Firstly, i've seen a lot of Shaw Brothers movies and love the genre and was excited to finally watch this one as it's considered a classic. Though this film is good and definitely worth the watch, i just can't agree with the high marks the other reviewers give it. The fight scenes are sometimes SPECTACULAR, and the contrast between Japanese and Chinese weapons was very cool (i watched the sword fighting scene five times!!), but the story was a little painful and just kinda dumb, and then pretty well discarded by the end. If you love Kung-fu flicks for the action then definitely check it out, but if you want a good story to go with it then temper your expectations a bit.

This movie is about a Chinese man who is arranged to marry a Japanese woman. And as we all know, all Asians are kung fu masters. So the two get in a disagreement over the two different kung fu styles. The Japanese woman brings a group of Japanese masters to fight against Gordon.The real highlight of this film is the weapons. Every fight has a new weapon. A traditional Chinese Weapon vs a traditional Japanese one. It is really cool. Gordon Liu is in his prime for this film. Chia Liang Liu also has one of the best director cameos i have ever seen. This is just a fun and light hearted kung fu film.

Challenge of the Ninja is essentially a story of cultures. From the initial opening credits when Gordon Liu a young Chinese man marries a Japanese girl you can see that they and everything around them will clash as the newlyweds try to find common ground. Their varying attitudes about martial arts to the way they train pits the two lovers on a collision course that ultimately has the proud, stubborn and spoiled bride running back to her family. An ill advised note pits a rival suitor against the young man and his Japanese entourage of fighters who feel slighted by its contents that derides their skill and culture as fighters. When Gordon meets with them head on he not only wins back his wayward wife but gains the respect and admiration of those who would challenge him. This movie is a must see for those who like to see the various styles of martial arts represented by Chinese Kung Fu by one of its finest proponents.

If you like the Shaw Brothers Kung-fu movies and martial arts in general this is a cant miss. Gordon Lui plays a Chinese martial arts expert married off to a Japanese woman. Both are proud of there martial arts heritage and proceed to take on each other with all there countries weapons and arts. Kuda, his wife loses and returns to Japan in disgust. One of Lui's servants cooks up an idea to get here back by writing a mean letter ripping apart Japanese martial arts. Her teacher grabs the letter and takes it as an insult to there honor. Soon they travel to Japan changeling Lui once a day in different forms of Japanese martial arts, Kendo, Karate, numchuk, pole, yari, sai, Judo and then finally Ninjitsu. Defeating the kendo man and not taking his sword dishonor's him greatly and attempts seppuku but is stopped. The Japanese do there best to stop him, but Gordon takes them out one by one, apologizing about the sword incident and wining there respect. This is a great Shaw Brothers movie and surprisingly no one dies. Instead this showcases many forms of martial arts and weapons. Lui is one of the great Kung Fu leads of the 70's and I have always enjoyed him. I give this a 9 out of 10.