The First Live Action Video Game Movie Was Really Amazing, See For Yourself
April Ryder | Published
If you love live-action video game adaptations, then you need to take the time to check out the original. Released at the Tokyo International Fantastic Film Festival in 1988, Mirai Ninja or Cyber Ninja (in the United States) opened the door for development in an area that has become a popular interest for many moviegoers today.
The world may never have had live action Super Mario Bros. ’90s movie, Mortal Kombat movies, or Resident Evil plays if Mirai Ninja he had never hit the screen. Of course, it was a direct-to-video release, so there was no theatrical release for this Namco-backed movie.
Directed by famous artist Keita Amemiya, Mirai Ninja it’s a low-budget, action thriller about a future where a war is waged between humans and cyborgs. A special enemy cyber ninja who wishes to recover his human flaws and is willing to help the royal family to save their princess from being a cyborg victim.
The opposing human army sends a small group of soldiers to help, and one of them is a young soldier tasked with avenging the death of his brother at the hands of robots. After many battles and losses in the fight to reach the enemy’s stronghold, the film reveals that the flawed cyber ninja is the remnant of a young soldier’s dead brother.
The main goal now is to reach the castle and rescue the princess before the opposing army takes matters into their own hands, firing a large cannon at the target. Blowing the place up is the only way to make sure the cyborgs can’t go ahead with their evil plans.
Low budget for Mirai Ninja didn’t stop Keita Amemiya from adding his flavor to the final mix of the movie. The film is silly with the nostalgic DIY quality of movies like this Evil Dead again El Mariachi. Still, Amemiya was committed to telling the story and making it fun to watch.
The acting might be a little on the silly side, but it was true. A sword fight in between Mirai Ninja it was much better than expected and well organized. You also get quality laser light shows and explosions added to the mix during fights to increase the excitement.
Mirai Ninja has a bit of Full Metal Alchemistcombined with Power Rangers (live-action flick of the ’90s) and star Wars. If you’re looking for pure, unadulterated nostalgia and joy, this movie won’t let you.
However, it did not win awards for technical quality or great impact. One critic wrote that clearly Mirai Ninja “It does not reach this level star Wars as promised in the promotional material,” but DOES ANY movie ever reach that level star Wars? That’s a high bar to set for the first live-action game adaptation.
Another fan mentioned him Mirai Ninja, saying that the film “has a story, tells it in 75 minutes, there is violence, robots, and demons, and then it ends.”
