American Ninja 2: The Confrontation Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.5

American Ninja 2: The Confrontation Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov June 8, 2015

Sam Firstenberg's "American Ninja 2: The Confrontation" (1987) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors 88 Films. There are no supplemental features on this Blu-ray release. In English, without optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

He is back

In American Ninja 2: The Confrontation, Joe (Michael Dudikoff, River of Death) and Curtis (the late Steve James, I'm Gonna Git You Sucka) are sent to an unidentified tropical island where a number of marines have disappeared. They begin asking questions and quickly upset the drug kingpin Leo "The Lion", who has every single member of the local government reporting to him.

After he clashes with a few of Leo’s thugs, Joe discovers that he has kidnapped a famous scientist (Ralph Draper) and ordered him to create an army of fearless ninja warriors. Then he meets the scientist’s beautiful daughter (Michelle Botes) and together with Curtis they enter a heavily guarded compound where the ninjas are cloned. At this point Joe has all the evidence he needs to conclude that Leo’s syndicate is responsible for the disappearances.

Sam Firstenberg's sequel to American Ninja is a silly little film that follows exactly the same route its predecessor did. Its plot makes little sense, if at all, but admittedly there is plenty of the same enthusiasm that made the first film fun to watch.

Because the script is so outlandish that it makes little sense to worry about its loose ends, the focus of attention is strictly on a series of action sequences in which Dudikoff and James hurt their opponents in a variety of different ways. These fights, however, are beyond exotic. For example, there are suspiciously elegant ninjas that appear even more suspiciously slow and when confronted frequently collapse with striking enthusiasm. Then there are the clones that Leo has gathered in his heavily guarded compound, acting like humanoid robots who respond only to the voice of their delusional leader, who have trouble dealing with a bunch of marines that appear far better skilled in the art of killing. In a local bar, Dudikoff and James also clash with some overweight thugs that very much look like the retired members of a once glorious heavy metal band.

The island where the action takes place is the type of paradise healthy straight men dream of -- there are so many stunningly beautiful girls showing as much skin as possible that more often than not it feels like they are participating in a giant event that is filmed by multiple hidden cameras. The moves are that impressive and the inviting looks and smiles practically beg to be censored.

This really is a classic bad Cannon Group film. It is flat-out surreal but perfect to see with a group of friends who can share a few drinks together. There is a good chance that their girlfriends will enjoy it as well, because if there ever was an action film that outdoes Top Gun in the “you can never have enough handsome shirtless guys” department, then this film is certainly it.

Firstenberg shot the film with cinematographer Gideon Porath. The two also collaborated on the action thriller Avenging Force (another very entertaining film with Dudikoff and James).

American Ninja 2: The Confrontation Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Sam Firstenberg's American Ninja 2: The Confrontation arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors 88 Films.

The release is sourced from a pre-existing master and there are some noticeable fluctuations in terms of clarity and depth. Most well-lit close-ups actually look quite nice -- there is decent depth and clarity is pleasing (see screencaptures #1 and 4). The wider shots, however, could look a bit soft (see screencapture #3). Perhaps the most obvious limitations of the current master can be spotted during the nighttime footage where definition is most problematic and depth really isn't as convincing as it should be (see screencapture #16). There are no traces of recent degraining adjustments, but grain exposure fluctuates. Obviously, the majority of the fluctuations can be traced back to the current master, but some could have been avoided with better encoding. Colors are stable, but saturation should be better (see screencapture #6). Image stability is good. The best news here is that no attempts have been made to resharpen and repolish the film. In other words, while the film does have a dated appearance, its basic organic qualities are actually retained. As far as I am concerned, this is certainly a far better option for catalog releases than many of the processed high-definition transfers that have emerged via Universal Pictures. All in all, American Ninja 2: The Confrontation certainly can and should look better on Blu-ray, but this is a decent, at times even surprisingly good presentation of the film. My score is 3.25/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free Blu-ray player in order to access its content).

American Ninja 2: The Confrontation Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles have not been provided for the main feature.

The film has a surprisingly aggressive score that opens up a number of the big action sequences. Generally speaking, balance is good. Depth could be better -- and if the audio is remastered this is the key area where one should be able to hear notable improvements -- but clarity most definitely does not disappoint. The dialog is stable, clean, and easy to follow. For the record, there are no audio dropouts or digital distortions to report in this review.

American Ninja 2: The Confrontation Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Leaflet - featuring Ewen Cameron's essay "Kicking Against the Pricks: The Filmic Fisticuffs of Sam Firstenberg". (The author is a Doctor of Philosophy who has also dabbed in film criticism over the years, including a well-received contribution to the book The Exorcist: Studies in Horror Film).

• Cover - reversible cover.

• Commentary - exclusive new audio commentary with director Sam Firstenberg and stunt coordinator BJ Davis.

American Ninja 2: The Confrontation Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Sam Firstenberg's sequel to American Ninja is a classic bad Cannon Group film. It makes very little sense, but it really is perfect to see with a group of friends. The key to enjoying the film is to approach it with the right mindset. Do it and I guarantee you won't be disappointed. RECOMMENDED.