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NINJA ASSASSINMovie Reviews
Action thriller about a young man brought up from childhood by a secret society and trained as an assasin, who goes rogue after the head of the secret society kills the girl he loves. . Cast:Rain, Naomie Harris, Ben Miles, Rick Yune, Sho KosugiDirector:James McTeigueRelease Date:November 25, 2009DVD Release:March 16, 2010From:Warner Bros.Rating:RLength:1 hr 39 min
Ninja Assassin played to weak reviews. • Norman Wilner wrote in Toronto Now, "The only question worth asking about a movie called 'Ninja Assassin' is this: are the action sequences any good? Only some of the time." • And Joe Williams wrote in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, "...amateurish action flick is so lacking in personality or punch, it ought to be titled 'V for Video Store Discount Bin.' " More Reviews Below...
Chris Nashawaty, Entertainment Weekly: VERY GOOD(cg) "...a slick slice of martial-arts mayhem... awash in blood. It spurts and sprays in geysers.... let's be honest, killing is this film's business and business is good."(See all of Chris Nashawaty's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 119 words, 11/27/09
Glenn Whipp, Associated Press: WEAK(cg) "...clearly more interested in spraying geysers of digital blood than in establishing the ninja as a foe to be taken seriously."(See all of Glenn Whipp's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 466 words, 11/25/09
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NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (9 Reviews)
Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times: WEAK "...more committed to its bloodletting than to any of its characters.... Flashbacks to ninja training school are quite lovely, making us wish that the film had remained in the past..."(See all of Jeannette Catsoulis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 361 words, 11/25/09
Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News: WEAK(cg) "Director James McTeigue melds torture porn with martial arts, wrapping his vicious blend in a tissue-thin story about a trained ninja (Korean pop star Rain) who risks all..."(See all of Elizabeth Weitzman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 146 words, 11/27/09
Michael Phillips, Los Angeles Times: POOR "Director James McTeigue can barely shoot straight and the editing is so hack-y, you have to take the stunts and fight choreography on faith."(See all of Michael Phillips's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 424 words, 11/25/09
Kyle Smith, New York Post: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...played with an earnest B-movie fervor.... This movie knows exactly what it is: Gonzo silliness about bodies turned into human salsa."(See all of Kyle Smith's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 468 words, 11/25/09
Stephen Cole, Toronto Globe & Mail: MODERATE(cg) "...convincing, reasonably co-ordinated... Nothing special, but lovers of the genre will enjoy the workouts, especially if they bring night-vision glasses."(See all of Stephen Cole's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 634 words, 11/25/09
Brian Miller, Village Voice/LA Weekly: WEAK "...a hard-R blood-fest... the battles are murky and difficult to follow.... A triple-cross plot with Naomie Harris's superiors doesn't help the movie's clarity..."(See all of Brian Miller's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 250 words, 11/25/09
Norman Wilner, Toronto Now: WEAK(cg) "The only question worth asking about a movie called 'Ninja Assassin' is this: are the action sequences any good? Only some of the time."(See all of Norman Wilner's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 205 words, 11/26/09
KEY CITIES (11 Reviews)
Dan Kois, Washington Post: WEAK(cg) "Ten minutes after you leave the movie, all the battles will have blended in your memory into a ceaseless muddle of sliced-off appendages..."(See all of Dan Kois's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 520 words, 11/25/09
Mick LaSalle, Houston Chronicle/San Francisco Chronicle: POOR(cg) "Hits the trifecta: It's a gore fest, a bore fest and a snore fest.... I never knew disgusting could be so dull."(See all of Mick LaSalle's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 454 words, 11/25/09
Kerry Lengel, Arizona Republic: WEAK(cg) "No doubt the fast-flying weaponry and the ticking body count will please fans of other stylized gorefests, such as '300,' but for the rest of us, it's a big, bloody bore."(See all of Kerry Lengel's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 515 words, 11/25/09
Wesley Morris, Boston Globe: WEAK(cg) "...culminates in a long, wasteful session of shooting and slashing... It may be the first grisly action sequence to be objectionable solely on the grounds that it's boring."(See all of Wesley Morris's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 449 words, 11/25/09
Clint O'Connor, Cleveland Plain-Dealer: MODERATE(cg) "...one of those blood, blood, and more blood action films with lots of slashing, gashing and thrashing.... the Veg-o-Matic of martial arts movies."(See all of Clint O'Connor's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 332 words, 11/25/09
