Overview: It’s the 16th century and Japan is in chaos. Samurai clans engage each other in battle over who gets to rule the nation, while warlords call upon the ninja to spy on and assassinate their rivals. Goemon, an ambitious young member of a ninja family, is thrown into the turmoil of Japanese history when his village is wiped out by the forces of leading warlord Oda Nobunaga, who has sworn to eradicate the ninja in his quest for absolute power.

Fueled by vengeance, Goemon uses every weapon in his arsenal to bring down Oda and to prove that a ninja is an army of one. Starring the Japanese James Dean Raizo Ichikawa (Sleepy Eyes of Death, Conflagration) alongside Tomisaburo Wakayama (Lone Wolf and Cub, the Bounty Hunter trilogy) and Ayako Wakao (Elegant Beast, Red Angel), the Shinobi series was an epoch-making success and became a social phenomenon that left deep marks on Japan of the 1960s, from children’s playgrounds to the leftist counter-culture. Packed with spectacular and oft-copied action scenes.

It also established the ground rules for all ninja movies that followed, introducing such classic tropes as the shuriken throwing star and the iconic black mask and suit.

Blu-ray Verdict: First up is Shinobi: Band of Assassins (1962), where a young ninja becomes embroiled in a plot to kill a tyrannical warlord. He journeys across feudal Japan, facing deceit, betrayal, and enemy ninja at every turn. Goemon must complete his mission, regain his honor, and survive.

In this film, the ninjas are not just lone agents of death or spies but are an organized group led by an inscrutable man whose real goals and machinations are a bit hard to follow, as he plays so many different angles. The one fairly constant thing about the boss is his desire to see Nobunaga die, as he apparently represents a threat to their way of life. Initially, Goemon is give great responsibility and power within the ninjadom.

However, Goemon is too proud and not especially careful (even though his father warned him) and he falls into a trap - a trap that obligates him to personally murder the seemingly indestructible Nobunaga.

There are very, VERY many excellent samurai films. It’s a shame then, that there are so few good movies focusing on the ninja. At least as far as what’s been released in the U.S. anyway. Still, considering just how highly regarded ninja are in American pop culture, it’s a mystery why the Shinobi No Mono series isn’t more widely known.

The series is based loosely on true events and features far more grounded action than Ninja Gaiden fans might expect. After all, the real life ninja were all about infiltration, espionage, sabotage, assassination, and subterfuge with their enemies not knowing what hit them until far too late. Straight combat was strictly a samurai thing.

Next up is Shinobi: Revenge (1963). Confident that he has destroyed the Iga Ninja, the evil Oda Nobunaga continues his quest to conquer Japan. Meanwhile, Ishikawa Goemon (Ichikawa Raizo) has settled down with his wife and child, and wishes only to live in peace - a wish that will not be granted.

As mighty warlords battle and connive, Goemon must once again try to assassinate Nobunaga, in order to save the Bhuddist religious community that has come to mean so much to him. But the path to success is once again a twisted one, full of scheming samurai and nefarious traps!

As it begins, Ishikawa Goemon (Ichikawa Raizo) has given up his ninja past and just wants to live a quiet life with his wife and young son. However, Nobunaga Oda’s men are hunting down all ninjas and catch up with Goemon and commit a savage (and surprising!) act of violence. In retaliation, Goemon swears to kill Nobunaga.

To do this, Goemon manipulates one of Nobunaga’s men against the warlord. This plot is interesting and takes up about the first two-thirds of the film. The pay off is a thrilling action sequence, the best so far in the series, where Goemon gets his revenge.

However, the film has more than a half-hour left, which makes for a somewhat awkward final third. A new villain is introduced and the film keeps giving Goemon reasons to get back into that black suit. The film ends with a cliff-hanger.

The third film in the trilogy here is Shinobi: Resurrection (1963). When we last saw the intrepid ninja Ishikawa Goemon (Raizo Ichikawa), he was about to be boiled alive. But a good ninja is both hard to find, and even harder to kill.

With the help of the enigmatic Hattori Hanzo, Goemon lives to skulk another day, and sets his sights on bringing down the warlord who tried to turn him into soup - Toyotomi Hideyoshi. And as always, in the background, the subtle hand of Tokugawa Ieyasu is pulling strings as he plots to rule all of Japan!

The third film in the Shinobi No Mono series begins with Goemon escaping execution and a double taking his place. Although now officially dead, Goemon cannot resist aggravating the local government, even stealing the head of his double, which is on public display as a warning to the people. All of this is enjoyable and probably the best section of the movie.

Soon the intrigue gets rolling. Goemon is still swearing vengeance on Hideyoshi, who has united Japan and now has a foolish plan to invade Korea. Meanwhile, an ambitious schemer waits in the background to wrest control away from Hideyoshi. There appear to be only three ninjas left. Goemon wants revenge. Another wants success, and the third wants to follow Goemon. Oh, and for the record, and if you haven’t already figured it out, the first three films are part of a single story arc and takes place during Japan’s Sengoku (Warring States) Period which lead to Tokugawa Ieyasu becoming the first supreme Shogun.

Not included, the fourth movie is a stand alone story taking place a number of years later when Ieyasu was consolidating his power and features a different main character (though played by the same lead actor).

This is a Widescreen Presentation (1.85:1) enhanced for 16x9 TVs and comes with the Special Features of:

High-Definition digital transfer of each film presented on two discs, made available on Blu-ray (1080p) for the first time outside of Japan
Uncompressed mono PCM audio
Interview with Shozo Ichiyama, artistic director of the Tokyo International Film Festival, about director Satsuo Yamamoto
Visual essay on the ninja in Japanese cinema by film scholar Mance Thompson Interview with film critic Toshiaki Sato on star Raizo Ichikawa
Trailers
New and improved optional English subtitles
Six postcards of promotional material from the films
Reversible sleeves featuring artwork based on original promotional materials
Limited edition booklet featuring new writing by Jonathan Clements on the Shinobi no mono series and Diane Wei Lewis on writer Tomoyoshi Murayama
Limited Edition of 3000 copies, presented in a rigid box with full-height Scanavo cases and removable OBI strip leaving packaging free of certificates and markings

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