American Ninja (1985)

Overview · Where to watch · Cast & crew · Reviews

The deadliest art of the Orient is now in the hands of an American.

Joe Armstrong, an orphaned drifter with little respect for much other than martial arts, finds himself on an American Army base in the Philippines after a judge gives him a choice of enlistment or prison. On one of his first missions driving a convoy, his platoon is attacked by a group of rebels who try to steal the weapons the platoon is transporting and kidnap the base colonel's daughter.

• Released: 1985-08-30
• Genres: Adventure, Action
• Runtime: 1h 35m
• Status: Released
• TMDB rating: 6.0/10 from 514 votes

Directed by Sam Firstenberg.

Top cast

• Michael Dudikoff as Pvt. Joe Armstrong
• Steve James as Cpl. Curtis Jackson
• Judie Aronson as Patricia Hickock
• Guich Koock as Col. William T. Hickock
• John Fujioka as Shinyuki
• Don Stewart as Victor Ortega
• John LaMotta as MSgt. Rinaldo
• Tadashi Yamashita as Black Star Ninja
• Phillip Brock as Pvt. Charley Madison
• Tony Carreon as Older Colombian

Full cast & crew

Where to watch American Ninja

• United States: stream on Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads; watch free on The Roku Channel, Fandango at Home Free, YouTube Free, Plex, Tubi TV; rent on Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home; buy on Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
• United Kingdom: stream on Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads; rent on Apple TV Store, Amazon Video, Sky Store, YouTube; buy on Apple TV Store, Amazon Video, Sky Store, YouTube
• Canada: stream on Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads; watch free on Tubi TV, Plex; rent on Apple TV Store, YouTube; buy on Apple TV Store, YouTube
• Australia: stream on Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads; rent on Apple TV Store, Amazon Video, YouTube; buy on Apple TV Store, Amazon Video, YouTube

Movies like American Ninja

If you enjoyed American Ninja, these movies have a similar feel:

• Shogun Assassin (1980)
• Ninja: Shadow of a Tear (2013)
• The Marine 3: Homefront (2013)
• Revenge of the Ninja (1983)
• Dragonheart: Vengeance (2021)
• Ninja III: The Domination (1984)
• Protector (2026)
• The Lost Princess (2025)
• Interceptor (2022)
• Ninja (2009)
• No Retreat, No Surrender 2: Raging Thunder (1987)
• One Mile: Chapter Two (2026)

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