Enter the Ninja 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		4.0

Enter the Ninja 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov November 16, 2025

Menahem Golan's "Enter the Ninja" (1981) arrives on 4K Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the release include new audio commentary by critics critics Mike Leeder and Arne Venema, and vintage trailer for the film. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

Menahem Golan's Enter the Ninja is one of those films that are great to see very late at night. It relaxes you and then slowly makes you fall asleep. The best of these films were made during the late 1980s and early 1990s by small companies that no longer exist.

Franco Nero is Cole, an army veteran who has traveled to Japan and trained hard to become a ninja. After he receives a scroll that certifies him as Master of Ninjutsu, Cole travels to the Philippines to visit Frank, an old friend who, years ago, saved his life. When they meet, Cole realizes that his friend has become an alcoholic and is on the verge of a serious nervous breakdown. Frank’s beautiful wife, Mary Ann (Susan George, Dirty Mary Crazy Larry), tells Cole why -- because a powerful local businessman (Christopher George, City of the Living Dead) has tried to force them to sell their property and the pressure has collapsed their marriage. Soon after, the businessman’s thugs appear, but Cole kicks them out and decides to extend his stay to protect his friend. Eventually, the businessman hires Cole’s rival from his training days in Japan, Hasegawa (Shi Kosugi, Black Eagle), to kill him and deal with everyone else who questions his authority.

There is a lot of enthusiasm in this film, but it isn’t enough to mask its mediocrity. The script, in particular, is very weak. There are so many questionable relationships and subplots that it would be a lot easier to name the few that actually make some sense. For example, it isn’t surprising that Frank’s beautiful wife quickly jumps into Cole’s bed. It isn’t surprising that Hasegawa can’t stand Cole -- as a ninja, he is absolutely appalling. The remaining elements of the story are all over the place and so incompatible that it is hard to believe someone thought that they would work.

The real problem, however, is the quality of the acting -- it simply isn’t good enough. Indeed, these types of action films do not always require solid scripts, but they need the right actors who understand the project they are committing to and what is expected of them. In this film, the wrong actors are asked to play the wrong characters. Nero, for instance, isn’t the right actor to play the veteran-turned-ninja. His body posture and especially the way he looks at his opponents would be far more appropriate for a reformed Italian gangster in a Fernando Di Leo film. Kosugi brings the right energy to the film, but because the atmosphere is so awkward, it routinely looks like he is overreacting. (See the end of Cole’s training course). Then there is George whose character clearly wants to connect with someone who understands how she feels, but instead is forced to look tough with a rifle that is way too big for her.

The action -- which is almost certainly the reason why you want to see the film -- is also average at best. There are a lot of loud sounds and noises that are used to enhance the intensity of the fights, but many of the supporting actors are too slow and too stiff to be taken seriously.

The editing is very uneven. There are many awkward cuts and transitions, which create the impression that plenty of the footage was hastily put together.

Enter the Ninja 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Kino Lorber's release of Enter the Ninja is a 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray combo pack. The 4K Blu-ray is Region-Free. However, the Blu-ray is Region-A "locked".

Please note that some of the screencaptures included with this article are taken from the 4K Blu-ray and downscaled to 1080p. Therefore, they do not accurately reflect the quality of the 4K content on the 4K Blu-ray disc.

Screencaptures #1-28 are taken from the Blu-ray.
Screencaptures #31-39 are taken from the 4K Blu-ray.

The release introduces a new 4K restoration of Enter the Ninja sourced from the original camera negative. In native 4K, the 4K restoration can be viewed with Dolby Vision and HDR grades. I chose to view it with HDR. Also, I viewed the 1080p presentation of it, in its entirety, on the Blu-ray.

I do not have an American release of Enter the Ninja in my library. However, I have this Region-B release from this three-disc box set produced by Eureka Entertainment in 2016. I used it to perform various comparisons.

The new 4K restoration is a pretty dramatic upgrade in quality and looks great on the 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray. I am not exaggerating when I write that it makes certain areas of the previous presentation look like borderline video material. The improvements in delineation, sharpness, and clarity are significant, and on a larger screen, many visuals now easily reveal more information. Additionally, the dynamic range of all visuals is improved, and this upgrade in quality is extremely easy to appreciate in native 4K and 1080p. There are no traces of any problematic digital corrections. Unsurprisingly, healthy grain is present everywhere. Color reproduction is fantastic. I was very impressed with how great the primaries were set and how carefully the supporting nuances were balanced with them. The HDR grade helps many of these colors appear even more impressive, especially during the daylight footage and some of the areas with plenty of controlled lighting. I felt that a few darker areas -- like the footage from the tower -- become a tad too thick, but if the HDR is turned off, the same areas look very convincing. (I suspect that this is something that different systems will manage differently). In 1080p, these exact same areas look wonderful. I noticed a few tiny nicks, but there are no distracting cuts, marks, large debris, warped or torn framesto report. Fantastic 4K restoration. My score is 4.75/5.00

Enter the Ninja 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 and English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The Region-B release of Enter the Ninja that I have in my library has only a 2.0 track, so I chose to revisit the film with the 5.1 track. However, I switched back to the 2.0 track in quite a few areas just to do some quick comparisons. During action footage, the 5.1 track is very aggressive, so anyone who appreciates contemporary sound designs will surely conclude that it is more effective. I am not entirely sure if I am part of this group of viewers. The action sounds impressive, but I do not think that the 2.0 track mishandles it. On the 5.1 track, there are simply new enhancements to widen existing dynamic contrasts. In dialog-driven areas, I could not hear a meaningful difference. Regardless, it is great to have two audio options so that viewers can choose the one they prefer.

Enter the Ninja 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

4K BLU-RAY DISC

• Commentary - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by critics Mike Leeder and Arne Venema. The commentators cover a lot of ground. For example, they share interesting information about the difference between ninja, shinobi, and samurai, and how they were represented in genre films. Also, there is good information about the production of Enter the Ninja in Manila and the decision to cast Franco Nero as its star. Leeder and Venema also reference the other two films in The Ninja Trilogy, Revenge of the Ninja and Ninja III: The Domination, and comment on their action choreography and visual styles.

• Trailer - presented here is a newly restored original trailer for Enter the Ninja. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

BLU-RAY DISC

• Commentary - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by critics Mike Leeder and Arne Venema. The commentators cover a lot of ground. For example, they share interesting information about the difference between ninja, shinobi, and samurai, and how they were represented in genre films. Also, there is good information about the production of Enter the Ninja in Manila and the decision to cast Franco Nero as its star. Leeder and Venema also reference the other two films in The Ninja Trilogy, Revenge of the Ninja and Ninja III: The Domination, and comment on their action choreography and visual styles.

• Trailer - presented here is a newly restored original trailer for Enter the Ninja. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

Enter the Ninja 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

In a few more years, when I feel even more nostalgic about the 1980s, I will probably capitulate and declare that Enter the Ninja is a decent genre film. At the moment, I still think that it is a silly genre film that can be somewhat entertaining only when seen in the wee hours of the night, when the mind is too tired to question the ridiculous in it, which is way too much. I like Franco Nero a lot, but as a ninja, he is very unconvincing. Nero is most effective in the various spaghetti westerns and crime films he made in Europe with the likes of Sergio Corbucci, Damiano Damiani, Elio Petri, and Enzo Castellari. Kino Lorber's upcoming combo pack will make fans of Enter the Ninja euphoric. It brings a gorgeous new 4K restoration that looks mighty impressive on 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED to the fans.