Review: The New Street Fighter Movie Is Campy Fun

Hollywood has finally figured out how to adapt video games for the big screen. The new Street Fighter movie, directed by Kitao Sakurai, throws out gritty realism and embraces the cartoonish absurdity of the classic Capcom fighting series. The story kicks off with Ryu, played by Andrew Koji, in hiding six years after winning the World Warrior Tournament. Meanwhile, the villain M. Bison, played by David Dastmalchian, hosts a new tournament to lure Ryu out of hiding, leading to a massive clash of iconic fighters.

The film succeeds by keeping things light and funny. It features a huge ensemble cast that brings fan favorites to life, including Jason Momoa as Blanka, Orville Peck as Vega, and Noah Centineo as Ken. The movie embraces its silly roots with plenty of hadoukens and over the top character moments. It does not try to be a serious action epic, preferring to lean into pure entertainment.

Even so, the film has a few bumps along the way. Some of the jokes rely on outdated humor that feels a bit tired today. Additionally, real life wrestling stars like Roman Reigns and Cody Rhodes have very little actual fighting to do in the story, which feels like a missed opportunity for action fans.

Since this movie serves as a setup for a larger franchise, it leaves many plot threads open. The massive cast means some characters do not get enough screen time, but future sequels will likely give them more to do. For fans of the games who just want a fun and cheesy popcorn flick, Street Fighter delivers a great time.