Street Fighter

 Say what you want about Street Fighter, specifically the 1994 film with Jean-Claude Van Damme and Raul Julia, but I still find it corny fun. I enjoyed it as a kid and still enjoy it even now. Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li, on the other hand, was no fun at all.

So, what did I think about its third round in live-action? 

In its animated prologue set in 1987, Ryu (Andrew Koji) wins the self-explanatory World Warrior Tournament with the help of Dark Hadou, which is basically the Dark Side of the Martial Arts Force. Unfortunately, his sensei Gouken’s (Don Lee) literally demonic brother Akuma (Roman Reigns) comes looking for Ryu, but settles on fratricide. Ryu and his sworn brother, Ken (Noah Centineo) immediately part ways for different pursuits. Ryu takes up a ramen shop, while Ken becomes a celebrity fighter; neither of them are very good.

In 1993, Ryu and Ken are scouted by Chun-Li (Callina Liang) for the latest World Warrior Tournament. It’s actually a trap by her employer, M. Bison (David Dastmalchian), to extract Ryu’s power for himself. Ryu only joins when Ken does, specifically to keep Akuma off of Ken’s back. They have allies with a few of the fighters, plus Chun-Li, who’s really an Interpol spy with a score to settle with Bison.

Everybody got that? 

That’s pretty much it.

It’s a lot to take in for a simplistic plot. It also speeds through character motivations, dramatic points and even concepts in its two-hours. So, Bison wants Ryu’s power to fuel a new weapon, but we never see it (maybe it’s the super-laser in Alpha 3). Bison also killed Chun-Li’s dad, which is revealed relatively late. All the talk about “Dark Hadou” and the like mostly makes sense if you know the lore. The film just ends before these narrative punches properly land. 

For a film about a fighting tournament, it sidelines a lot of the tournament and its contestants. Characters like macho military man Guile (Cody Rhodes) and wrestler Zangief (Olivier Richters) only show off during a bar fight, while kickboxer Joe (Alexander Volkanovski) is just there. The tournament, save for Ken’s fights, just happens off-screen. Granted, the tournament was just an excuse plot in the games, but there was room for development here.

Is there anything good about it? Yes, and surprisingly enough, it’s Dan Hibiki (Andrew Schultz), Ken’s manager and other sworn brother. While seemingly a joke and a moocher, it quickly becomes clear that he really has Ken’s best interests in mind. He’s even willing to fight Akuma at the end, which gives him an A for effort. Meanwhile, we have Blanka (Jason Momoa), a green jungleman whose subplot is nearly perfect. Eric Andre, whose frequent collaborator Kitao Sakurai is the director, gets some good zingers in as the bombastic and petty announcer, Don Sauvage. And finally, we have Dhalsim (Vidyut Jammwal), Guile’s brother-in-stretchy-arms who’s the most fun character to watch in battle.

What about the more substantial characters? Ryu & Ken’s relationship is fine, even if it takes a while to understand their intricacies. Individually, their individual quests are pretty compelling. Ken earns his mettle when he finally throws his signature fireball, the flaming Hadouken, while Ryu earns his during a surprising revelation. Liang’s Chun-Li is a great straight-woman amidst the silliness; really, the only thing wrong is with the abrupt ending.

And now, for the villains. Dastmalchian’s subdued line-deliveries are rather interesting. It’s hard to top what Julia brought to Bison in the last months of his life, but Dastmalchian gives it a good effort. His minions, such as Cammy (Mel Jarnson), Juli (Rayna Vallandingham), Vega (Orville Peck) and Balrog (50 Cent), mostly standout during their fight scenes. Akuma, meanwhile, is mostly just a generic doomsday villain who, at least, knows how to make an entrance.

Street Fighter is very committed to replicating its source material. Its characters outlandish designs, special moves and even intricacies like throw-animations are present and accounted for. Even the intense techno score by Leo Birenberg & Zach Robinson incorporates the cast's classic themes rather well. The elaborate production design by Kevin Kavanaugh and stylish cinematography by Ken Seng are perfect for the craziness. The animated flashbacks by Titmouse have been compared to the 1994 anime film, Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie, but they look more like an Udon comic in motion. Either way, they're pretty neat.

Street Fighter is also too invested in its eventual sequel, hence the abrupt ending. Despite its unfocused abundance, it has enough bright spots for me to hope it gets it. Above all else, it was never boring. If you just want simple arcade action made real, then I think you'll get your quarters worth, and then some.

I've said enough.