Algunas curiosidades sobre NINJA DRAGON de la IFD

Ninja Dragon fue una de las primeras películas que Richard Harrison hizo para la IFD, tras la saga Thunderbolt en 1985 a pesar de que la fecha del copyright sea de 1986. En esa época Joseph Lai y sus secuaces aún se preocupaban por la factura técnica del producto y contrataban secundarios y a técnicos ( cámaras, especilistas, secundarios con curriculum) con más capacidad profesional que los vistos en posteriores producciones.

Tras el éxito que obtuvo Ni nja Thunderbolt en los mercados internacionales del video, Joseph Lai nos ofreció algunas películas con ninjas en las que no era difícil encontrar buenos momentos e incluso calidad técnica como ocurre en Ninja Dragon.

En Ninja Dragon el coreografo de las escenas ninjas fue Donald Kong Do visto además en un papel muy secundario. Las escenas coreografiadas por Kong son dinámicas y rápidas y el prólogo de la película nos es presentado como muchas películas de kung fu clásico donde veiamos a los actores luchar delante de un fondo rojo donde demostraban sus habilidades y movimientos que luego desarrollarian mas profundamente durante el metraje. Poco después Kong Do se marcharia a la Filmark de Tomas Tang y el actor John Chiang tomaría el relevo como coreografo oficial de la IFD junto a Philip Ko y Ridley Tsui.

Visualmente Ninja Dragon formaría una cuatrilogia formada por Ninja Terminator y Diamond Ninja force y Ninja the protector con las que comparte la mayoria de actores secundarios, coreografo, localizaciones de rodaje, vestuario y director.

Caratula original de VHS español

El antagonista de Richard Harrison en Ninja Dragon es Paulo Tocha que por las mismas fechas habia trabajado en Hong Kong Godfather de la Shaw Bros. Lo más sorprendente es que Joseph Lai nos lo quiso vender como un refrito de Bruce Lee y Stallone bajo el nombre artistico Bruce Stallion. La cosa no debió cuajar porque los siguientes trabajos de Tocha para la IFD se limitaron a meras apariciones como extra. Ante tal panorama Tocha cogió puerta y se convirtio en actor estrella en un par de producciones de la Filmark de Tomas Tang. Poco después Tocha llamaria la atención internacional gracias a su papel del Kickboxer Paco en Contacto Sangriento, la película que hizo de Van Damme un autentico ídolo.

Paulo Tocha fue acreditado como Bruce Stallion en su debut como actor principal en la ex-colonia. Poco después saborearia las mieles de éxito en producciones de mayor enjundia, éxito que sigue disfrutando hoy a nivel profesional. Pena que no quiera recordar sus inicios.

Ninja Dragon es una película que sobresale por muchas razones de los productos a los que nos acostumbró Joseph Lai poco después pero quizás el aspecto mas importante sea que su "relleno" sea una película taiwanesa que no es sino un remake de un film de la Shaw Bros llamado BROTHERHOOD. La similitud de ambas películas es tal que no solo el guión y la puesta en escena sean calacadas es que además ambas películas comparten muchos de los mismos actores!!!!!!

Caratula del DVD inglés de Ninja Dragon.

Las escenas ninjas de Ninja Dragon se rodaron en varios puntos de Kowloon Park ( igual que Ninja Terminator) situado en el distrito de Tsim Tsa Tsui a pocos metros de donde se situaban las antiguas oficinas de la IFD. Otros exteriores reconocibles son algunas zonas del distrito Central de la isla de Hong Kong y el duelo final se rodó integramente en Signal Hill, un pequeño jardín situado justo detrás del famoso edificio Chungking Mansions. En ese mismo lugar se rodaron la mayoria de las nuevas escenas usadas en Silver Dragon Ninja, la primera película que Donald Kon Do rodó para la Filmark de Tomas Tang y que casualmente contó con Paulo Tocha como principal actor.

Signal Hill Garden en 1985 cuando se rodó Ninja Dragon

Signal Hill Garden en Agosto de 2009, casi 25 años después del rodaje de Ninja Dragon, el lugar apenas ha sufrido cambios de importancia.

