Inspired by the ninja scenes featured in their 2008 film “Speed Racer,” in which the South Korean pop star Rain had impressed them with his portrayal as a fighter, the Wachowskis started the project of “Ninja Assassin.” The “Matrix” creators also once again teaming with director James McTeigue (V for Vendetta) to create the martial arts flick. While the Wachowskis are known for giving audiences inventive action sequences and liberally using digital visual effects to tell a story, this film should be no exception. Anyhow, McTeigue had cited various influences in filming “Ninja Assassin,” such as the films “Panic in the Streets” (1950), “The Getaway” (1972), “Badlands” (1973), “Ninja Scroll” (1993), and the television series “Samurai Champloo” (2004-2005). Earlier, the director also had talked about the influence of anime in this movie, saying "Yeah, there is actually because anime really did influence what I wanted to do. I guess the obvious one in the way that you see how I dealt with the blood which I guess there's a lot of which I mentioned in the introdcut - which I mentioned into the introduction to the film that you saw."
"I wanted to treat that like anime and the obvious influence there was Ninja Scroll," he continued. "I always liked the way that that film dealt with blood and so I tried to do that. Some - mostly digital but there was a lot of practical effect that I did. Samurai Champloo that I really liked, so like, when Assassins Creed was probably - but that's a game that I was, kind of, like, influenced by that obviously."

The involvement of McTeigue's, the same guy who directed the wonderful “V for Vendetta”, is really what has me genuinely very excited for this. He is a filmmaker who definitely attempts to push the limits and he did it with “Vendetta,” so it’s very likely that he will do it again with “Ninja Assassin.” In the preview so far, it has been showed action sequences which look so incredible, a person can jump and kick multiple people while changing and reversing his direction in midair with very naturally, it seems they’re obviously putting tons of work into it to make it flow and look so much ‘real’. About Rain himself, he was previously very well known as a sweet K-pop star in Asia. That may change once the Wachowski brothers are done with him though, coz he certainly looks like anything but a pop star here as he is covered in blood wielding all kinds of shiny weaponry and pushing his body to the limit. In addition to Rain’s test drive in "Speed Racer," you can also watch him in "Thirst" director Park Chan-wook's previous film "I'm a Cyborg, But That's OK," where the guy formerly known as Jeong Ji-hoon played a kleptomaniac who falls in love with a woman who believes she is a cyborg.

In the film, Raizo (Rain) is one of the deadliest assassins in the world. Taken from the streets as a child, he was transformed into a trained killer by the Ozunu Clan, a secret society whose very existence is considered a myth. But haunted by the merciless execution of his friend by the Clan, Raizo breaks free from them...and vanishes. Now he waits, preparing to exact his revenge. In Berlin, Europol agent Mika Coretti (Naomie Harris) has stumbled upon a money trail linking several political murders to an underground network of untraceable assassins from the Far East. Defying the orders of her superior, Ryan Maslow (Ben Miles), Mika digs into top secret agency files to learn the truth behind the murders. Her investigation makes her a target, and the Ozunu Clan sends a team of killers, led by the lethal Takeshi (Rick Yune), to silence her forever. Raizo saves Mika from her attackers, but he knows that the Clan will not rest until they are both eliminated. Now, entangled in a deadly game of cat and mouse through the streets of Europe, Raizo and Mika must trust one another if they hope to survive...and finally bring down the elusive Ozunu Clan.

# The Wachowskis were dissatisfied with the original script from Matthew Sand, and hired J. Michael Straczynski to write a new draft for the film six weeks before it began production. As he was told the script had to be sent out to the actors by the end of the week, Straczynski completed the rewrite in 53 hours.

# Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg provided filmmakers US$1 million in funding, and Germany's Federal Film Fund provided an additional US$9 million to the film's funding.

# As with “Speed Racer,” principal photography is taking place at Babelsberg Studios and on location in various parts of Berlin.

Budget: $120 million
Opening prediction: $ 25 million
Domestic gross prediction: $ 80 million

Theatrical release dates:
Nov 25, 09: South Korea, USA
Nov 26: Australia, Malaysia
Nov 27: UK
Dec 03: Germany, Russia, Ukraine
Dec 04: Brazil, Italy
Dec 10: Argentina, Netherlands
Dec 23-25: France, Czech Rep, Spain

Sources: IMDB, Wikipedia – Photos courtesy of Warner Bros