Ninja Assassin: Betrayal Begets Lots and Lots of Blood

Stars: 3.5 Star Power: 1
Grade: B Performance: 3.5
Genre: Action/Adventure Release: 2009


Ninja Assassin tells the story of the deviant ninja Raizo of the Ozuno Clan. Strenuously trained from birth to be an elite killing machine, Raizo is vowed to avenge the murder of his first love. The only problem being that the leader of his own clan order the execution. Meanwhile Interpol Agent Mika is beginning to catch on to the assassination patterns of the Nine Clans. Her involvement retroactively makes her a mark and Raizo becomes her only hope for survival. Together they take on hordes of ninjas and bring retribution upon the Ozuno.

From the first scene to the last James McTeigue's directing offers non-stop blood bath martial arts battles. The combination of unique weapons, incredible stunts, parkour style acrobatics and skilled use of gruesome CGI makes for a very enjoyable film. The story line is decent and lacks the cheap, substandard acting that usually marks this genre. Most notable is the final chase scene which segues nicely into the a level up progression climax.