New York Ninja

USA, 1984/2021, John Liu/Kurtis M. Spieler

Shot entirely on 35mm in 1984, but abandoned during production when its distributor folded (resulting in all original sound materials, scripts, and treatments going missing), this NYC-set action flick—about a TV sound technician who turns vigilante ninja—languished unfinished for decades. But when home video company Vinegar Syndrome acquired the rights and the unedited original negative a couple of years ago, they set about reimagining and finishing the film with a new script and new cast of genre/exploitation superstars (Don “The Dragon” Wilson, Michael Berryman, Cynthia Rothrock, Leon Isaac Kennedy, Linnea Quigley, et al.) to dub the re-written dialogue. The result, according to Screen Anarchy, is “an insane abandoned action romp resurrected” and “the kind of gem that demands viewing with a crowd.” So we’ll supply the resurrected movie; you supply the crowd. Cleveland premiere. DCP. 93 min.