Ninja 2 - A Vingança

The first Ninja film didn't impress me much, but this follow up is definitely an improvement. Ninja: Shadow of a Tear follows American ninja master Casey Bowman, who loses his wife and unborn child after a home invasion. Vowing revenge Casey breaks plenty of limbs and faces tracking down the killer to a drug factory in Burma... before discovering a horrifying secret....

Derivative revenge plot aside, this film was actually pretty good. Scott Adkins was convincing in this role, and some of the fight scenes were genuinely awesome. I also didn't see the final twist coming, which is always a plus. Story wise we have seen all this before, but to be honest nobody watches a film like this for the plot. It has it where it counts - non-stop brutal beatdowns and great fights. You will know if this is to your taste or not...

Ninja: Shadow of a Tear is an incredible sequel to the excellent first film but this time it's drenched more in gritty realism than the comic book style of the first. There's still a retro old skool feel to this but it's faster paced & more furious this time as our hero, Casey has settled down with his pregnant wife but when she is suddenly murdered, Casey goes on an all out mission for revenge & it's a brutal quest with non-stop frantic action. Scott Adkins is Amazing again, his films are always so Awesome & so well made with so much style & this sequel has it all in spades!!! Once again directed with superb skill by Isaac Florentine who loves working with Adkins & seems to really bring out the very best of Adkins martial arts skills & his emotional performances, here Casey goes to a much darker place & becomes a more Vigilante anti-hero than he was in the first film where he was more a warrior proctor type. Adkins is the most skilled fighter I've seen in the Action genre & i grew up watching all the greats such as Van Damme, Schwarzenegger, Seagal, Stallone & Snipes but Adkins seems more real & more intense than those Action Legends & it's a shame he hasn't hit the big time yet like Jason Statham has?

Ninja 2 is a more polished looking flick than the first but it's definitely less bloody & the main villain is still way better in the first flick but what we do get here is much more incredible fight sequences that are mind blowing to watch. This is the fastest I've seen Adkins move lol he's as quick as the old greats like Jackie Chan or Jet Li he's that good. I think i probably still like the first film more because i loved the old Comic book style & the very 80's Ninja flick vibe that reminds me of the Awesome Ninja Turtles flicks but obviously way more violent but, Shadow of a Tear is a fantastic sequel & this time i got vibes of old skool Charlie Bronson flicks such as Death Wish 2 (The whole mugging/wallet sequence) & i loved it as it felt like pure old skool violent action & that's what Scott Adkins does. A brutal, bone-crunching, fast & furious Revenge Action Thriller with some of the best fight sequences ever put on film & a blistering intense performance from the king of badass, low-budget Action Cinema.

CRAZY!. It is up there with Undisputed, Great fight scenes and taken in one shot which makes it look even better. Good fighters this time unlike the first Ninja movie, not to mention highly coordinated kick #@$@# fight scenes.Lets see if Raid 2 and TYG2 can outdo Shadow of a Tear,...Scotty seems better than ever,I wish this came out in Theater would have been nice to see this on the big screen. Undisputed 4 is coming out.. cant wait! Story is lacking but who cares, and anyone who knows about this movie, does not care about a PLot or love story, they just want people beating the crap out of each other. Nicely done and a nice recovery for Scott.

Also recommend SPECIAL ID... for those who cant get enough.

A westerner young ninja named Casey Bowman (Scott Adkins) is trained since chidhood to be a deadly Ninja , studying Ninjutsu in Japan . The previous entry , ¨Ninja I¨ (2009) by Isaac Florentine , dealt with Casey is asked by the Master (Igawa) to return to New York to protect the legendary Yoroi Bitsu , an armored chest that contains the weapons of the last Koga Ninja and ultimately taking on old collegues with whom he trained . In this second outing ¨Ninja : Shadow of a Tear¨ 2013 master Casey Bowman goes back in action after his life of domestic bliss is shattered by a savage act of violence . As an angry revenger called Casey is nowadays seeking a merciless vendetta for death his beloved couple . Vowing revenge , the fearless American stealthily tracks the killer from Osaka to Bangkok to Rangoon with the help of a wise and crafty sensei. His only clues : a series of victims whose necks bear the distinctive mark of strangulation by barbed wire . As Casey Bowman returns demanding vengeance against sinister killers . Then Nakabura (Kane Kosugi , son of the mythical Sho Kosugi) , a former student at the Dojo who now has his own Dojo in Bangkok asks Casey to a risked mission . Target: the sinister drug lord Goro , who is flooding the streets with deadly meth cooked at his remote jungle factory. To prepare for his ultimate confrontation, Casey must finally become an invisible warrior worthy of the name Ninja. But just when his prey is cornered, an unexpected twist shows Casey that his battle is only beginning : he truly can trust no one. At the end the terrible happenings leading to a lethal battle , our tough-fisted hero against other Ninja assassins .A silent warrior. A deadly past. A lethal mission. Revenge will rise . From the shadow of the night, a warrior is born not the weapon but the hand that wields it . Raised to become an assassin... until betrayal made him a target . Prepare to enter a secret world of heartless assassins . Fight everyone and trust no one.

