American Ninja
| American Ninja | |
|---|---|
Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Sam Firstenberg |
| Produced by |
Yoram Globus Menahem Golan |
| Written by |
Paul De Mielche (screenplay) Gideon Amir (story) Avi Kleinberger (story) James R. Silke (uncredited) |
| Starring |
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| Music by | Michael Linn |
| Cinematography | Hanania Baer |
| Edited by | Andy Horvitch Peter Lee-Thompson Marcus Manton Marcel Mindlin Daniel Wetherbee |
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Production
company |
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| Distributed by | Cannon Film Distributors |
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Release date
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August 30, 1985 |
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Running time
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95 min. |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $1,000,000 (Estimated) |
| Box office | $10,499,694 (Domestic) |
American Ninja is a 1985 American ninja action film produced by Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus's Cannon Films. Directed by Sam Firstenberg, who specialized in this genre in the 1980s, the film stars Michael Dudikoff in the title role.
Private Joe Armstrong (Michael Dudikoff) is conscripted into the U.S. Army by a judge, as an alternative to prison. Joe ends up fighting off the Black Star Order of ninjas while stationed in the Philippines. He saves Patricia Hickock (Judie Aronson) — daughter of Colonel William Hickock, Joe's commanding officer — from a kidnapping attempt. Although the rest of Joe's platoon is wiped out by the Black Star ninjas, Joe's popularity with his fellow GIs takes a nosedive, even as he is targeted for revenge by the Black Star Master ninja (Tadashi Yamashita).
While performing chores on the base, Corporal Curtis Jackson (Steve James) goads Joe into a fight. Jackson proves no match for Joe's ninjitsu expertise, which greatly impresses their fellow soldiers to boot. Shortly thereafter, Jackson discovers that Joe is an amnesiac; he remembers very little of his past, other than running with various street gangs and mastering a number of exotic martial arts. The grateful Patricia organizes a date for herself with Joe. Jackson and a third soldier, Charley Madison (Phil Brock), sneak Joe off the base. They are caught during dinner by Sergeant Rinaldo, who is in the middle of a business meeting with black marketeer Victor Ortega (whose payroll the sergeant is on). To get Joe out of the way, Rinaldo leads him to an abandoned warehouse - ostensibly for the purpose of dropping off supplies. Black Star ninjas ambush Joe, who defeats all of them. Then Joe's truck is stolen and he gives chase using a motorcycle. The truck driver runs Joe off the road, wiping out the bike; thinking Joe dead, the driver brings the truck to Ortega. Joe, however, hides under the truck and is brought to the heart of Ortega's operation - which encompasses the Black Star ninja training camp.
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Wikipedia