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.

For thoughts on The Shinobi Collection, please check out my thoughts on No Streaming Required:

Video Quality

Shinobi: Band of Assassins, Shinobi 2: Revenge, and Shinobi 3: Resurrection debut on Blu-Ray domestically courtesy of Radiance Films with HD masters supplied by Kadokawa. While we always hope Radiance can lend a hand to the restoration efforts given their excellent track record, it is not uncommon to have companies like Kadokawa wielding control over their output, and thankfully the results are lovely. These three films share countless overlapping qualities, so they will be discussed as a group with any notable differences pointed out. These are not as flawless as many releases from the label, but these three films still hold up impeccably well. The new transfers retain a lovely sheen of natural film grain which resolves consistently with no splotches or swarming spotted across any of the three films.

There is a world of distinct detail viewed for the first time in the costumes, weaponry, and natural environments. Minor softness in the original photography is present, but there is almost nothing to complain about thanks to the base quality of the master. Each transfer preserves the natural aesthetic in a way that works so well. The black-and-white photography holds up with unwavering contrast in all environments with stable highlights and no egregious instances of black crush. Even the most shadowy moments present some noteworthy depth to the image. There is the occasional fleeting speck, but we largely get a clean and authentic transfer for each film. Radiance Films continues to give quality releases to films that are a dream for fans.

Audio Quality

This Blu-Ray set comes with a DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio mono track for each film. The tracks are presented in the original Japanese (with optional English subtitles) and brought to life on these discs with great nuance. The scores created for these three features come through without unforgivable signs of age or weakness. Dialogue stands firm with robust clarity and no serious signs of damage or distortion. Exchanges never get covered up by the sound effects or the score. These narratives work well with environmental sounds to provide texture to the world. Every element emanates with good fidelity and little in the way of age-related wear and tear. Radiance Films has done a nice job with this set.

Special Features

The first-pressing of the Radiance Films Blu-Ray box set of Shinobi includes a 40-page book featuring new writing by Jonathan Clements on the Shinobi no mono series and Diane Wei Lewis on writer Tomoyoshi Murayama. Plus, a 1962 article from Yasukaze Takemura about the cinematography is newly translated by Tom Mes. All of these articles offer terrific insights into the feature. There are also six postcards of promotional material from the films included. The on-disc special features are as follows:

Disc One – Shinobi: Band Of Assassins & Shinobi 2: Revenge

Shozo Ichiyama: A new 14-minute interview with the artistic director of the Tokyo International Film Festival about director Satsuo Yamamoto in which he discusses the filmmaker, his historical background, where he fit within the Japanese film industry, the filmmaking landscape at the time he was most active, the impact of the Shinobi series, and much more that is very enlightening.

Disc Two – Shinobi 3: Resurrection

A Brief History of Japanese Ninja Films: An 18-minute visual essay from film scholar Mance Thompson who takes you on a history of ninja films from the early 1900s to the rise in popularity thanks to the Shinobi films and beyond. There are some great insights into how ninjas are depicted on screen, how things have evolved over the years, the different genres explored, and more.

Toshiaki Sato: A new 14-minute video essay from film critic Toshiaki Sato on star Raizo Ichikawa including his early life, his entry into performing, the development of his fan base, his prominent films, and his tragic demise.

Trailers: This disc provides trailers for Shinobi: Band of Assassins (2:19), Shinobi 2: Revenge (2:19), and Shinobi 3: Resurrection (2:31).

Final Thoughts

Shinobi is a welcome diversion from your standard martial arts films as we get to explore the more mysterious realm of the ninja. These films may not offer as much raw action and violence as those films, but we enjoy the stealth and deception employed to accomplish their goals. The arc of the narrative throughout these three films is very engaging without ever seeming repetitive. We only hope this series can continue in future installments as we find it to be a lot of fun. Radiance Films has released a Blu-Ray set featuring a great A/V presentation and some nifty special features. If you want premium ninja content, look no further. Highly Recommended

Shinobi will be available to purchase on Blu-Ray on May 28, 2024.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Radiance Films has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.