Violent tale with full of noisy action and fights in a comic-book style . It's a westernized oriental action film with an interesting mingle of suspense , brutal martial arts , sword-play , ancient ritual with typical code of honour and bloody combats . The gory plot is simple and plain , a nasty Ninja confronts heinous murderers , and starring Casey/Scott Adkins being forced into action and steadily butchering his relentless enemies , while inching ever closer to the long-awaited bloody final . As he follows the code of survival practiced by martial-art , fighting to avenge as well as to survive , Casey must sharpen his razor-like responses and take his battle skills to the next level , even using deep meditation to fake his own death . This a nail-biting thriller with ustoppable action , including impressive fighting with a lot of blood and gore . It's a mindless but enjoyable story for martial arts aficionados of the old style , but adding some new technical being made by means of wires , cables and digital computer generator . Abundant fights as swords struggles in which arms , body parts and beheading are slice off here and there and limbs are slit open everywhere or blasted apart . Of course , highlights of the film are the breathtaking and groundbreaking fights with lots of blood dropping here and there . Cruel, savage murders and blood splatter , make only recommended for those adults no squeamish and with strong stomach enough to take it . The motion picture was professionally directed by Isaac Florentine .

This film belongs to ¨Ninja sub-genre¨ that achieved splendor in the Eighties : The first movie was ¨Enter the Ninja¨ (81) by Menahem Golan with Franco Nero , Menahem Golan was director of the first film , and was to direct its sequel also , but shortly before production was to start he decided to turn over directing chores to Sam Firstenberg . It was followed by the martial arts features ¨Ninja II¨ or ¨Revenge of the Ninja¨ (1983) with Shô Kosugi , Keith Vitali , Kane Koshugi and ¨Ninja III , the domination¨ with Lucinda Dickey and again Sho Kosugi . These pictures were well produced by Cannon -Golan and Globus- and all rightly directed by Sam Firstenberg . Following others also directed by Sam Firstenberg for Golan-Globus' as ¨American Ninja¨ , ¨American Ninja II and III¨, ¨Forced vengeance (82)¨ and ¨Avening force (1986)¨ most of them starred by low-grade expert on karate genre and Ninja sub-genre Michael Dudikoff . Following in 2009 with ¨Ninja¨ by Isaac Florentine , along with this ¨Ninja II¨with Scott Adkins and Kane Koshugi . Furthermore , ¨Ninja Assassin¨ by James McTeigue with Rain , Naomi Harris .

Saw this early at the Fantastic Fest in Austin, Texas and it is quite possibly the greatest DTV action movie ever made.

Though many would not be proud of it, but I am a DTV (direct to video) expert. I subject myself to watching pretty much every DTV action movie ever made. Though most of them are just absolutely awful, it is all worth it when a Unisol Regen or Blood and Bone comes along and blows you away.

The main problems with dtv movies are: 1. Zero budget 2. Shaky cam/quick edits 3. Actors not willing to put in the work for the fight scenes to look realistic 4. Stupid plots with dumb romances

Though Ninja Shadow of a Tear is on a small budget, all of the aforementioned problems are fixed. The movie is completely without shaky cam and quick editing. The plot is very basic and there is no fat to try and make it anything other than what it is....an incredible action movie. And finally, the incredible Scott Adkins and the amazing stunt team put in some amazing fights.

One scene in particular is Scott Adkins versus 6 guys in a dojo and the entire fight is filmed in one take with zero editing...like the Alphonso Cauron of DTV shots. It was absolutely amazing.

Just an amazing fight movie that takes the best fight scenes ever and mixes it with Rambo, old Cannon movies from the 80's, and Enter the Dragon and other Asian flicks from the 70's. Just a perfect movie that looks like a big budget Hollywood flick. Not a single dollar was wasted and no goofy cgi or wires were used.

I can't recommend this movie enough. The action is incredible and everything came together to make one of the best fight films of all- time.

Hollywood, please wake up and give Adkins/Florentine a budget and I think you would be amazing at what they can do.

If you are looking to check out other great DTV movies and save yourself the trouble of all the nonsense and garbage I have seen, check out the following. But most importantly, check out Ninja Shadow of a Tear when it is released. It is a definitely blu-ray buy for me.

1. Universal Solider Regeneration 2. Ninja Shadow of a Tear 3. Blood and Bone 4. Undisputed 3 5. Wake of Death (pretty much all of the Van Dammes are watchable) 6. Undisputed 2 7. Universal Soldier Day of Reckoning (just watch the last 45 minutes)