The plot's structure is half-copied from Bruce Lee's WAY OF THE DRAGON:1)arrival of the heroes in an unknown town; 2)they discover that a bunch of bullies are molesting a group of pacific people; 3)they show their martial arts skills and defeat the bullies more than once; 4)the bad guys send the same thugs back with more decision, and they fail again; 5)the bad guys call the "profesionals", and problems increase ; 6)good guys,filled with more decision, defeat the professionals and save the day.
Of course there are variations, but the structure is similar. The characteristic is funny,since in this way,too-young kids can be introduced to classical martial arts movie plots. One of the first problems is that there is no official "final boss", unlike in the previous "3 ninjas" movies, making audiences feeling like something is missing. O once again, the plot is not original, but that was never meant to be the final goal. And probably, this is what makes the film not completely enjoyable by older audiences.
Despite the plot, however, the fight choreographs are the most amazing in the series, but sometimes they get unnecessarily acrobatic(like the brawl in the Indian village). The fight with the motor bikers resembles, at first, the warehouse fight scene with Bruce lee's Lookalike in GAME OF DEATH, but then it evolves and amazingly becomes something like a copy of the chase from ALTRIMENTI CI ARRABBIAMO(WATCH OUT, WE'RE MAD!)with Terence Hill and Bud Spencer, which is quite enjoyable. Another funny scene is the fight in the abandoned bar, in which Rocky and Tum Tum change their "fighing styles" according to the goofy changes of music coming from a nearby jukebox. Unfortunateley, this scene is too similar to the fight scene from PIU FORTE RAGAZZI(ALL THE WAY BOYS), again with Bud Spencer and Terence Hill. The booby traps prepared by the kids are always a trademark of the series, but once again, the concept is not original.
So almost nothing in this movie is original, but since is a movie meant for kids, it probably could not have been done better. Younger kids would enjoy this movie, but older ones would be bored: they will probably enjoy themselves more watching a traditional martial arts movie starring Jackie Chan. And in the end, this episode was the perfect way to end the series, since the final message concerns most of the main character's personality. However, somebody decided to make another sequel in 1998...
3 Ninjas: Knuckle Up
1993
Action / Comedy / Family

3 Ninjas: Knuckle Up
1993
Action / Comedy / Family
Synopsis
In this movie Rocky, Colt and TumTum must battle an evil wealthy toxic waste dumper in order to save a local Indian tribe and their friend Jo. The 3 Ninjas must help find Jo's father and find a secret disk that contains evidence that could stop the toxic landfill that is destroying the Indian community. However the town is owned by the rich man and he controls the police and even the mayor. They must fight a motorcycle gang and renegade cowboys in this non-stop ninja adventure.
Uploaded By: FREEMAN
May 19, 2018 at 03:56 AM
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The ultimate mini - ninjas ...could this movie have been better?
A Delightful, kid-classic popcorn flick
This movie isn't meant to be taken seriously and alot of people make the mistake of taking it seriously. It's just plain fun. I enjoyed it when I was a kid and I still enjoy it now. It's a classic boy movie. It was alot better than the other kids movies that came out that year. These are the kinds of movies I want my kids to see one day because they are entertaining.
The best of the series its a really good film for kids and adults may enjoy too
I just watched all three of these movies and I couldn't recommend the first two to anyone really. The first one might be enjoyed by some kids but the second was awful.
This film was shot a year after part one with the same cast and it was held up in post production and a third film was made but the third film made was actually released second. The kids in this film came back two years later and did some re-shoots and additional scenes and the boy who played Rocky actually has braces and is much taller as is the kid playing Colt.
This movie isn't flawless by any means it has a very high cheese level to it, a lot of over acting and silly gags aimed at kids. The movie got a PG-13 rating because it had lots more ninja action and a few somewhat adult language bombs dropped, but nothing a kid couldn't watch. I can't imagine older kids enjoying it, but young kids would eat it up.
As an adult I compared it to a Steven Seagal movie for kids with a touch of old Dukes of Hazard episodes thrown in. It had some great actors doing some not so great roles but it was fun to watch. Donal Logue was funny as one of the bad guys and Charles Napier is great in anything and makes a wonderful bad guy.
The plot here was different and actually had a message which is good. It is a movie about bad guys dumping hazardous materials on an Indian reservation and the kids go in and try to put a stop to it.
Fun film - I think if you like kids movies you should enjoy this one, look over flaws and goofs and cheesiness and just watch it.
The worst thing about this movie was the way the kids yelled A-YAA every time they kicked or hit someone.