Shinobi-Geddon: The 1980s Ninja Craze
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 14 ก.ค. 2024
- From Cannon classics to cut-and-paste ninjatrocities, this is the story of the 1980s ninja boom: why it happened, why it was awesome... but not why it involved so many moustaches. I still haven't figured that out.
A feature length version of this video is available on my Patreon:
/ robhill
If you’re watching this you might be interested in one of my critically acclaimed books. Available from all good, bad and so bad they’re good retailers.
'The A to Z of Superhero Movies: From Abar to Zsazsa Via the MCU’
USA - www.amazon.com/dp/1527244849
UK - www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1527244849
'The Bad Movie Bible: The Ultimate Modern Guide to Movies So Bad They’re Good'
USA - www.amazon.com/dp/0993240771
UK - www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0993240771
Check out @BMovieBible on Twitter
00:00 Intro
03:20 Patient Zero
07:00 Enter the Italian
10:40 Only a Ninja Can Destroy a Ninja
14:20 Early Asia
20:50 Early Europe
25:00 Godfrey Who?
29:10 Cut & Paste - The Ninjamatic!
36:10 The Knights of Justice
41:30 Original Movies
45:35 Back to Reality: American Ninja
49:50 Sho
55:50 Alexander Freaking Lau
01:00:30 Kids' Movies
01:03:50 Mop Up - ภาพยนตร์และแอนิเมชัน
![[Full Episode] MasterChef Junior Thailand มาสเตอร์เชฟ จูเนียร์ ประเทศไทย Season 3 Episode 6](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/CVUx09Rx0-M/mqdefault.jpg)
The Garfield phone in Ninja Terminator is the greatest scene in cinema
any scene where normal people are walking along and suddenly spin jump to transform into ninjas complete with headbands that say "Ninja" on them
34:10 For those looking for it.
🤣🤣
The quantity, quality and originality of work and research going into this masterpiece of an essay is truly the work of a master Bad Movie Ninja🤺 .
Ninja movies aren't all bad tho.
Fun fact: The Sega Shinobi franchise was heavily inspired by The Ninja Trilogy and comic franchise (Enter the Ninja, Revenge of the Ninja, Ninja III: The Domination) and Pray For Death.
2009's NINJA ASSASSIN is also a homage to the Sega Shinobi franchise.
Cool, I know that Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat have some direct inspiration from the One Armed Boxer movies which had for example a yoga master with stretchy limbs and a fight above a pit of spikes.
Ahhh the Sega Shining games... i remember those. Classic stuff. Also, Ninja Assassin was DOPE! I really wish they had made more, or spawned /inspired a whole genre of similar movies.
I've never been a "so bad it's good" kind of film watcher, but dammit I really wanna watch some of these ninja movies.
The only so bad is good movie I always recommend is Samurai Cop. It’s hilariously bad but incredibly entertaining. It’s not a ninja movie, but a “good bad movie”.
I loved all this as a kid. Now everything is either unintentionally comical or extremely cringe 😂
The "NINJA" headbands, the Gardfield telephone, the dialogues, the acting... 😂
Godfrey Ho's infamous ninja z movies where he splice ninja sequences with an obscure asian movie from either Taiwan,South Korea,Philippines etc
Back then, boys, myself included, aspired to gain ninja skills! 😂. Stormshadow, Snakeeyes, and TMNT!
That Garfield phone 80’s the HELL out of that!! 😂
No it isn't, there are genuinely some really good movies
Now you love it even more.
The true ninja writes “ninja” on their rainbow headband.
"Hey can you do the dishes?"
"A ninja warrior can never get involved!"
There are clips from over 150 movies in this video, but there’s still so much more to talk about when it comes to ninjas. One day. In the mean time; exclusion doesn’t = disapproval (and if any committed ninjologists want more there’s a longer version of this video on my Patreon: www.patreon.com/RobHill ). I’m imagining some potentially strong reactions to a few views on the cut-and-paste phenomenon. There’s misinformation as far as the eye can see (and in every direction), so certainty is a luxury none of us can enjoy, but I’ve done what I can!
