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"Ninja Assassin" has an impressive pedigree.
It is directed by James McTeigue ("V for Vendetta") and produced by Andy and Larry Wachowski. It was co-written by J. Michael Straczynski, the creator of "Babylon 5" and the author of the best Spider-man comics of the past decade. The second unit directors are veterans of the Wachowski brothers' wildest films, including "The Matrix" trilogy.
- Starring: Rain, Rick Yune, Naomie Harris.
- Rating: R for strong bloody stylized violence throughout, and language.
- Web site: www.ninja-assassin-movie.warnerbros.com
Given the talent on board, we expect "Ninja Assassin" to be more than a chop-socky version of a splatter film. It is and it isn't. The good news is that "Ninja Assassin" is beautifully shot and full of dynamic action sequences that never drag.
The bad news is that "Ninja Assassin" lives up to the expectations conjured by its generic, low information title. When the characters aren't lopping off each other's limbs, "Ninja Assassin" stops being visually interesting and devolves into a monumentally dull film with borrowed plots from across the genre.
"Ninja Assassin" is the story of Raizo (Rain), a solitary ninja at war with Takeshi (Rick Yune), a ruthless clan boss who molded him into a perfect killing machine from his first day in his clan-sponsored orphanage.
We learn from a flashback that Raizo "went rogue" from the Ozunu Clan after completing his first mission as a contract killer. The seeds of his rebellion were planted years earlier in the isolated community where he was taught that loyalty to Takeshi had to trump obedience to his own conscience.
The film opens with Raizo efficiently dispatching a Japanese gang using the shadows of their own lair as cover. Heads split, limbs are severed and blood erupts and spurts across the screen.
Though far less iconic than Uma Thurman's duel against the Crazy 88s in Quentin Tarantino's "Kill Bill," it establishes Raizo's bona fides as a killer to be reckoned with. He is obviously at his best when he is outnumbered.
Raizo teams up with Mika Coretti (Naomie Harris), a forensics researcher for Europol who stumbles upon the existence of the Ozunu Clan and its ninja assassination squad. When Mika is marked for death for knowing too much, Raizo takes it upon himself to protect her from his former clan.
Mika's boss Ryan Maslow (Ben Miles) double-crosses his subordinate to capture Raizo, who is the prime suspect in several murders in Europe and Asia.
After seeing Raizo in action, it stretches credulity to see him brought down the way he is in that scene.
Raizo is played with a taciturn authority by Korean pop music sensation Rain in a role that will probably make him an action star throughout most of the world.
Handsome in the blandest way possible, Rain is a better martial artist than he is an actor. Still, he is charismatic where he needs to be -- in the movie's endless fight sequences.
With the exception of the flashbacks that flesh out Raizo's back story, "Ninja Assassin" has nothing to offer an audience in terms of actual drama or compelling characters. Still, there are worse things it could be than one of the most meticulously filmed action movies ever made. It won't shock anyone if "Ninja Assassin" spawns many, many sequels.
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