Ninja: Shadow of a Tear is the sequel to 2009 film (uh, Ninja) and begs the question: what is the shadow of a tear?
The answer is simple to Issac Florentine and Scott Adkins.
The shadow of a tear is
Fantastic Fest/Nu Image/Swinging Image/Millennium Films
Uh. Well, ok, see the real definition of shadow of a tear is
Fantastic Fest/Nu Image/Swinging Image/Millennium Films
So what if it doesn't matter what the sub-title means when there's more emphasis placed on the action? It's something R. Emmet Sweeney gets into with his interview with Scott Adkins (star of the original film and something of a poster figure for a nu-action movement). "The revenge plot and use of ninjitsu is reminiscent of the Sho Kosugi ninja trilogy from the 1980s (Enter the Ninja (’81), Revenge of the Ninja (’83) and Ninja III: The Domination (’84))," Sweeney writes and the mind wanders at the possibility of Adkins battling an evil spirit in another two years.
The DTV sequel market spawned a cult interest in Issac Florentine with 2006's Undisputed II: Last Man Standing and goes back further into coming-of-30s nerds from his work on the Power Rangers franchises or WMAC Masters, a sort of Saturday Morning live-action Mortal Kombat that took place on the Universal Orlando backlot.
It's the acknowledgment of 80s VHS box art nostalgia that gives Ninja: Shadow of a Tear the appeal of a sequel within the realm of the world, but knows why you're really watching. Casey (Adkins) is now the master of his dojo where he trains with his wife (Mika Hajii) and 11 minutes later he's already being picked on by two punks for trying to just buy some jewelry. Then an evil ninja appears and turns Casey's life upside down, which sends him on a quest for revenge and seeking guidance from a fellow master (Kane Kosugi).
So much of the sequel relies on how much you're in on the world. Like an onion of ass-kicking Ninja: SOAT peels around and around itself ranging from an homage to Kickboxer that's played for depression that morphs into anger over showing how well trained Casey has become to who plays Casey's peer he visits in Burma.
When even Vithaya Pansringarm appears as a leering and torture-ready Burmese official, it almost plays to the opposite of certain expectations from his somber avenging angel and karaoke-performing detective from last year's Only God Forgives.
Florentine adheres to some of the sequel traditions, though, by choosing to "depower" Casey from the empowered bad-ass at the end of Ninja and having to "relearn" his ways thanks to an impromptu trip to a Hanoi Hilton--going unnecessarily deeper into a genre trope, Pansringarm almost plays the role Udo Kier would if this were a World War II-sploitation film. Once Casey gets his mojo back, he goes off into the woods--which almost parallels the 2nd half of John Rambo, except instead of saving missionaries he's there to save...well that's a revelation for the final 12 minutes.
That said, let's try and explain what a shadow of a tear could be. Maybe it's the projection of emotion, but that's getting overtly hokey. It's a subtle nod that we're supposed to recognize the reference but recognize that performers like Adkins and Kosugi are part of a growing resurgence as audiences recognize actors and directors from all walks of the genre world. It shouldn't be surprising that within under a week of being out on VOD, Ninja: Shadow of a Tear is now in prime placement on Netflix Instant while Ninja is back on Amazon Prime. Which is fitting since you can either sit through it and pick apart what could and could not be referential, or just scroll around from fight to fight till you've watched the same segment (the gym take-down) for a half hour.
Like I said, Ninja: Shadow of a Tear is for rent/sale on iTunes and on Instant (the first film is free with Amazon Prime or a $3 rental).