Ninja Kids

Somebody posted complaining about how three kids cannot beat up 30 or 40 bad men. Well if you were a kid, you'd adore this film. I first saw this film when I was I believe five years old. I grew up watching the movies along with the rest of the series: 3 NINJAS KICK BACK and 3 NINJAS KNUCKLE UP. I'm not trying to sound cheesy or anything. I rather watch the series than watching Teenage Ninja Turtles. I think every generation of young kids would have liked 3 Ninjas if they are really interest in Martial Arts. Sure, the film will probably fade away from our interests as we grow up. But in my own opinion and my experiences, I think 3 Ninjas was one of the excellent film of early 1990s that young viewers would enjoy. Now I'm a teenager and I laugh at the thoughts of how obessed I was with 3 Ninjas but that doesn't mean I shouldn't destroy it existence.

A great many people claim that Citizen Kane is one of the greatest films, and whilst there is some truth to the fact that Orson's masterpiece was, in terms of style, innovative - 3 Ninjas is truly a superior film on every level.

3 Ninjas combines Chaucerian comedic metaphors, injects some Wordworthian bathos, mixes in some satire worthy of Swift, and comes out with a film so incredible that this reviewer cannot describe it with a sufficient number of superlatives!

A dramatic stripping away of racial and social mores in the modern day United States, 3 Ninjas is extraordinary in its realistic treatment of a multi-ethnic family - because, after all, every Japanese person knows karate!

I'm amazed that so many of the actors involved in this fine production have not gone on to star in any other films, and was surprised to note that the film was absent from the Academy Awards shortlist. Perhaps a remake can be arranged if we all join hands, find a Japanese friend to teach us the mystical ways of the East, and pray that that chap from Happy Days is still alive.

I remember I loved this movie as 7 year old karate kid wannabe back in 92. While not as timeless as other movies in this genre such as Home Alone, it's a good, safe (for content) movie for kids to enjoy. It's no Oscar winner, but it wasn't trying to be (obviously). Yes, the dialog is stupid, the plot is amateurish, and if you're over the age of 11, you'll be unamused by most of the humor. Everyone knows that three kids outnumbered 10 to 1 by professional criminals with extensive martial arts training AND who have guns wouldn't stand a chance, but this is a kids' fantasy movie. Every little boy dreams of fighting bad guys and kicking their butts; 3 Ninjas just plays it out on screen. I find it funny that so many find THAT aspect of the movie to be its "downfall." If you're planning on having a sleepover party for you 6-10 year old son, this is a good movie for him and his friends.

As of this review, the rating on this movie is in the 5/10 range. When I look at what the negative reviews are saying, it becomes clear that the bad reviews come from reviewers who are treating this movie like it's supposed to be a serious adult comedy, but it's NOT that kind of movie. It's clearly meant to be a light-hearted movie that is aimed at being fun for younger kids. It's not made for adults; it's absurd and childish and fun, designed to be watchable for 10-year-olds while still being appropriate enough for a 5-year-old to watch and enjoy too.

The movie is definitely absurd in a lot of ways, and several things won't quite add up. Don't take it seriously at all and you'll probably enjoy it. Your kids surely will.

For a kiddie flick, and this film is certainly not aimed at anyone upwards of adolescence, '3 Ninjas' isn't bad in the grand scheme of things. It is, undoubtedly, better than many of the martial arts films aimed at children that have been produced (check out tosh like 'Tiger Heart' and 'Double Dragon' for proof!).

The film centres on three young brothers-- thirteen-year-old Rocky, twelve-year-old Colt and eight-year-old Tum-tum-- who have been studying martial arts since they were toddlers, under the tutelage of their sensei grandfather. The boys' father, an FBI agent, doesn't approve but he is too pre-occupied with catching bad guys to stop them. Then the boys find themselves at the centre of a kidnapping plot by one of their father's perps Snyder, who incidentally was also trained in martial arts by their grandfather.

The film has many unrealistic scenes where the three wee moppets take down hordes of grown men with ease and cue the 'Home Alone' style tricks as the boys rig their house against three would-be teenage kidnappers who have the IQ of toast (one of whom was portrayed by Patrick Labyorteaux, who went on to play Bud in 'JAG'). However, to the film's credit, Snyder was depicted to be genuinely cruel and threatening and the three young actors, especially the elder two, who played the brothers were not as irritating as many child actors can be.

This is an enjoyable film for kids, especially those interested in martial arts (it did influence me to take up Tae-Kwon Do as a kid!), or those who watched it as a child themselves. Unfortunately, the two sequels '3 Ninjas Kick Back' and '3 Ninjas Knuckle Up' were much cheesier and less watchable and the fourth film '3 Ninjas: High Noon at Mega Mountain', filmed much later in 1998 and featuring different kids in the role of the brothers, was just so atrocious that it's better to pretend it doesn't exist.