Ninja Dragon nos cuenta la historia de varios mafiosos internacionales que compiten entre si en el Shanghai de los años 30. Gordon Richards ( Richard Harrison) es un banquero que se está quedando con la mayor parte del pastel lo que hará que la competencia tire del ninjitsu para acabar con él, aunque antes tendran que eliminar a su socio.

El film de relleno que usó Godfrey Ho para darle cuerpo a Ninja Dragon, era simplemente un remake taiwanés de una peli de gangsters de la Shaw Brothers.

En definitiva, Ninja Dragon es un buen ejemplo que prueba que si Joseph Lai le hubiese puesto algo más de cariño a sus productos la historia hubiese sido muy diferente a la que conocemos y sus películas no serian tan vapuleadas por los fans como lo han sido y lo siguen siendo.

Other movies shot on or around Signal Hill Garden

Signall Hill was undoubtely a nice place to shoot. It didn't matter it was in one of the most crowded areas of Kowloon, its location was not too aware for the tourists who wander in Tsim Tsa Tsui. It wasn't only used by IFD & Filmark filming crews, bigger productions from more powerful & stronger companies also went to this place to shoot many of their movies there.

Lau Kar Leung & his brother Lau Kar Ying must have thought the same & few time later the shoot in Signal Hill Garden an action comedy titled THE MERRY SOULS starring Yuen Biao & Eric Tsang.

The ninjas arrived first

Then Lau Kar Ying came

There is no questions Signal Hill Garden was also a character in the movies thatb used it as location

Also other productions from the past showed us some views of Signal Hill in the background or bird's view from the location.

Bruce Le in Challenge of the Tiger, a movie that included Richard Harrison & Donald Kong in the cast. Interesting, right?

Ronnie Yu's directorial debut SAVIOUR, gave us a bird's view of Signal Hill at the end of the 70's.

Signal Hill Garden is a quiet place & a must to visit for all the Hong Kong movies lovers who may run in Hong Kong for tourism or bussiness. The place keeps today the same buildings & surroundings that it had 25 years ago when all these movies were shot there.

The ninjas who came from Signal Hill Garden ( Part 3)

Signal Hill Garden, as we have seen, was used by IFD technicians during the shooting of some ninja movies such as Ninja Dragon & Diamond Ninja Force, then it would not be a surprise to guess Filmark International used these locations as well.

If IFD shot its ninja movies in Signal Hill, Filmark that was always some steps back to IFD did the same & then moved to this location to shoot Silver Dragon Ninja, but I would like to study some facts around this singular production.

Sometime back in 1986, Godfrey Ho directed Ninja Dragon a movie whose action director was Donal Kong Do who was also an the main villain in Diamond Ninja Force. Both movies had some ninja shots in Signal Hill Garden so when Donal Kong shot the ninja scenes of SILVER DRAGON NINJA for Tomas Tang's Filmark International, he went back to these gardens located in the very heart of Tsim Tsa Tsui to shoot most of the ninja content for Silver Dragon Ninja that was a re-edited & updated version of a filipino-chinese co-production entitled KILLER COP ( THE TRAP)starred by Pai Ying & Tsang Kong among other actors came from kung fu movies.

White ninja VS an army of useless black ninjas at the doors of Signal Hill tower

The same location 25 years later, there are no ninjas but the surroundings has no changes at all

Donald Kong Do not only used the same Signal Hill Garden for his movie, he also used Paulo Tocha who worked with Donald in Ninja Dragon credited as Bruce Stallion and playing the main villain against Richard Harrison.

It's time for ninja hunting

It's time for locations hunting

Hong Kong was always a main headquaters for ninja illegal trades in Filmark movies

A nice place to visit if you love Hong Kong trashy ninja movies

The building in the background is The New World Center

If we climb to Signal Hill, we will check the building hasn't change a bit in the last 25 years.