Joany Carlin, Portland Oregonian: WEAK(cg) "Humorless, pedestrian and overly flashback-laden, the film's only distinction is the over-the-top gore made possible by digital effects."(See all of Joany Carlin's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 173 words, 11/25/09
Joe Williams, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: WEAK(cg) "...amateurish action flick is so lacking in personality or punch, it ought to be titled 'V for Video Store Discount Bin.' "(See all of Joe Williams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 280 words, 11/25/09
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel: WEAK(cg) "...there's more to making sword-and-splatter work than just shiny blades and blood. It's got to have an edge, and the one on 'Ninja Assassin' is dull as a butter knife."(See all of Roger Moore's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 501 words, 11/25/09
Rene Rodriguez, Miami Herald: POOR(cg) "...shockingly disjointed and relentlessly dull... The latest misfire in the ongoing career meltdown of 'The Matrix' creators Larry and Andy Wachowski..."(See all of Rene Rodriguez's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 359 words, 11/25/09
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (5 Reviews)
Brian Miller, Village Voice/LA Weekly: WEAK "...a hard-R blood-fest... the battles are murky and difficult to follow.... A triple-cross plot with Naomie Harris's superiors doesn't help the movie's clarity..."(See all of Brian Miller's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 250 words, 11/25/09
Norman Wilner, Toronto Now: WEAK(cg) "The only question worth asking about a movie called 'Ninja Assassin' is this: are the action sequences any good? Only some of the time."(See all of Norman Wilner's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 205 words, 11/26/09
HIGHBROW PRESS (2 Reviews)
Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times: WEAK "...more committed to its bloodletting than to any of its characters.... Flashbacks to ninja training school are quite lovely, making us wish that the film had remained in the past..."(See all of Jeannette Catsoulis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 361 words, 11/25/09
Michael Phillips, Los Angeles Times: POOR "Director James McTeigue can barely shoot straight and the editing is so hack-y, you have to take the stunts and fight choreography on faith."(See all of Michael Phillips's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 424 words, 11/25/09
MOVIE INDUSTRY (4 Reviews)
Rob Nelson, Daily Variety: WEAK "Seemingly made to capitalize on a dubious CG innovation -- namely, the slicing of bodies in half by whizzing five-pointed stars... has little else to recommend it..."(See all of Rob Nelson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 721 words, 10/27/09
Michael Phillips, Los Angeles Times: POOR "Director James McTeigue can barely shoot straight and the editing is so hack-y, you have to take the stunts and fight choreography on faith."(See all of Michael Phillips's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 424 words, 11/25/09
Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times: WEAK "...more committed to its bloodletting than to any of its characters.... Flashbacks to ninja training school are quite lovely, making us wish that the film had remained in the past..."(See all of Jeannette Catsoulis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 361 words, 11/25/09
17.3 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
Ninja Assassin's reviews are separated by an average 17.3 percentage points. The norm for this measure is 18.4 percentage points. Less than 18.4 indicates more consistent reviews; greater than 18.4 indicates more mixed reviews. In the chart below, each dot represents a review, with the dots at the top more positive than the dots at the bottom. From left to right, the dots represent reviews in big, bigger and biggest publications. Roll over each dot for more detail.
Ninja Assassin (27 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:Ninja Assassin's reviews cover 38.3% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 10,262 words involume (average is 20,194 words). Length:The film's reviews average 380 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
Reviews Broke 18.2 Hours After Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
Ninja Assassin's reviews on average broke 18.2 hours after opening. Norm for this measure is 1.2 hours before. The chart below shows reviews on opening day and the days before and after opening; the left side is earlier and the right side is later. The red bars extending above the horizontal mid-line represent more positive reviews, and the red bars extending below represent more negative reviews. The white space/red bar in the middle is Ninja Assassin's opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
Ninja Assassin (27 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
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