) and then slowly uncovers a nefarious plot… some of the base’s superiors are selling supplies to a nasty French weapons dealer named Ortega (Don Stewart). Did I mention that the dealer uses an evil ninja (Tadashi Yamashita) and an army of black, uniformed agents of death as security? Or that Ortega’s gardener Shinyuki (Jon Fujioka) is the man who helped raised Joe and taught the protagonist his incredible martial arts skills? It’s beyond silly and viewers shouldn’t think about any of the details too hard.
For a low-budget movie, the action itself is well staged and tightly cut together. There are some impressive and scary-looking stunts that help inflate the limited production values. Notable examples include a fight scene at a warehouse that extends into a motorbike chase (with a good sidecar gag), as well as a character hanging off of the edge of a helicopter in flight. It certainly looks dangerous and adds some thrills to the fight scenes.
That’s important, because so much of what occurs is completely absurd. Some of the motivations of the leads are difficult to fathom. Only in 80s flicks could characters make wisecracks or complain about inane things moments after witnessing the brutal slaughter of various individuals. At least all of the actors appear to be in on the joke and having fun together onscreen, providing some B-movie thrills and yuks (sometimes unintentionally) to the best of their ability.
This release comes with some great extras. Besides the theatrical trailer, there is a new 23 minute making-of documentary that has interviews with Dudikoff, his co-stars, the stunt crew, the writer and the director. Friendly, affable filmmaker Sam Firstenberg (also responsible for Revenge of the Ninja, Ninja III: The Domination, Breakin’ 2: Electric Boogaloo and American Ninja 2: The Confrontation among many others) describes how he came to work at The Cannon Group and tells stories about the movie’s chaotic production. He elaborates on many during an entertaining feature commentary track.
Some of the amusing insights include the fact that Chuck Norris was offered the film, but refused because he would have to cover his face in ninja threads during the climax. Additionally, Firstenberg reveals that he made this film with 12 year old boys in mind as the target audience. He knew it was all a bit dopey, but went over-the-top and cartoony in his approach in order to make the flick appealing to young viewers.
Additionally, the director was only given a few weeks to edit the feature together for release after shooting wrapped. Apparently, this was because the studio’s tent-pole flick for the year, Invasion U.S.A. (1985), couldn’t meet its August release date and Cannon had to put something, anything, into the movie theaters that they had already pre-booked.
There are more great tidbits about the production on the disc. If you grew up watching cheesy action flicks in the 80s, you’ll likely remember American Ninja. And if you enjoyed the movie, you’ll certainly be more than pleased with the image quality and extras on this release. Grab some friends, a few beers and a bag of chips and you’ll likely have a good time.