Royal Kill

Royal Kill (also released under the title Ninja's Creed) is a 2009 psychological thriller film directed by Babar Ahmed and starring Academy Award nominees Eric Roberts and Pat Morita, along with Lalaine and professional wrestler Gail Kim. The film was released April 10, 2009 in theaters. The DVD release went by the name Ninja's Creed and went on sale July 20, 2010.[2]

Royal Kill
Directed byBabar Ahmed
Written byBabar Ahmed
StarringEric Roberts
Alexander Wraith
Lalaine
Gail Kim
Pat Morita
Music byKenneth Lampl
CinematographyJonathan Belinski
Edited byJ. D. Beales
Release date
April 10, 2009
Running time
90 min
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$350,000[1]
Box office$50,090[1]

Plot

A fearsome warrior from the Kingdom of Samarza arrives in America to assassinate a high school girl. The girl does not know it, but she is the last living heir to the Kingdom. A noble guard arrives in America to protect the young princess.

Cast
  • Eric Roberts as Dad
  • Gail Kim as Nadia
  • Lalaine as Jan
  • Alexander Wraith[3] as Adam Arthavan
  • Jeannie Crist as Royal Maid
  • Nicole Brown as Andrea
  • Darren Kendrick as Neighbor
  • James Yun as Cop #2
  • Darren Paul Kendrick as Chess Buddy
  • Bobby Routh
  • Pat Morita as Exhibition Manager

Notes
  • This is Pat Morita's last recorded role; he died in 2005 shortly after the completion of the film.
  • Professional wrestlers Gail Kim and James Yun, who both worked for World Wrestling Entertainment at the time, made their movie debuts with this film.

Viral video

On April 7, 2009, the producers of Royal Kill held an informal press conference with the film's director, lead actress, and composer. In addition, two supposed "experts" were present to discuss the Nepalese royal massacre as the basis for the story. When the topic was brought up, a woman in the audience started to berate one of the experts before approaching her and slamming her head into a table. A brief fight ensued before the attacker was pulled away. She then hopped into a waiting car.[4]

Video of the incident was posted to YouTube and other internet video sites, eventually being viewed millions of times.[5] Some suspected that it was staged.[6]

In fact, both women involved were professional wrestlers hired to do a stunt in hopes of attracting attention to the low-budget film. The attacker was noted wrestler Shelly Martinez. A video later appeared showing the participants rehearsing and discussing the incident.[7]

Release

Royal Kill had a limited release in some AMC Theatres in the United States. It was one of the lowest-budgeted movies ever to play at AMC. After a successful first week in theaters, Royal Kill's theatrical run was extended to a second and then a third week.

Reception

The film received primarily poor reviews. James Lasome of Horror Freak News called the movie "Fun, imaginative, and complex"[8]. However, most critics were not so enamored. Christopher Armstead writing for Film Critics United called the film "a pile of jumbled up incoherent nonsense" and lamented, "Watching a perfectly decent bad movie transformed into something horrible pleases no one." [9]. Dan Zak, writing for The Washington Post, called the film "essentially storyless" with "deliriously bad filmmaking" and wrote that the special effects "look like they were created in Microsoft Paint."[10]

References
  1. "Royal Kill (2009)". Box Office Mojo. 2009-04-30. Retrieved 2011-08-16.
  2. "Ninja's Creed". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2011-08-16.
  3. http://wikienglewood.net/index.php?title=Alexander_Wraith
  4. WWE Wrestlemania-like move at "Royal Kill" press conference. 8 April 2009. Retrieved 12 May 2011.
  5. Cute Actress Gets Head Slammed. Break.com. April 2009. Archived from the original on 2011-05-17.
  6. Olszewski, Tricia (8 April 2009). ""Violent Incident" at Royal Kill Press Conference Smacks of Bullshit". Washington City Paper.
  7. Girl Fight At "Royal Kill" Press Conference. 16 August 2009. Retrieved 6 November 2011.
  8. Lasome, James (30 June 2016). "'Sid's Paralysis'". Horror Freak News.
  9. Armstead, Christopher. "'Ninja's Creed'". Film Critics United.
  10. Zak, Dan (10 April 2009). "Movie Review: 'Royal Kill'". The Washington Post.
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