5:50 Have you noticed that lovely voice? It's the dude that dubbed Pierre Kirby.
Searching for the truth behind those movies would be a great story basis for a modern just-add-ninjas movie.
Mike Abbot reminds me of a poor man's Vic Morrow, which isn't saying much... since Vic Morrow is typically a poor man's Vic Morrow.
You may pronounce Bosphorus either with a FUH or a PUH in the middle. The latter is closer to the actual Greek name of the thing, Βόσπορος.
Is there, outside of Patreon or your book, a list of movies referenced in each of your videos? This could be plugged into an API linking the available ones to streaming or purchase services...and maybe even generate affiliate referral income for your hard work. Apologies if you already do this somewhere.
I remember pulling The Ninja book from my mom's bookshelf and reading it. Needless to say, it was a very steamy read for a 12 year old. As far as the movies, I was always a big Michael Dudikoff fan back in the day.
Eric Van Lustbader right? I think there's around 6 books in that series. I've only read the first one
Haha😂 I totally shot the footage at 25:13. It’s from an interview Mike Leeder and myself did with Godfrey. Godfrey is very cool btw.
Nicely done! It's one of only two interviews I could find with him that had decent picture quality! (There isn't a credit because I found it on a 3rd party YT channel and couldn't identify where it originally came from. Happy to add something to the description if you let me know.)
"Shockingly high pressured circulatory systems" had me in such fits of giggles that my wife had to ask what I was watching.
The scene in Sakura Killers where ninja speedily burrow along the floor under the motorway bridge is burned into my childhood memories from the 80s, and I can confidently say I have absolutely no intention of revisiting the full movie as an adult.
In case you change your mind , it's on amazon prime
And if I can tempt you even more… it’s on TH-cam for bugger all. ( Disclaimer: It’s pretty rough, and I watch some shite!!)
as a kid, these weird illogical things seem imbued with the sense they must surely make to grown-ups, and they become mysteries haunting your dreams...
and 40 years later you realise that is was just very silly shite
so good call, don't revisit that movie
1 second ago
Everything about Death Warrior made me laugh uncontrollably:
- the chaotic editing
- the unashamed stolen footage from
Goldfinger and Diamonds Are Forever
- the intense lack of continuity in some areas
- the fact it plays Bond ‘77 over and over as the only background music for one part
Turkey clearly got some of the best shoddy knockoff films ever made.
Shoutout to Blood Debts, which has a similar kind of crappy greatness. Its ending is one of the funniest things I have ever watched.
An early Christmas present? For me? Oh you shouldn't have, I didn't get you anything...uh...here's a like, I hope that's okay!!
I thought that was awesome lol😅 I like that one 😂🎉
Bravo once again Rob, your sacrifice to watch an endless stream of movies knows no bounds. Now I believe it’s time to grow a nice bit of facial decoration to become the U.K. Ninja.
What are you doing here! Get back to the Doctor Who soundtracks!!! :)
For myself as a little 80's kid, Sho Kosugi was among the elite of 80's action.
I remember watching Revenge of the Ninja and being astonished and horrified at how he was dragged along the street by the van, but still fought on.
Along with Arnold and Sly, he was one of the greatest tough guys.
Sho Kosugi is active on TH-cam, has an active TH-cam channel 😊
The amount of the Word "ninja" per minute in this video is of the charts!
Dude.... My face really hurts due to all the smiling from ear to ear for the entire duration of this video!! 😁
I grew up on all of this EPIC cheese! I'm getting on up in my 40's now, and vividly remember the whole 80's ninja era! I haven't seen something to bring back THIS much nostalgia in YEARS! The world has changed so much, and unfortunately, my children (who were born in the early 2,000's), weren't fortunate enough to grow up in such a wildly experimental time in cenima. Where the special effects were almost always practical, and the action and fantasy elements to these films made little boys in almost every neighborhood across America twirl sticks, and yell out "hiya's", while wearing homemade ninja masks around their backyards everyday after school!
