New York Ninja – A Martial Arts Work of Art (Early Review)

Film can be a truly transcendent experience. The places they can take viewers or the stories they tell often impact one’s way of thinking of even living, not to mention the almost nearly forgotten communal experience of seeing something in a theater with others. But sometimes films reach a higher status, not with what they achieve with the camera but how they come together behind it.

Such is the case with 1984’s New York Ninja, an action camp film that was fully shot but then quickly abandoned and believed to have been lost to time. Since then, the unedited reels were discovered, recut and new vocal talent was brought in to redub every line as all audio recordings were never found and 37 years later, it is finally able to be seen as close as possible to its original vision.

New York Ninja was written, produced, and directed by Taiwanese martial arts star, John Liu, who never ascended to prominence in the 80s martial arts scene in Hong Kong or even in America. What is apparent here is his love for storytelling and playfulness in front of the camera in both dialogue and action sequences. Liu portrays the titular hero who is thrust into being the city savior after the murder of his pregnant wife at the hands of New York streets gangs along with the mass disappearances of many young women throughout the city. Unbeknownst to his colleagues, the New York ninja embarks on a journey to discover who is really behind the kidnappings while also narrowing the search for his wife’s killer, but to be honest the story quickly becomes irrelevant as it is merely a device to place the ninja in situations where he can just kick as many people on the street as possible which never gets old.

The best example of this comes when the New York ninja disposes of a street gang in a fight while on roller skates. For those wondering if he finds a way to flip over a car while in this fight, fear not because the ninja does not disappoint. Furthermore, this is a film that never settles as it finds ways of incorporating a butler named Rattail who dual-wields swords while in a fight, a villain known as The Plutonium Killer, and outfits that include backward visors, jockstraps, tanning bed goggles.

In the end, New York Ninja finds a way to evolve into a true work of art from its incredible fight to even exist. Across decades, this art was thought lost to time and abandonment, but once discovered, told an entertaining story both in front of and behind the camera. The epic saga of the creation of the film should be applauded as the vocal work alone offers an impressive addition that organically provides an homage to the similar films that came before it. The film never strives to push the boundaries of martial arts cinema or topple the existing pillars of its genre, but the film’s simplistic story still manages to offer laughs, exciting fights, and one of the most bizarre villains ever created. For fans of this style and genre, this experience should be a rite of passage and is a joy to watch.

New York Ninja will be released on Blu-Ray on November 1st before a theatrical release during the first quarter of 2022

still courtesy of Vinegar Syndrome

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