Bullet Points: Ninja Strike Force
1988’s Ninja Strike Force was originally intended to be a part of our Ninja Week that we presented back in September to celebrate the 40th Anniversary of Revenge of the Ninja. Plans changed however and Ninja Strike Force was bumped in favor of Ninja Over the Great Wall.
Well, this edition of Bullet Points proves you can’t keep a good (or bad) ninja movie down for long…
- A Disastrous Catastrophe: The movie begins with Gordon the Ninja (Richard Harrison, Blood Debts). We know he is a ninja because his headband says so and we know his name is Gordon because that’s what his master refers to him as. Gordon and his master are having a conversation about an old rusty sword… also known as the sword of catastrophe and the sword of disaster. The sword gains power with every ninja it kills. Gordon’s master stresses how important it is to keep such a sword out of the wrong hands… moments later the evil Black Ninja attacks Gordon’s master and steals the sword. Gordon’s first instinct is to go after the dastardly Black Ninja and get the sword back, but his master hits him with a reality check. Gordon isn’t ready for a fight with the Black Ninja… he needs to learn the secret to beat the Black Ninja and the only person who can teach him that is a descendent of their Grand Master… Jimmy (who Gordon’s master happened to carry a photo of for some reason).
- Jimmy of All Trades: We learn that Jimmy didn’t agree with the ninja lifestyle so he ran away from home at some point. Now he’s just trying to make his way in the world. Through the course of the movie Jimmy has a job at a hotel, a restaurant, he starts his own car wash business and eventually he lands an office job after he graduates after seemingly never attending classes… Jimmy was involved in multiple romantic sub plots… Jimmy is also a single parent after taking in a special needs kid he found abandoned on the streets… Jimmy also helps a complete stranger named Mickey Mouse, after Mickey is chased down by some bad guys that he tried to cheat in a card game. After that, Jimmy and Mickey become fast friends.
- Back in Black: In between the Jimmy segments, we get to see the Black Ninja abusing the power of the sword of disaster (aka sword of catastrophe) by taking out some of his fellow ninjas… there’s the White Ninja, a Camouflage Ninja and numerous Red Ninjas. After every Black Ninja kill, the opening strains of Alphaville’s “Big in Japan” can be heard which is fitting since we all know ninjas were at one time very big in Japan. Hopefully Gordon can get to Jimmy so these senseless ninja killings can stop…
- Promises, Promises: Gordon eventually tracks down Jimmy and asks him on two separate occasions for the secret to defeat the Black Ninja. And on both occasions Jimmy refuses to tell them because apparently he promised his mother he would never tell anyone. This plot twist came from out of nowhere. Now I don’t want to start any sort of conspiracy theory, but I am fairly certain that the dude who played Jimmy and Richard Harrison were never in the same place at the same time. If that theory is true that makes Ninja Strike Force the ninja movie equivalent of Michael Mann’s Heat… Jimmy does eventually send a balloon letter to Richard Harrison with the secret and the sign off “May the Force Be With You”.
After Mickey is hospitalized with terminal tuberculosis on Jimmy’s birthday, we get to see Gordon in his Golden Ninja attire do battle with the Black Ninja, with Gordon bringing an end to the Black Ninja and Ninja Strike Force.
Ninja Strike Force was a movie that clearly wasn’t originally a ninja movie, but thanks to the magic of Joseph Lai and Godfrey Ho, they made it one!
Now let me use some Bonus Bullet Point magic to make this review a little longer…
- Confusing Quote: “I can increase your salary. I can even give you a raise!”
- Montage Alert: Jimmy, his adopted son and Mickey have some fun at the zoo, which is played out in montage form.
- If You Ever: …wanted to see the dude who played Jimmy, teach the chick that played Mindy (one of Jimmy’s love interests) how to ride a bike, then Ninja Strike Force is the movie for you.
- Stolen Music: “Big in Japan” wasn’t the only Alphaville song that could be heard in Ninja Strike Force, “Sounds Like a Melody” could also be heard at the start of the movie. In addition to Alphaville, there was an instrumental version of “Send in the Clowns” that could be heard at various times.
