When your hero is as spectacularly garbed as the titular lead is in Akai Kageboshi, you need everyone else he’s fighting to provide visual contrast. So in what is one of the most colorfully costumed ninja films of the 60’s, … Continued
With all the sneaking around and sword thievery in Akai Kageboshi, there’s a need for some – literally – flashy escapes. Here’s where the 60’s style of cinematic ninjutsu takes over from what in the 50’s would have been magical … Continued
Not only is Akai Kageboshi a great ninja movie that spans the colorful flamboyant 50’s and grimmer realistic 60’s, it’s also a damn nifty TOURNAMENT MOVIE! The tournament is one of the strongest devices in martial arts cinema. It’s single … Continued
Yes, indeedy! One year ago today, I posted the first content on Vintage Ninja. 200+ posts, hundreds of pictures and thousands of readers later, I’m pretty damn happy with where everything stands. I’m no web wizard, but the site is … Continued
Looked at some Taiwanese / HK stuff last time, and people get testy when I stray to the Chinese side of shinobi cinema, so I’ll boomerang things right back with some tried and true Raizo Ichikawa. Speaking of Raizo, I’ve … Continued
Two pub stills / lobby cards from the Spanish market release of the Taiwanse Wu Tang vs. Ninja or Ninja Hunter as it is know here. This is a pretty good piece of Mandarin ninjasploitation, with lots of colorful characters, … Continued
The aquatic Thai fantasy epic known as Legend of the Tsunami Warrior in many English-speaking markets is predominantly Pirates of the Carribean / Lord of the Rings fare, but there’s a surprise ninja scene in the middle of it with … Continued
Was contacted by the good folks behind the semi-historical espionage-action-comedy thing that is Norwegian Ninja. This one’s a bit of a head scratcher, but I’m intrigued as hell. Read the Wiki for the low down on the controversial property. Twitch … Continued
Ninjas and Dragons is a weird little movie. You watch it and wonder if you’ve seen it before, what decade in came out in, how it had slipped through the cracks back in the day. Largely “inspired by” more familiar … Continued