The deadliest art of the Orient is now in the hands of an American.
Joe Armstrong, an orphaned drifter with little respect for much other than martial arts, finds himself on an American Army base in the Philippines after a judge gives him a choice of enlistment or prison. On one of his first missions driving a convoy, his platoon is attacked by a group of rebels who try to steal the weapons the platoon is transporting and kidnap the base colonel's daughter.
American Ninja (1985) is a action and adventure film directed by Sam Firstenberg, released on August 30, 1985 with a runtime of 1h 35m. It stars Michael Dudikoff, Steve James, Judie Aronson and Guich Koock. Viewers rate it 6.0 out of 10 across 499 ratings.
Watch the official trailer for American Ninja before you stream it.
Official trailers, teasers, clips and featurettes for American Ninja.
Trailer
Clip
Clip
Clip
Michael Dudikoff
as Pvt. Joe Armstrong
Steve James
as Cpl. Curtis Jackson
Judie Aronson
as Patricia Hickock
Guich Koock
as Col. William T. Hickock
John Fujioka
as Shinyuki
Don Stewart
as Victor Ortega
John LaMotta
as MSgt. Rinaldo
Tadashi Yamashita
as Black Star Ninja
Phillip Brock
as Pvt. Charley Madison
Tony Carreon
as Older Colombian
Roi Vinzon
as Younger Colombian
Richard Norton
as MP
Directed by Sam Firstenberg, written by Paul De Mielche, James R. Silke and Gideon Amir, produced by Gideon Amir, Yoram Globus and Ken Metcalfe.
Average viewer score of 6.0/10 from 499 ratings.
The Bottom Line A basic action movie from the '80s but it doesn't hold up. Plot An American soldier with special skills gets posted to an island base where someone keeps hijacking military convoys. When his convoy gets hit, he's cooperating right up until someone hits the Colonel's daughter, and then he intervenes. His memory of his childhood is mostly gone from an explosion on an island, but he has obviously had…
Reviewed on February 24, 2019
The acting is terrible, the scripts and dialogue are terrible, the plot is [extremely] shallow. But, I love this movie... from the 1st time a watched it (a straight to VHS video tape). The fighting sequences are actually pretty well done, and believable. You'll get many laughs out of the non-sensical dialogue and some good entertainment out of the action and fighting scenes. A diamond in the rough, that's for sure.
Reviewed on July 12, 2024
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American Ninja (1985) is available to stream on fuboTV, MGM+ Amazon Channel, Philo, MGM Plus Roku Premium Channel and MGM Plus, and to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube and Fandango At Home. Streaming availability is checked against JustWatch data and can change by region.
The main cast of American Ninja (1985) includes Michael Dudikoff, Steve James, Judie Aronson, Guich Koock and John Fujioka. The film was directed by Sam Firstenberg. You can see the full cast and crew list, with character names, further up this page.
American Ninja was released on August 30, 1985 and runs for 1h 35m.
American Ninja (1985) holds an average rating of 6.0 out of 10 from 499 viewer votes, and is a good pick if you enjoy action and adventure films. Read the viewer reviews on this page to decide for yourself.
Yes. The official American Ninja trailer is embedded in the trailer section of this page and plays instantly, no download or sign-up required.
