FILM REVIEW: STREET FIGHTER (12A) ESP RATING: 2/5
Calling this the best Street Fighter movie ever would sound impressive – if the previous two movies weren’t so horrendous.
From a very low bar, this does better than the campy 1994 version – but that really isn’t saying much.
The latest attempt to ignite the iconic Capcom beat ‘em up video game into a viable Hollywood blockbuster franchise is at the very best ‘patchy’.
Over a chaotic two hours it throws a lot of ideas at the wall – but very few stick.
It admirably tries to provide a energetically fun retro feel that pays homage to the fan base – and in part it kind of achieves this – but some very questionable casting, scripting, and some appalling editing choices – where there’s very little ‘tournament matches’ in the actual tournament – it all ends up a bit messy.
WWE wrestler Cody Rhodes as American air force fighter Guile, Thai/Australian actress Mel Jarnson as British special forces operative Cammy, and David Dastmalchian (The Suicide Squad) as the main protagonist, as crime syndicate boss M Bison, are woefully miscast for starters. They just don’t work.
One of the better aspects of the film is how it starts, with Japanese anime providing cut-scenes throughout, that are arguably better than the actual human elements in the movie most of the time.
In 1987, Japanese-born Ryu (Andrew Koji) defeats Thai fighter Sagat in the first World Warrior tournament using Dark Hadou, which attracts the attention of the deity Akuma (actually played quite faithfully by another WWE wrestler Joe ‘Roman Reigns’ Anoa’i).
Shortly afterwards Akuma murders Ryu’s mentor Gouken, with the incident driving Ryu and his adoptive brother Ken (a very over-the-top Noah Centineo) apart.
Fast forward six years and M Bison, the dictator of shady organisation Shadaloo, organises a second World Warrior competition in Metrolao City to try and draw Ryu out of hiding in an attempt to harness his powers.
This leads to fan favourite characters – from Dhalsim, E Honda, Dan and Joe to Zangief, Vega, Balrog (Curtis ‘50 Cent’ Jackson) and a poorly computer-generated Blanka (Jason Momoa) – all rearing their head in and around the tournament.
But the weird thing is most fights take place ‘outside’ of the competition in sub-plot sequences – like Callina Liang’s undercover Interpol agent Chun-Li trying to infiltrate Shadaloo to avenge her father’s death – instead of in the actual tournament itself.
Which for me, was the most exciting potential element.
What we are left with is mainly Ken trying to prove his worth – trying to shake-off his ‘playboy’ image – in a couple of bouts, and the rest mainly end up off camera.
Very bizarre and inexplicably underwhelming.
Throw in very hit-and-miss humorous interludes, a choppily-edited plot, and some very suspect storyline choices, it descends into incoherent chaos by the end. The nineties soundtrack does provide a touch of nostalgia though.
Even as a fan who remembers paying £70 for the US Super Nintendo version of the acclaimed game back in 1992 – which is up there as one of the greatest games of all-time and has become a part of pop culture – this was simply too erratic to particularly enjoy. Bar a handful of fan service moments.
The film was fast-tracked rather quickly when it was announced, and it definitely resonates a very rushed feel from start to finish.
Which leaves this disappointingly lacking the impactful Dragon Punch required to take the franchise to the next level.
It makes Mortal Kombat look like an Oscar nominee . . .
ESP Rating: 2/5
Gavin Miller
Showcase Cinema De Lux Peterborough & Odeon Luxe Peterborough, Out Now
Cast: Noah Centineo, Andrew Koji, Callina Liang, David Dastmalchian, Andrew Schulz, Curtis ‘50 Cent’ Jackson, Joe ‘Roman Reigns’ Anoa’i & Jason Momoa
Running Time: 2 Hrs
Director: Kitao Sakurai
Film Review Venue: Showcase Cinema De Lux Peterborough
For all the latest film information & showtimes at Peterborough’s Showcase Cinema De Lux & Odeon Luxe Cinemas go to www.showcasecinemas.co.uk and www.odeon.co.uk
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