Enter the Ninja (1981)

Director:

Menahem Golan

Writers:

Dick Desmond (screenplay)
Dick Desmond (story)

Release Date:

2 October 1981 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Drama

Tagline:

Warriors of a lost martial art! Hired assassins ...human killing machines!

Plot:

After just completing his training at a ninja school, an army vet travels to the Phillippines and finds...

Plot Keywords:

Fight | Ninja | Army Buddy | Extramarital Affair | Friend In Distress

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Franco Nero	...	Cole
Susan George	...	Mary Ann Landers
Shô Kosugi	...	Hasegawa
Christopher George	...	Charles Venarius
Alex Courtney	...	Frank Landers
Will Hare	...	Dollars
Zachi Noy	...	Siegfried 'The Hook' Schultz
Constantine Gregory	...	Mr. Parker (as Constantin de Goguel)
Dale Ishimoto	...	Komori
Joonee Gamboa	...	Mr. Mesuda
Leo Martinez	...	Pee Wee
Ken Metcalfe	...	Elliot
Subas Herrero	...	Alberto
Alan Amiel	...	Maroon Ninja
Douglas Ivan	...	Maroon Ninja (as Doug Ivan)

Also Known As:

Ninja I
Die Rache des Ninja (West Germany) [de]
L'implacable ninja (France) [fr]
L'invincibile ninja (Italy) [it]
La justicia del Ninja (Spain) [es]
Ninja - A Máquina Assassina (Brazil) [pt]
Ninja, die Killermaschine (West Germany) [de]
Ninja: I mihani pou skotonei (Greece) [el]
Wejscie ninja (Poland) [pl]

Runtime:

101 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Finland:(Banned) (uncut) (1981) | Finland:K-18 (cut) (1984) | Finland:K-18 (cut) (DVD rating) (2008) | Australia:R | France:-12 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R | West Germany:18 | Norway:18 (video premiere) (1983) | Norway:(Banned) (video) (1984) | Norway:(Banned) (1981-2003) (cinema release) | Germany:BPjM Restricted

Filming Locations:

Metro Manila, Luzon, Philippines

Company:

City Film (1980s)

Trivia:

There is no spoken dialog in the first ten minutes of the film.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the final fight, Cole's sword is thrown out of the arena. Ten seconds later he is miraculously holding it again.

Quotes:

Dollars: So who are you going to kill next, Mr. Ninja?
Cole: My friend, a ninja doesn't kill. He eliminates and only for defensive purposes.

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in "Transformers: Enter the Nightbird (#2.6)" (1985)

I've waited for years to see this flick!

This movie was worth the wait for me. I was too young to see R-rated movies, when my father rented the movie, I was happy. I was more curious about the other ninjas that Cole(Franco Nero) was fighting. Then I saw the part where he beheads the old man. After he bows down, all the other ninja join him. I said to myself, "this was only a test for him", and the old man was his master. When he passes the exam, acceptance was granted from everyone, except Hasegawa(Sho Koshugi, The Master, Pray for Death) who was a very bitter man. He lived by traditions and resented Cole. After all the fighting and ninja tricks everyone performed, the best part was the showdown between Cole and Hasegawa. Cole did those multiple back flips that were amazing. And Hasegawa finally accepts Cole's fighting techniques, the hard way, well he did after his defeat, and loss of his head. This movie wasn't so bad, and it's great for the martial artists in everyone. Rating 3 out of 5 Stars.