I just got back from an opening night screening of the new Street Fighter film. It’s nowhere near as bad are predicting (or the reviews) are saying it is. The cast is (for the most part) pretty good, and the story is pretty good, if cliched. The fights are cool too, if a bit short. It’s a mixed bag but its much more violent and darker in tone than JCVD’s original Street Fighter film. The Legend of Chun-Li is simply a much better flick.
The film is all about Chun-Li (which I’m sure will piss of fans of the overrated Ken and overused Ryu) and her quest for vengeance after her father is taken by the nasty crime boss M. Bison (an effective and and steely-eyed Neal McDonough, bizarrely using an Irish brogue). Along the way Chun-Li meets a wise mentor named Gen (Robin Shou, decent performance) and begins to hunt M. Bison and stop his crime syndicate from taking the land that belongs to the poor citizens of Bangkok. Kristin Kreuk is surprisingly effective as Chun-Li and she easily navigates the tricky and sometimes emotional scenes and has some badass moves that will be familiar to fans of the videogame. The other performances are are mixed bag with Neal McDonough coming off best as Bison. Michael Clarke Duncan is perfectly cast as Balrog. Chris Klein is a cheesy and sometimes annoying policeman named Nash who has a flirty relationship with another agent. Their storyline is meant to add some humor to the film, but mostly takes away from the overall tone and theme of the film.
Far from perfect (but way better than the JC Van Damme campfest original flick), The Legend of Chun-Li is worth checking out. The film holds your attention, attempts a serious tone, moves quickly, and is surprisingly violent. A few of the fights are notable as well. The final fight with M. Bison and Chun-Li is very well-staged, and a nightclub brawl and bathroom catfight will surely please the teen male demographic. Fanboys (and girls) could do a lot worse than this film. I’m hoping for an unrated DVD in the near-future. I’m kind of shocked that the film was so entertaining, a pleasant surprise overall.
Film Grade: B
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Circus80
Feb 27, 2009 -
I’m sure it’s a good movie, and it’ll probably have a nice weekend box office, but still I must say that the “Van Damme campfest original” is still a movie I enjoy.
Ccfmds
Feb 27, 2009 -
That is one thing I noticed so far, people are loyal to the old-school film. I think it might make an interesting double feature with the original JCVD film. I plan to post a poll on that very question after people get a chance to see the new one.
John Spartan
Feb 27, 2009 -
Yeah, I enjoyed Jean Claude’s version too.
It’s a classic with lines like “I’m going to kick Bison’s ass so hard, that the next Bison wannabee, will feel it,” and “Quick, zhcange the shchannel!”
blitzace
Mar 3, 2009 -
dont listen to this man, his review gives this sorry excuse of a movie hope. Now for the real one
honestly, i think the old one was better, they both sucked, but the old one, you could at least laugh at the nonsense with a group of friends, the ugly costumes, and laugh about what the hell was Hollywood thinking. The new one made me want to cry of boredom, as well as made me wine to get my 12 dollars and hour of 50 minutes of life back. There were so many flaws. The fighting was horrible except for chunli’s dad vs bison. Gen is like a 150 years old and on his death bed of every game, but they made him like 30 in the movie.It has cheesy cgi, such as chun li’s blast that did no visual damage on contact other than knock wrinkles out of peoples shirt. Last but not least, the hurricane kick, somebody just walked around kristen kreuk with a camcorder to give her kick the whole spinning effect. If you are in a relationship that is pissing you off, instead of domestic violence, take them to this movie as payback.