Shinobi: Heart Under Blade (2005)

Highly Overrated But Still Good

Good concept, poorly executed.

Absolutely the worst movie.

It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

Alright, I really had to dig deep to watch this movie till the end. Horrible, just like too many other ninja "movies". Why can't they make a genuine ninja representation, instead of all this flying around, magical non-sense, stark colors and all-the-time-perfectly-combed modern hairstyles that only make it more ridiculous? Would it be so hard to make a ninja movie along the lines of, say, Twilight Samurai? Actually, how cool would it be to display the real ninja's, in a realistic setting, with real world situations and historical references that are indeed founded? REALISM, that's what the ninja deserve. They were real men, not flying werewolves. Or octopus-hand freaks. They were not even mere mindless assassins or as they mention in this "movie": weapons that need to serve someone. It's quite the opposite. If you have a bit of taste and knowledge and like to watch inspiring films, then my suggestion is to avoid this movie like the plague. What a waste of time, and effort, both from the participants in this production, and for the beholders of yet another improbable abomination. ENOUGH!

The poetry that lies within the image is vivid. This is not meant to be seen with the eyes of the critic, but with your own eyes. You cannot judge universal beauty and the purity of feelings as they are depicted here. A metaphor, a statement of a culture's grindstone, a portrait of pure dedication. Oh, and yeah, something definitely worth watching. I think I could see this one every year without any regrets. Wish I could say the same about the action movies we're flooded with nowadays. But what am I saying ? I'm trying to find a comparable title ... it's hard. The Last Samurai left me with an American bombastic and plastic taste, so unlike this one.

As soon as I saw these ninjas jumping from cliff faces faster than you can actually fall and then swinging along the cliff face like spiderman I knew this was going to be a bad movie. The fight scenes were filled with CG effects which took all the realism out of the movie. The love story was not believable. I suppose the acting could have been worse, and the scenery was quite beautiful, but I couldn't bring myself to give this movie a 2/10. It is really bad. Honestly I didn't watch the last 20 mins so maybe the movie suddenly got a lot better, but i doubt it. Anyway don't expect something like "crouching tiger hidden dragon". I can't really think of a movie to compare it to...whatever, i hope i manage to stop a few people from watching it.

Since young, I'm thrilled by Kung Fu action flicks and looks like I will be continuously entertained by the big screen when studios keep producing films like this. The Japanese is a culture that is very deep rooted. As such, to escape, their minds have to venture way way beyond the logic and realism. Look through the genres of Japanese anime and fantasies - they are so extreme! I would not say that this movie belongs to the very extreme, but it is at the right level for grown up audience. It has all the right ingredients - beautiful settings and sceneries, romance (the Chinese style) and most of all out-of-the-world Kung Fu powers and actions.The story has a slow start. But as it progresses, the extraordinary skill of each fighter is revealed. You can't help but get glued to the screen for the next ninja to fight. The ending was sad but satisfying.