Tongan Ninja
Tongan Ninja was a movie made right here in Wellington. Before its DVD release here, it had already seen an international release, which always struck us as weird. This review appeared in the first issue of Level One and was timed with the release of the DVD in New Zealand. Yes, the 2002 movie saw release in the city it was created in three years later.
Level One gave away two signed copies of Tongan Ninja on DVD in the very same issue.
After his father is killed by a fish, the young boy Sione goes back to Tonga and trains in the ancient art of ninjitsu under the tutelage of Mr Magasuki. When he has come of age, he must prove himself a worthy warrior by going on a mission of utmost importance.
In New Zealand, a young Asian woman and her dying uncle are being harassed by the evil Syndicate. Mr Big and his cronies are pressuring Miss Lee and her uncle into selling their restaurant.
Tongan Ninja must use his long years of training to overcome powerful adversaries such as Gun Man and Knife Man before he comes to fight his life-long rival Marvin, now known as Action Fighter.
Shot exclusively in and around Wellington city, Tongan Ninja shows how one man with an insane vision, no money and wanna-be-actor friends with no jobs can make an instant classic with amazing special effects. OK so the effects aren’t the same as anything produced in Hollywood, or any other movies made in Wellington, like, oh, Lord of the Rings, but it’s pretty damned good considering the budget was tighter than a nun’s... ah, habit.
This movie truly sits with the other great cult movies developed in Wellington -- Bad Taste, Brain Dead, and Meet the Feebles. As with all of these movies, Tongan Ninja is strange, funny, insane, and incredibly entertaining.
Somehow, Tongan Ninja, which was made a couple of years ago, has been released overseas. It was only late last year when it finally got a New Zealand release. Even then, it was only a single theatre showing followed by a rental release. You can now buy it on DVD. The wait was long, but it was worth it. This movie belongs in everyone's DVD collection. Even if you don't like it, you can lend it out to your mates who have a sense of humour.