This is a tender, generous movie that likes its characters and presents them as real people, full of flaws and strengths.

It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...

It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...

Malik Ali (Prince) is a Johnnie Cochran-esque defense lawyer who specializes in charging his criminal clients an arm and a leg to get them off the legal hook. That's his day job, mind you. At night, he's the avenging superhero called THE BLACK NINJA. He even goes after the baddies he formerly defended in order to get street justice. At a speaking event, Ali meets Tracey Allen (Brothers), an attractive psychiatrist, and the chemistry is immediate. The only roadblock to their blossoming relationship is the fact that she's a witness in the upcoming trial of mobster Tony Fanelli (DeMatteo), and Fanelli commands his goons to have her rubbed out. So Ali/The Black Ninja is going to have to protect her with all he's got. Compounding Ali's already-complicated situation is the fact that Hagiwara (Matsuzaki), a red ninja, has reappeared in Ali's life after heinously killing his wife and children years before. Now burning for revenge, Ali has to look after Tracey as well. Will the streets ever be safe?Watch out, Troy Nikolo Ashford, there's a new auteur in town. While we know The Black Ninja was written by Clayton Prince, and stars Clayton Prince, the credits of the movie inform us that it was directed by "Me". Who is Me? It truly is an existential question. It could be anyone, but we're going to go with the working theory that it is Clayton Prince. Like the aforementioned Ashford, Prince was able to make a full-length feature film with an apparent budget of zero, shoot it on video, and not only get it into stores nationally, but internationally as well. Let's all keep that in mind and applaud Mr. Prince. Now, that being said, this is about as far down the ladder of DTV as you can get, production-wise. It has every technical flaw known to filmmaking, it's incredibly cheap-looking, and it's all astoundingly silly. But that's all part of the charm. You have to watch this with other people to get the full effect. Imagine Batman meets Daredevil meets RZA's Bobby Digital meets Zorro shot on a home movie camera. The Black Ninja's "command center" consists of a desk with two computer monitors, the guy who played the mobster baddie, Fanelli, was probably hired because he has a passing resemblance to John Gotti, and The Black Ninja's main mode of transportation is a black Kawasaki Ninja. Seems appropriate. There's even an unexplained fight scene at a Funcoland in front of a Sega Dreamcast display. However, just like The Protector (1999) and others, he does have a talking computer, which all true heroes should have. The movie starts with a bang, and ends with a bang, but there are some stretches in the middle where it starts to sag. The opening credits look like they were created with Mario Paint and there's a quasi-animated Black Ninja figure. The fight scenes are almost too ridiculous for words (much like the rest of the proceedings) - forget punches and kicks looking like they may connect someday, but whenever TBN (as we call him) executes one of his trademark moves, Prince employs this laughably stupid tripling editing effect. During the non-fight scenes, Ali talks to his dead wife (Hunter), and there is an extended scene of unfortunate bathroom humor. Det. Howell (Chance) livens things up with his attitude and his heckling, however. Matsuzaki as the main baddie is very over the top - and incomprehensible, with minimal English skills. It makes for an interesting combination. Featuring an extremely catchy title song which seems to hearken back to 70's Blaxploitation (most of the music was done by The BeatBrokerz and Clayton Prince himself worked on some of it as well), The Black Ninja might not be near the top of the most technically well-made productions of all time, but it pretty much defines the term "cheap and cheerful". Seen in the proper context, it's pretty enjoyable. Gather some of your fellow film fans, make sure the brewski's are flowing, and it just may be the underdog crowd pleaser of the year.

Was this amazing work of art shot on film? I wouldn't think so by looking at it, but at a couple of points I thought I could hear the whir of the camera, which you generally don't hear on video cameras. Wow I just didn't know what to say about this film. A previous poster wrote that it was better than a student film, I would beg to differ. I am a film student, and the lighting in this film can only be described as breath taking, and scary. And the abnormal use of the fishbowl lens had to have been out of necessity, not choice. I purchased it because I am writing a script for a low budget action flick, and I thought it would have had some helpful hints. I was wrong. Basically it taught me a thousand things I shouldn't do.

I'm a big fan of B-movies, and this one takes the cake for best B-movie of 2003. Shot on what I presume is video, as the film takes several different looks to the screen throughout, the film starts with the credits "written and directed by 'Me' ". Priceless. Who starts their film out like that? Clayton Prince does.The plot is basically a ripoff of the Daredevil comic/movie. Malik Ali(Prince) is an "infamous lawyer" who defends criminals (who are guilty no less, makes no sense) then at night he fights the same criminals with his ninja abilities, which aren't too impressive. He uses the moniker Black Ninja to hide his identity, along with a batman style mask.He ends up protecting a female witness who is standing trial against a crime boss, who for most of the movie, is getting massaged by two homely masseuses in bikinis. In the crime boss' employ are members of the WWW Wrestling federation, and you can tell they have no acting skills when it comes to their line delivery.The action scenes aren't the worst I've seen but are funny enough to make them seem very poor. The Black Ninja uses the same moves throughout the movie, making it seem like a video game, and Prince decided it would be a good idea to do triple takes when something semi-impressive happens. These triple takes are some of the funniest parts of the movie. Plot holes abound throughout the movie, including a scene where the Black Ninja's identity is exposed to the woman he is protecting, and a love scene ensues, but there are dead bodies on the floor next to the bed that are not mentioned again, while they make love (which is only shown as kissing of her shoulders and cut to a post-coitus scene.The main fight comes with the Red Ninja, who is in fact one of Malik's first cases, who ended up killing his family years prior to the fight. Acted by a japanese fellow with horrible English language skills, the Red Ninja is embarrassingly a formidable opponent for our likewise poor hero.If you like bad movies and have run out of older ones from the 80's pick this one up, I found it at my local video store. I'm sure you'll enjoy it.Things I learned:1.Anyone with a computer can get classified files on criminals.2.Dead bodies seem to disappear when a sex scene comes up.3.Wrestlers make poor villains,4.Friends of the director shouldn't be cast as small parts because they laugh after something serious happens.5.Pictures of loved ones last for more than 5 years of being left on a gravestone in open weather conditions.6.Poor lighting makes leading actresses look like zombies.

Scenario: My friend and I need a good film to laugh at and nothing makes you laugh harder than a cheesy title like the black ninja, with an over glorified blackguy in a ninja outfit on the cover.Enter the movie: We pop this DVD in and imeadeatly cringe and behold our ears crying from the horrendus theme song sang by the star of the film (that crazy jamacian kid from the late Cosby show). Already we know that this going to be a laughable farce, but low and behold it is the worst film we have ever seen and that admission speaks volumes(I own Sniper 2 and Rollerball (the new one)) By the end of the film me and my compatriot where rolling on our sides because we had just laughed so much. The worst part the actors were trying to be serious. This is the worst film ever made. And should be revelled in that fact. Every one needs to see this film and feel better that they could make something better.