Enter the Ninja

"Hired assassins ...human killing machines!"

1981 1h 40m EN

😐

5.5

MID

★5.5TMDB · 143

ActionCrimeDramaThriller

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A newly trained ninja warrior journeys to the Philippines, where he must defend his former war comrade's property against a determined adversary.

“Hired assassins ...human killing machines!”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Franco Nero
Cole
Susan George
Mary Ann
Christopher George
Venarius
Sho Kosugi
Hasegawa
Alex Courtney
Frank
Will Hare
Dollars
Zachi Noy
The Hook
Constantine Gregory
Mr. Parker

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Menahem Golan
Writers: Mike Stone, Dick Desmond, Dick Desmond
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $1.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

45 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Part of the "The Ninja Trilogy" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Menahem Golan, shot by David Gurfinkel. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Laurin Rinder. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Editor Mark Goldblatt shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Franco Nero and Susan George and Christopher George carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Hired assassins ...human killing machines!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Menahem Golan directs. David Gurfinkel behind the camera. Laurin Rinder scores. Mark Goldblatt cuts. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $1.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
245 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Part of the "The Ninja Trilogy" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
4Directed by Menahem Golan, shot by David Gurfinkel. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Laurin Rinder. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Mark Goldblatt shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Franco Nero and Susan George and Christopher George carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "Hired assassins ...human killing machines!".
9IMDB entry: tt0082332 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Classified under 10 themes, including "martial arts", "chase", "fight", "philippines".

The technical file

Cinematography: David Gurfinkel
Original score: Laurin Rinder
Editing: Mark Goldblatt
Makeup / hair: Rina Hofmanis
Runtime: 100 min · 1h 40m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $1,500,000
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Enter the Ninja (1981)

Part of

The Ninja Trilogy

The so-called Ninja Trilogy comprises Menahem Golan’s Enter the Ninja from 1981, and Sam Firstenberg’s sequels in-name-only, Revenge of the Ninja (1983) and Ninja III: The Domination (1984), all unified by the appearance of actor and real-life practitioner of ninjutsu Sho Kosugi (playing a different character in each title), and all rightly celebrated as showcases for the most egregious, ’80s-inflected cash-in excesses of Golan and Globus’ Cannon Films. Though the groundwork was laid by 1980’s The Octagon, it was these three films that began a veritable explosion of ninja presence in mainstream action flicks.