Silver Dragon Ninja, apart from its locations had more things to do that linked itselft to other productions from different companies. I mean Silver Dragon Ninja casted Eric Neff, a black guy with excellent skills as the hero friend & Pedro Ernyes as the leader of the bad black ninjas. Neff & Ernyes were casted together to star NINJA VS NINJA, an Ocean Shores attempt to imitate Filmark working conditions. Both, Neff & Ernyes reprised the roles they played in Silver Dragon Ninja.



Does anyone knows if there exist a widescreen edition of this Silver Dragon Ninja???? All the editions I have found are fullscreen & the british edition is even cut during some erotic moments.

The Ninjas who came from Signal Hill Garden (Part 2)

Signal Hill Garden, as we saw in the last entry, was an strategy point in Tsim Tsa Tsui used for shooting movies dued to its locations. I mean it is located in an exremely crowded area but hidden enough to shoot with no disturbance. Even today, if you go to Signal Hill Garden, you will not find too much people around.

IFD not only filmed there the final showdown of Ninja Dragon but also some scenes from Diamond Ninja Force, the Golden Ninja Warrior second chapter. It is a short scene where actor Pierre Tremblay is practising his skills & suddenly is attacked by Richard Harrison as we can see in the screenshots below.

The cannons aiming to Victoria Harbour & the New World Center Building

Your gun is useless, only a ninja can kill a ninja

You are gonna to die, Pierre Tremblay

I put my digital camera in the same position, trying to catch the Diamond Ninja Force's spirit!



You can see the whole shot from minute 5:18 to 6:40

More to Come!!!!

The Ninjas who came from Signal Hill Garden (Part 1)

Diamond Ninja Force, Ninja Dragon & Silver Dragon Ninja were some of the very first ninja movies from IFD & Filmark that arrived to my hands and they are also the 3 titles I re-watched more times ( altogether with Filmark's Ninja Phantom Hero Usa & Vampire Raiders Ninja Queen) along the years. As I stated before, these titles are favourite ones dued to they arrived to me when i was just a tender teenager.

Ninja Dragon's Final Showdown impressed me a lot the first time I saw it!!!!

But what do they have in common? Diamond Ninja Force & Ninja Dragon are from IFD while Silver Dragon Ninja is from Filmark. There are 2 answers/ reasons for just one question. First, Ninja Dragon & Silver Dragon Ninja were starred by the one PAULO TOCHA hidden by some surrealistic pseudonyms such as Bruce Stallion in Ninja Dragon & Harry Caine in Silver Dragon Ninja

The entrance to Signal Hill Garden shot by my camera for my Hong Kong Filming Locations Documentary (this is only a screenshot from video...it is not a raccord failure)

The second answer is related to the location were both 3 movies were shot in Signal Hill Garden in Tsim Tsa Tsui,an oft-ignored area of the district that has a hilly park with nice views of the surrounding area, and that has a lighthouse of sorts that used to signal the onset of oncoming storms and typhoons plus a chinese pagoda in a square plaza.

Signal Hill Lighthouse is seldom watchable from Tsim Tsa Tsui grounds due to the vegetation aorund the hill

These elements that mix Asian & Western style architecture were perfect in those movies who used western people as asian killers.But let's compare some screenshots from those movies & some video / photos taken by me.

NINJA DRAGON FINAL FIGHT

See those Cannons looking at Victoria Harbour surrounded by metal benches, we can notice Hong Kong Cultural Center & the museums around were being built at time this movie was shot.

The Cannons are not longer there but we still can find the benches.

At one moment of Ninja Dragon, we see SHERATON HOTEL behind Richard Harrison

The same shot was taken by my digital video camera when I visited Signal Hill Garden for very first time at the begining of 2002

Signal Hill has something special, once you are there, you can feel it. I don't know how to explain that sensation. All Hong Kong is like a huge movie plateau, but there are certain places that had some kind of magic. Signal Hill is one of those places.

Few seconds before Richard Harrison killed Paulo Tocha, we can see this gorgeous pose in Ninja Dragon.

I tried to put my camera in the same place Godfrey Ho put his.

Coming soon, more pics & screenshots of Diamond ninja Force, Silver Dragon ninja & other movies shot in Signal Hill Garden or around the place.