Review: NINJA: THE MISSION FORCE — parody executed with more skill than its source
What do you do with a half-dozen mail-order ninja suits, some black eye-liner, a few friends willing to tumble around a public park like idiots and a heap of public domain films? Well, in the 80s if you were Godfrey … Continued
VN REVISITED: A ‘Tonbei the Mist’ Primer
I reposted this fantastic publicity still of Maki Fuyukichi as Tonbei the Mist from Greg Newman over at the Facebook “The Samurai” Group. Got a lot of attention, so I thought this would be a good time to revisit a … Continued
FIVE ELEMENT NINJA African marketing
This amazingness from the mobile “cinemas” of Ghana, Africa is on eBay right now, for a steal, too! Plenty more goodness here, as well!
MIRAI NINJA figures
Superbly sculpted and detailed 6-9″ figures from Toy Crowd (2001) of Shiranui and Shouki from the 1988 effects-romp we know as Cyber Ninja. I dig these toys as much as I do the film, an indie that spends its modest budget … Continued
Navarro Ninja
So I was having dinner with my pal, the uber-talented Rafael Navarro, and we were musing on what a ninja would look like if drawn by the legendary Jack Kirby. He whipped this off on a napkin, and seeing as … Continued
AMERICAN NINJA rack toys
Little known fact – American Ninja is the only 80s boom film to have properly licensed mass-produced merchandise. These grocery store / pharmacy register tchotchkes were obviously for kids, despite being branded with the an R-rated film’s imagery. A “two-penny-toy” … Continued
VN REVISITED – Happy Birthday Meiko Kaji!
(originally published June 2010) Meiko Kaiji in ninja gear? Swoon! Found these caps years ago in a sadly defunct blog (German if memory serves?), but they also floated around various newsboards for a while. The Female Convict Scorpion and … Continued
VN REVISITED: Beauty and Humanity in KAZE NO BUSHI
(originally published July 2010) There may not be a more beautifully shot ninja film than the 1964 artistic gem Kaze no Bushi (aka “Warrior of the Wind”). The set-bound cinematography is great, the use of natural light in the lush … Continued
Oh, so you want more ENTER?
Not a problem. Last post was specific to the Kosugi doubling images, but here’s the remainder of the French lobby pics from Enter the Ninja. Don’t know about you cats, but I was totally in love with Susan ‘Dirty Mary’ … Continued
Enter the Kosugi!
These French-language market lobby photos for the 1981 release of Enter the Ninja are a bit different than the American marketing and press photos, mainly in that they reveal close-ups of Sho Kosugi doubling for one of the red ninja … Continued