Thanks for this buddy! It was a real treat!! 😆👍
The local fleamarkets in Queens, NYC would have numerous shelves and tables filled with bootlegs (DVD copies of DVD copies!) of these kung fu movies in the 1990s! I was more just a browzer but I had friends who brought every one of them (5 for 10 dollars, can't beat that!!).
Ninjas and Shaolin movies are my comfort food.
I am never not entertained by at least one guy in black pajamas doing crazy martial arts in broad daylight.
The tiny robot in Ninja Terminator appears to be the toy that would be released in the Transformers toyline as Omega Supreme.
Some of these sound effects are just taking me back to some classic Wu Tang Clan songs.
This overview of the Ninja craze - especially the Frankeninja stuff - makes me think history has repeated itself but on a grander scale with the super hero genre. The oversaturation, the decline in quality, and the hint of it being used for money embezzlement seem eerily familar.
Fantastic video
Thanks. And I think you're absolutely right. Maybe what's unusual about superhero movies is the whole thing was played out on such a grand scale. But it's the same thing.
@@TheBadMovieBiblei hear they grabbed mamoa off the street. he was the least drunk long-haired guy, which is saying something because there were rumors of him drinking on set for aquaman 2
@@Nova_Afterglowno, he's been acting for over a decade now, a big role of his from years back was stargate Atlantis. I hope you get your brain-rot cleared up soon
like every genre: western, horror, action...
Those movies are actually filmed as one movie though so it isn’t really analogous at all tho
I just watched 'Dwild Wild Weng' because of this video. It is the best 80's action movie I have ever seen. Pure 80's exploitation bliss.
I like how frequently you have to show the "I didn't edit this" text that you've made a neat little logo to replace it lol. These videos are incredibly fun and well researched! Keep up the good work
For me, Sho Kasugi was *the* representative of that era. He was pure magic to the kid in me.
Thanks for this video! Must have been quite time consuming to put together!
Ninja craze even swept over the soviet union. We didn't had anything commercially released or shown, but black market was overflown with horrid pirated copies of all the different movies. I remember how in the middle of 80's when we were young kids, most common birthday party invitation to other boys was cards with stenciled ninjas on them. Mock kung-fu fighting was rampant.
Ninjas were my childhood.
It’s been said so many times before, but this is the most under subscribed channel about film on TH-cam. The amount of time put into these videos has to be immense!! Of course, I could sit around and watch crappy ninja movies all day, but take them, pull out the entertaining bits, write a script around them and edit is very admirable.
Can someone tell me where else the music used at @21:55 in Death Warrior has been used? I’ve been sitting here for 5 minutes replaying it over and over trying to place it and I know I’ve heard it in something else.
It’s from the start of The Spy Who Loved Me, when 007 skis off the cliff 👍😊
@@felonfrost3268Thank you!! I knew it was something I had scene dozens of times, but the old brain just isn’t work as well anymore. One of the coolest stunts ever.
“James, I need you”
“So does England”
@@thelostone6981you scaw it with your own eyes.
You should do a follow up about all the awesome embossed ninja movie vhs covers on these movies. The rental boxes were so insanely cool that you always got tricked into renting them.
Someone needs to go through these films and digitally add Richard Harrison's moustache where it's unfathomably missing.
I must have watched the first "American Ninja" 100 times as a kid.
As with James said.
“Cocaine is a hell of a drug.” 😂
But to be quite honest with you. Even though a lot of these movies are bad. And I mean really bad.
I absolutely love the ninja craze era of film so much. 🤗
My late father would rent about 5 of these on a Friday from the local rental shop back in the early 1980s when we got our first rental vhs player, 50p each, take back on Monday, great days indeed.
Whatever the tune is that starts at 25:18 is freakin funky as heck!!😁😁🤘🤘
Oh my god. I can’t thank you enough for bringing my childhood Sunday afternoons back in amazing fashion. I grew up watching these movies. My ten year old asked me if I really watched these ‘stupid’ movies. Yep. And I love every minute of them 😂
Who else here were kids in the 80's and bought cheap ninja throwing stars and/or nunchucks? I know I did. Me and my friends had a lot of much fun playing ninja in our backyards. Between these things, bb guns, and pellet guns I'm so glad all of us made it out of that era with our eyes intact lol.
