Under Ninja

Story: Over seventy years ago, all ninja organizations in Japan were officially dissolved. Since then, they haven't just fully disappeared, though; instead, ninjas have remained hidden in the shadows and are repeatedly responsible for major assassinations in society. Kuro Kumogakure (Kento Yamazaki) is a low-ranking member of the ninja organization NIN and is one day recruited for a mission. A splinter group of the organization UN, which is hostile to NIN, is said to have set up a base in a high school. Kuro is tasked with finding out why they chose the school as their base and what exactly their plan is. Kuro arrives at the school as a new student and immediately meets Noguchi (Minami Hamabe). She finds Kuro rather odd, but willingly gives him information about what goes on at the school. Kuro quickly realizes that he is not the only ninja at the school. His organization has already put someone else as a mole there. Apparently, the principal is also a ninja. After an initial confrontation with him, Kuro realizes that he isn't a member of the UN. So there may be some truth to the rumors that tunnels from earlier days — the school was once a military base — still exist beneath the school, from which the UN operates. Kuro investigates further, but he also has to protect his classmate Eita (Ryotaro Sakaguchi) from being bullied. As a ninja, this isn't a problem for him, but there is also a UN ninja among the students...

Review: Somehow, I thought this film would be an independent movie that doesn't take itself too seriously and just wants to be fun. That's partly true, but the director isn't someone completely unknown (Yuichi Fukuda was already responsible for the anime adaptation of "Gintama"), nor are the actors new faces. Apart from that, you can't claim that this is an independent film, because towards the end, everything seems a bit too epic, and the actors are too professional. But it's true that "Under Ninja" simply wants to entertain. Especially in the first half, there's an awful lot of slapstick. The impression of being an independent film is fueled mainly by the fact that not everything fits together seamlessly, and the story becomes so absurd that at some point, you just turn off your brain and let yourself be carried away by the nonsense that's going on. As I said, this doesn't have to be seen as a negative aspect, but it certainly won't appeal to everyone.

In fact, this is another manga adaptation. This time, it's the work of Kengo Hanazawa that's been brought to the screen. The focus is on the very peculiar ninja Kuro, who occasionally drinks one too many beers with his neighbor — but never appears drunk — and steals the drinks for these binges from his roommate. Strictly speaking, however, he doesn't have a roommate; there's just an open "doorway" between his apartment and his neighbor's, which makes his neighbor's refrigerator accessible 24/7. When the neighbor confronts Kuro about his constant beer stealing, a rather strange scene ensues, which explains why the film has such an independent vibe. The camera lingers on this obviously (at least partially) improvised scene for a long time. Actor Kento Yamazaki ("Your Lie in April") repeatedly starts to smile or even laugh quietly, which doesn't fit his otherwise very serious ninja character at all. It doesn't help that Kento Yamazaki tries to turn his head away. The scene seems like an alien element in the film, breaking the fourth wall. But that's precisely why it's funny in its own way.

Then there is a failed writer who is constantly visited by his female agent, who is actually a ninja, and he can never deliver a decent script. What exactly this subplot is doing in the film is never made clear. These interludes only have a right to exist in that they provide a few rather humorous scenes. The humor is based on typical Japanese slapstick and exaggerated or unusual reactions. Strangely enough, it works quite well, especially Minami Hamabe ("The Promised Neverland") scores points here. Overall, she gets a lot out of a seemingly insignificant role. This is especially evident in the fact that she quickly loses all of her importance in the final third and we no longer care about her at all. So, her character isn't well-written; it was her acting that made her so likeable in her scenes. It would have been nice to see a little more of her, but the film is too packed with countless other characters as is.

Since the story isn't particularly complex, it's not difficult to keep track of who exactly belongs to which faction. As the story progresses, it becomes clear that the events are taking on increasingly larger dimensions. This would diminish some of the credibility if the story didn't continue to gain momentum and become increasingly absurd. At the end, one person even goes to space to hijack a satellite. Normally, I'd be cautious about revealing too much of what's happening in a movie, but with "Under Ninja" none of that really matters. You're just along for this hellish ride to have some fun. There's even a massacre at the school towards the end. In terms of tone, this is definitely a stark contrast to the rest, because while there may still be a wink hidden behind it all, the lighthearted slapstick humor is barely present. The fact that this didn't strike me as a major point of criticism probably proves that the director is aware of how absurd all of this is and is simply trying to fully lean into the chaos.

There are shurikens that are actually small drones, clothing that makes you invisible, and a laser in space that can pulverize anyone. How could anyone take that seriously? But it's precisely through these gadgets and characters, each of whom has his/her peculiarities, to put it mildly, that the humor comes through. I suspect it won't resonate with everyone, but it worked pretty well for me. The special effects also left me unsure whether this was a B-movie or simply a film with a slightly lower budget. The CGI is too good to suggest an independent flick, but too poor for a top-notch production. The fights, on the other hand, are undoubtedly very good. They impress with their inventiveness and clean choreography, so it's a real shame there aren't more of them. Ultimately, though, "Under Ninja" is fun because of its absurd characters and humor. The film has enough rough edges, especially the sometimes randomly put together scenes, that it can't be recommended without hesitation, but this action comedy can easily serve as a bit of harmless fun.

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