Runtime: 90 minutes
Directed by: Sam Firstenberg
Starring: Sho Kosugi, Arthur Roberts, Keith Vitali, Ashley Ferrare, Kane Kosugi
From: Cannon
This was the time to see some B-action movie cheese, especially from the 80’s and especially from Golan-Globus. A few months ago I viewed 1981’s Enter the Ninja, the first in Cannon’s Ninja trilogy of the 80’s; it won’t be long before I finally check out the infamous Ninja III: The Domination.
Revenge stars Sho Kosugi; his family (except for infant son) are executed by ninjas in Japan; an American pal convinces him to move to Los Angeles. 6 years later, we see him, son (real-life son Kane) and Sho’s mom in LA… only there’s chicanery going on w/ the dolls imported from Japan for Sho’s gallery—hilariously 80’s in that it includes random neon lights.
The movie set the tone in the opening—another of Sho’s sons is killed via shuriken to the face! There’s nudity, Professor Toru Tanaka in sumo garb sexually assaulting a woman, 6-year-old Kane using martial arts against both bullies his age and to steal a line from a Letterboxd mutual, “a blonde bimbo”… better action than you might expect from a low-budget 80’s American ninja movie, brawls on a playground, and Italian stereotypes, including a guy who sounds just like Joe Pesci.
I had a lot of fun between the sleaze, the nonsense, and genuinely impressive scenes, including a quality bit involving an old Dodge van and Sho hanging on to it for dear life. Salt Lake City made a surprisingly decent substitute for Los Angeles, including the long finale involving several different moving parts and it all was a gas. Of course, I enjoyed the score that included synth work from W. Michael Lewis of Shogun Assassin fame. This has a cult following-perhaps not as large as for Ninja III, but it’s understandable why multiple Letterboxd mutuals have noted this as a childhood favorite.
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