Oh yeah. I had all the ninja crap.
The Sho Kosugi’s Shuriken belt buckle is wicked.
Honestly I've watched this at least 5 times. I laugh harder everytime. Only a Ninja can kill a Ninja, mustache or no mustache.
The algorithm has blessed me with the best 80s ninja craze retrospective ever. Thank you, sir.
What a time to be alive. They need to bring back the 80s Ninja Craze.
Can we appreciate the amount of time and effort it takes to put together a video like this!!!! Excellent work sir ✊🏾
Ninja 3 the domination was THE best Ninja move ever. The way the ninja fought those cops. Epic!
Take a fooken bow son. I mean that. Take a fooken bow.👏
Honestly, starting at 25:15, that might be the finest one minute of editing I've ever seen.
Awesome Video....The Godfrey Interview, where he sits in the chair in front of a window is by us, by the way. Out on our "Lethal Panther" Blu Ray Release (Germany). He was interviewed by our friends Mike Leeder and Arne Venema in Hongkong. Keep up the good work!
Ninja!🥷🏻 Sh-sha SHAH!!! 😆 Man, this takes me back! I was born in 79. My family’s from Ireland and my best friend at the time just immigrated here from Nigeria. We used to watch all those movies and beat the heck out of each other playing Ninjas. We would cut ninjas star shapes outta cardboard and spray paint them silver and throw them at each other. And of course, like every kid in America in the 80’s, we took karate.
What’a fun trip down memory lane this video was. Thanks! 🤜🫷 😂
About twenty years ago I watched Tomas Tang's ''Battle for the treasure''(the Greek translation of the tittle was ''The last commando'').I had one of the biggest laughs I ever had.Up to a point,as we watched it,we couldn't make out what was happening.No clue at all.But something happened at a certain scene and all the frustration we had turned into an outburst of laughter.I''ll never forget it!You can find the movie on youtube.Gather your friends and enjoy irresponsibly!
Blood debts answering the garfield phone is one of the most left field and funniest things I ever witnessed in any horrible b-movie
50:47 Nine Deaths of the Ninja was a huge theatrical hit in the USSR. I remember my dad took me to the cinema to watch it and how difficult it was to get the tickets 😅
I thought I've heard of every ninja movie ever since growing up, my little brother was obsessed with ninja movies, he was an encyclopedia of everything ninja, so im impressed
This video got me through the worst cold I've had in a decade. Thank you, Mr. Hill!
if there's one thing we can all agree on... it's ninjas. their sudden appearance out of nowhere and onto the screen is exactly the kind of ninja behaviour we demand!
Damn the sheer dedication and investigation you put in to these is amazing
Calling all commentors, calling all commentors, be on the lookout for trespassing ninjas.
In a truly a life-changing moment I bought Ninja Dragon/Ninja Terminator on DVD from Blockbuster outside Bearsden train station. This was 96/97, and I've loved Godfrey Ho's work ever since. While there's classier films out there the peerless madness of tiny robots, using the crab scene in trailers, teleportation, superbike fights and liberal Pink Floyd abuse is unmatched. Thrilled with this episode.
23:19--My new definition of pure movie magic.
"...and Marilyn Monroe's completely bald upper lip."
Quality stuff, mate. Thanks for another exhaustively researched video! Just compiling the clips is a mammoth effort, but to top it off your scripts are always super entertaining, with their pitch-perfect dry humour.
Got here after your commentaries with Oliver - You have a real way with words sir! XD
The music at 25:18 is absolutely fkn boss and I need that soundtrack
Sho Kosugi and Michael Dudikoff were the Deniro and Pacino of 80's western ninja movies and you can't tell me otherwise...
The whole "White man with a moustache" thing, suddenly makes the web-comic Doctor McNinja MD make a lot more sense
Ninja Assassin (2009) is still to this day the best ninja movie ever made. Nothing else comes close.
