shazakab Review of Watari, Ninja Boy

Watari, Ninja Boy (1966)

A magical ninja boy fights the evil behind the Iga-Coga ninja war.

[7/10 · 1 September 2009]

I saw this film as a young boy and thought it was wonderful It was where I first learned of the rival Iga and Coga ninja clans. Naturally, by today's standards the effects seem puerile, like the giant cat monster, but the story and action are gripping. Watari is a young boy Iga ninja who fights with a battleaxe on a rope that he also uses like a grapnel. In this film ninjas possess magic powers, and Watari can create shadow illusions of himself, become a giant, fly, etc. The viewer will see blue-skinned and red-skinned ninjas, a steel-skinned monk ninja who fights bare-handed, a knife-throwing girl ninja who throws the knives that form her skirt but disappointingly never runs out of skirt, and a big bad who it turns out has been playing both the Iga and the Coga against each other. Great fun!