NINJA IN THE DEADLY TRAP is a Taiwanese action film about court officials and their allies battling a Japanese team of ninja assassins who are desperate to get their hands on a priceless book. It's notable for featuring no less than four famous film stars from the Shaw Brothers stable; Ti Lung headlines the piece as the noble prince, but he doesn't take part in any of the action and he's here for name brand alone in little more than an extended cameo so don't get too excited by his name.The main draw is the presence of the three Venoms stars Chiang Sheng, Phillip Kwok, and Lu Feng. Kwok directs as well. IMDb lists the film's year of release as 1981, but I would put it later as this feels like a response to the Chang Cheh Shaw classic FIVE ELEMENT NINJAS, with the return of the gold lame suit ninjas at one point. Inevitably, as a low budget feature this isn't as good as a Shaw film, but I found it quite entertaining regardless.The bits where the Venom stars aren't on screen aren't that interesting, but the trio of actors have plenty of action and all of it is fun, if not quite top tier. Lu Feng plays a weapons expert and it's a pleasure to see him partaking in a good guy role, a rarity in his career. Chiang Sheng is, as ever, the joker of the piece and his role reminded me of the one he had in CRIPPLED AVENGERS a little. Kwok is rarely seen - too busy directing - but shows off some great athletic skills at times. The villain of the piece is the reliable Yasuaki Kurata, who makes for nearly as great a ninja baddie as Chan Wai-Man and Sho Kosugi. Things culminate in a decent extended fight scene, inevitably the highlight of the piece.

This film was put together after the closing of Shaw Bros. production studio by three actors who had achieved fame as members of director Chang Cheh's "Venoms" ensemble. They clearly learned a lot from Chang Cheh during that period, and this film is very handsomely put together and presented, and the acrobatically choreographed martial arts are precisely staged and well photographed. There are a number of weaknesses to the film, largely having to do with pacing; this film seems to go on far longer than it actually does, because the dramatic momentum is diverted toward the three heroes, when it clearly ought to lead toward the general, perfunctorily enacted by Ti Lung, who is given little to do but sit around looking aristocratic. 3 of the original Venoms and Ti Lung? this casting should itself produce electricity; instead, the filmmakers depend inordinately on the ninja to develop suspense, and, except for old pro Kurata, the performances of the ninjas are all pretty flat.Still, as an "old school" kung-fu flick, this is solid entertainment - as fair a means of spending 95 minutes as one could think of, as long as one isn't looking for anything special.

I am constantly pleasantly surprised by old kung fu flicks. Typical of the genre, anti-Japanese sentiment makes for a good action flick, as Ninjas try to bump of the Chinese general who keeps Japanese pirates at bay. With the aid of three martial arts experts, the generals son seek to save the generals life. There isn't much in the way of charater development, and the Ninja spies are pretty obvious, but some of the fight scenes are pretty good, including one of the better sword fights I have seen, between a chinese and a samuri. Well worth a look for the kung fu buffs.

I enjoyed this classic Japanese vs. Chinese Kung Fu battle of a film. A Chinese general and his son are the targets of a Japanese Ninja planned assassination plot. The general's son finds the "Master of the Three Arts" who has trained three brothers in three different arts to perfection. The general's son uses these three brothers to help fight the Japanese ninjas who attempted to kill the Chinese honchos by poisoning them, throwing knives at them, and every thing else. I love the three brothers and how they work into the film. Check it out!