Naaaaaaahhh. Give me Ninja 3: The Domination or Ninja 2: Shadows of a Tear (no relation) any day of the week. Ninja Assassin is a total missed opportunity. It has a great opening and some legit badassery but is ruined by lame special effects, a go-nowhere plot, and a lot of wooden performances.
If it would've better balanced its sleek, edgy Hollywood ultraviolence with its D-movie surroundings, it could've been a real classic
Red Scorpion is better imo.
rob, age 45, gave himself up to the authorities after compiling this video. he is now serving a life sentence.
As a child of the 80s I fucking loved all things ninja. After I saw Revenge of the Ninja I was hooked. The ninja rooftop fight in that film was the coolest thing I'd ever seen.
This channel is a masterpiece
This was a fantastic watch...and it was great to see Pierre Kirby getting a mention. As a long time fan of Brad Jones AKA The Cinema Snob I actually really enjoy watching Godfrey Ho's "Cut & Paste" Ninja films...even though they are (for the most part) absolutely awful.
By any chance have you seen Ninja: The Mission Force? Might be worth a watch.
I was clean shaven when I started this video, now I have a bitchin' mustache & a crippling cocaine habit.
RIP Leo Fong.
Ninja in Dragon Denn is one of my favorite ninja martial film starting young Hiroyuki Sanada(Scorpion from MK) and Conan Lee. A rare Chinese/Japanese collaboration that showcases two different styles going head to head. Very well choreographed especially.
Also has the best movie intro in the HISTORY OF CINEMA!
@@Fastwinstondoom totally
I'll never forget the first time I watched Ninja dragon. I was so young back then but it was so damn confusing and awesome at the same time.
I love how naff words like ninja and turbo seem now. But then, the were key to 80's entertainment.
As for the Franken-movies, the bad bits were the most fun. Often the English dub would add so much more to a baffling plot. I miss those days.
Another incredibly entertaining and informative video about a genre I know nothing about. Glad this is my introduction - it's ninja-riffic.
It’s incredible how many of these vhs clips have Dutch subtitles! 😂
"Cloak and dagger carpet bagger". BRAVO!
one rhyme short of a British red top headline
That villain in 9 DEATHS OF THE NINJA was played by Blackie Dammett, aka the real-life father of Red Hot Chili Peppers frontman Anthony Kiedis! 50:48
Fun fact: Just last week my younger daughter (10) said "What if every country has ninjas and we only know about the Japanese ones because they're so bad at it?" Mind blown.
I would totally read that story. Encourage your daughter to write it!
💀💀🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Big fan of the word "Ninjologist"
30:40 "I don't know where Thailand is."
49:28 In the shot of the army of super ninja, there's a guy on the far right who chose this moment to adjust his face mask, and for reasons I can't adequately explain, I find this funny.
There's something breathtaking about Miami Connection being merely mid-shelf nonsense in this genre
One thing I learned from watching movies, anytime something is popular, there will be knockoffs made overseas by new fans of the genre. It's kind of cool.
I remember watching some of these on vhs as a kid. When I visited my aunt on my mums side I'd get to rent out ninja movies. My aunt on my dads side was all about the horror so I got to see some great stuff. Seeing the ninja movies now and they are mostly terrible but the horror remains with me. Watched Shogun Assassin later on in life and love it. I really need to watch all the lone wolf movies to see it in all its glory.
Need to give to a little nod to the 1962 Japanese Jidaigeki TV drama Onmitsu Kenshi (Spy Swordsman), better known overseas as The Samurai or Shintaro the Samurai, the show about a Samurai detective/spy featured ninjas as a major focus with an Iga Ninja a supporting character and ally to the titular character and the Koga ninja clan, who served as the main antagonists in the show's early seasons.
The show became a cult classic in Australia, where it was the first Japanese TV program ever screened there, premiering in 1964 and built up a remarkably large fan-base among the local young audience at the time, and it still has a devoted following to this day over there. The show was so popular, it spawned a ninja craze among Australian children, later spawning merchandise based on the show and the cast of the show actually performed a live stage show in both at the Sydney Stadium and Melbourne in 1965, and it was reported that over 7,000 people (many of them in costume) turned out to greet Ose Koichi, the show's star, when he arrived at Essendon Airport in Melbourne, which is said to be a higher turnout than when The Beatles visited there a year earlier.
