Dan ClayDespite
the title’s promise, it’s not that
Alien this intrepid bunch of Ninjas
are fighting in Seiji Chiba’s low-budget
but surprisingly fun take on the whole Alien/Predator genre which hints
more at the Mega Shark Vs Giant Octopus
series than it does Ridley Scott’s genre defining masterpiece.
When a
small group of elite ninjas return from fighting a rival clan they encounter a mysterious fire in the sky which
heralds the arrival of a group of blood-thirsty aliens with a desire to kill.
Using all their ninja training, the remaining survivors must defeat the extra-terrestrial killers or
wait to be eaten.
It must
be the craze these days to take on aliens; Jon Favreau us gearing up for a
fight with this year’s exciting Cowboys
& Aliens, while Simon Pegg and Nick Frost are hoping to smooth things
over slightly in Paul. However
Chiba’s film places us firmly in the former camp, sparing little time for
reflection in between the monstrously
OTT fight sequences.
Despite its
short running time, it takes a fair
while for the action to really get going
once the unnecessary character back story is developed and a few slightly
misplaced homophobic gags are done with. However once the action starts it rarely lets up. With a cheeky nod to
Scott and Cameron’s Alien classics
at times – being ripped in half must be the only way aliens can kill – Chiba
forgoes tension and suspense for
video-game mayhem and tongue-in-cheek humour.
Though there’s little to separate these ET’s from those that might
have graced a shoddy 70s Doctor Who
episode in terms of costume, Chiba’s
beasties pack a fair punch, a truly grisly mean streak and some impressive ways
of killing – there’s a handy regeneration tool as well. While there’s
little to terrify the average horror fan, there’s plenty to tempt action
aficionados as the ninja’s must draw on all their skills and strength to
survive.
It’s fair to say that while AVN
might stretch the imagination more than Jabba the Hutt’s Y-Front elastic it’s
also a whole lot of fun, even if
that gets slightly repetitive after a
while. Expect Alien Vs Angry North
African Mob any day soon.