The show also found a following in New Zealand and the Philippines.
There's a documentary titled "Shintaro! The Samurai Sensation That Swept a Nation" that delved into the show's impact in Australia that you can find on TH-cam and Vimeo for free.
Was a craze for kids throwing ninja stars much earlier than that in Australia due to the Samurai TV show in 1960s that was imported to Australia. The star came out to Australia and everything. The show had a bunch of ninjas in it
1st rule of Ninja Stealth: Wear a Bright Red and Yellow Suit with Ninja written on your forehead
BEST
NINJA
DOCUMENTARY
EVER
The people behind the movie Turbo Kid were big fans of Godfrey Ho. They started by doing short trailers that parodied his movies. You should check out Ninja Eliminator.
I still remember arguing with other kids ~35 years ago, that Kung-Fu master would be able to beat several ninjas at once. Especially that old master from Japan mountains who killed Bruce Lee.
What a colossal work has been put in this video, thank you!
Please never ever stop producing video essays.
As a Filipino I didn't know that "D'Wild Wild Weng" is popular as a ninja craze film, seeing the late legendary actor Max Alvarado there who played the mute character in the clip is a treat.
Meanwhile in Japan, there was tokusatsu TV show titled World Ninja Jiraiya (1988). In the show, the protagonist was 34th clan master of Togakure Style Ninja. Takumi Tsutsui, the actor who played the role, became real life 35 clan master of Togakure Style in 2019.
Omg!!
“revenge of the ninja” and “American Ninja” were my obsessions as a kid (Bloodsport too, but I didn’t really think of it as a ninja movie).
Revenge of the Ninja was the first ninja movie I saw. Increadible how far ahead the quality was beside all it's flaws, when compared to others in the genre. I appreciate you mentioning how it defined many of the ninja tropes, especially the weapons arsenal demonstration was a big win. And the soundtrack by Rob Walsh is very mucho kick-ass.
Thank you for briefly showing the DVD cover for Pocket Ninjas. That movie changed my life.
damn. The music at the end goes HARD
I wonder how large a role the introduction of The Hand to the Marvel Universe via Frank Miller's run on Daredevil had on ninja popularity in America.
So happy you shared the V8 scene from Ninja III: the Domination ❤
left out one important one- 1982's Ninja in the Dragon's Den (aka Ninja Kommando), directed by Corey Yuen and starring a young Hiroyuki Sanada who plays the Ninja who at first seems to be a villain but then at the end becomes a good guy and teams up with the other main character (Jackie Chan look-alike guy) who uses Chinese kung fu, and there is a surprise plot twist at the end where they defeat the final villain who has attained god kung fu from cutting off his balls by showing him a girl's boobs. It also has one of the best ninja songs sung by Alfredo Chen Singers, Legend of the Ninja (played at the beginning of the movie when the ninjas wake up after being asleep and pop up out of the sand)
One of the more recent Ninjas is actually Nolan's Batman who is depicted as trained by the Ninjas in the "League of Shadows".
Sho Kasugi's son Kane also got into the ninja game. He was the first American to portray and voice a ranger in the Super Sentai franchise, portraying Ninja Black/Sasuke in Ninja Sentai Kakuranger. It's incredibly amusing to hear non accented English lines in Super Sentai. Kane actually had to learn Japanese on the fly but always was able to pronounce an L or V.
RIP Bruce Baron. He truly was the Ultimate Ninja.
Your videos are quite simply some of the best on TH-cam. I don't know why they don't have millions of views, especially when you consider some of the unutterable rubbish that does. I've just signed up to your Patreon, because work of this quality must be supported.
I've seen a lot of documentaries about the ninja craze and this is by far the most definitive. It almost seems wasted as a TH-cam video. It's worthy of its own Blu-Ray.
I remember "that scene" from Ninja III very well.