Street Fighter II, The Animated Movie

The videogame that screams 90's!

Can you believe this year marks the 30th anniversary of one of the most beloved & everlasting fighting video-game franchises of all time? That's right! Street Fighter is soon be a three decade wonder! And Capcom is celebrating it by releasing a 30th Anniversary bundle including all 12 original arcade videogames on Steam! That is Street Fighter (1987), Street Fighter II (1992), Street Fighter II' Hyper Fighting (1992), Street Fighter II Champion Edition(1992), Super Street Fighter II The New Challengers (1993), Super Street Fighter II Turbo (1994), Street Fighter Alpha (1995), Street Fighter Alpha 2 (1996), Street Fighter Alpha 3 (1998), Street Fighter III New Generation (1997), Street Fighter III 2nd Impact Giant Attack (1997), Street Fighter III Third Strike(1998). In addition, if you pre-order the game before the May the 29th release date, you'll get a free copy of Ultra Street Fighter IV (2014) The official promo video (bottom section of this review) states the gaming experience has been updated to match "perfect arcade gameplay".

If you were a 90's teens, you just fucking loved going to the arcade center with friends and discovering the latest videogames while learning some tricks to be a master of Street Fighter II. Capcom knew what had in their hands and not only came up with 4 sequels of SFII between 1992 and 1994, they also set their minds into making the first completely animated film feature based upon their greatest invention since Ghouls & Ghosts and the Mega-Man saga.

Just like the SSF II intro!

Ryu versus Fei-Long.

Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie, is a 1994 animated film adaptation written by Kenichi Imai, directed by Gisaburō Sugii and animated by Group TAC. The movie, originally released in Japan on August 8, 1994, was adapted into English in dubbed/subtitled format by Manga Entertainment, who later produced the TV series Street Fighter II V, which we will review in a few weeks. 

Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie was well received among fans of the games, and is generally considered to be far superior to the live-action film which followed it. The action sequences had a very realistic portrayal in comparison to other Street Fighter anime, and action anime in general, due to the assistance of K-1 founder and professional fighter, Kazuyoshi Ishii and Andy Hug. Though the movie's events do not seem to be acknowledged by the main games' storyline, many of the details were included in later games, in particular the Street Fighter Alpha series. 

Ken doesn't like Bison.

Burgers and fries?

All 16 characters from the SSF II game are in the film, however the center stage is clearly on Ryu and Ken, leaving some characters to have little more than cameos which is a bit disappointing for Cammy, who is one of my favorite characters but in the film had very little screen time, sure seeing her take out several body guards and then assassinating a political figure was cool, but i was hoping for more. The film follows Ryu who is a traveling martial artist seeking other worthy fighters and he does get into many fights throughout the film, and his old friend Ken who is a wealthy man who trained with Ryu in Japan when they were younger, however it seems that money bores him and he's eagerly awaiting Ryu's arrival. Chun Li and Guile fans would probably be very happy as well since they have very prominent roles in the film as well, however the hero's of the film would be nothing without a villain. Bison is recruiting powerful fighters around the world for his own evil goals, and currently he has his eye on Ryu and Ken.

Of course the plot isn't what the fans want to see, it was almost nonexistent in the games, no sir, its the fights! There are plenty and they all pack a punch(pun intended), the film begins with a fight between Ryu and Sagat done very stylishly in a grass field, it looks very low lit at first but its the roaring lightning that suddenly flashes and lights up the fight, it truly has to be seen. Apparently one of the most acclaimed fights in the film is the Chun Li vs Vega fight, which is absolutely brilliant. A helpless Chun Li in her PJ's is attacked in her apartment by the psychotic Vega, this fight is easily the bloodiest though it never gets to extreme, the finale of the fight is just fantastic and very satisfying. The last twenty or so minutes of the film is just non stop action, Ryu vs Ken then Ryu and Ken vs Bison, I won't go into details to avoid spoiling anything but the film couldn't have ended any better. The best part is, that's not all, there are still about half a dozen more fights in the film, and I have to say I really enjoyed the flashback scenes showing Ryu and Ken's training together, that really adds more depth to their friendship.

Promo art.

Cammy is a cold blooded fighter!

Visually the film is a wonder to behold, the animation is detailed and is very smooth and crisp, clearly a lot of time went into this. The film is also notorious for having the fight scenes professionally choreographed to give them a realistic feel and it shows since every movement really feels like the characters do put their entire bodies into it, there really is a sense of movement and power behind ever punch. The soundtrack is a mixed bag, when it is actual scored music it is great full of guitars and other instruments that seem to be heavily inspired by Grunge and/or Alternative Rock, the cup of tea from which most of us were drinking (and some still do) during the early 90's. I mention this because, it may make the film feel dated or odd at times but, if you are a rock fan or just don't care, that is only a minor thing in a film that was very well crafted from beginning to end. 

The alternative/grunge-oriented musical score for the English version was composed by Cory Lerios and John D'Andrea of Baywatch fame. Songs featured in the movie include "Blind" by Korn; "Them Bones" by Alice in Chains; "Israel's Son" by Silverchair; "Hallucinations (Dream World Mix)" by In the Nursery; "Evil Dancer" by Black/Note; "Ultra" by KMFDM; "Cuz I'm Like Dat" by Smokin Suckaz Wit Logic; and "Mantra" by Intermix.

Capcom was so happy with the love they were getting from fans around the world, that they released an interactive movie game based on the film, simply titled Street Fighter II Movie for the PlayStation and Sega Saturn in 1995. The game involves the player taking the role of Shadowlaw's Monitor Cyborgs, who would simply observe the events of the movie to collect move data from fighters. The game's fight sequences features an interface similar to Super Street Fighter II Turbo, where the Cyborg has to fight Ryu. Cyborg's special moves include the Hadoken, the Shoryuken and the Tatsumaki Senpukyaku, as well as Ken's Super Combo from Super Street Fighter II Turbo, the Shoryureppa. There are some extra scenes not present in the movie and three possible endings, depending on the result of the Cyborg's fight with Ryu. 

In addition, a manga adaptation of the film was authored by Takayuki Sakai and serialized in the monthly CoroCoro Comic in 1994, later collected in a single tankōbon. An English adaptation of this manga was published Viz Communications as a six-issue comic book in 1996. 

Chun Li won't be harassed by a mean Spanish fighter.

You mess with my pajama, you mess with me!

Now let's take a look at some interesting Trivia related to this great OVA from the 90's:

• The method the movie uses to introduce the title (Ryu performing the Hadoken onto the screen) is exactly the same as the intro to Super Street Fighter II.

• Akuma makes a cameo appearance in the movie, sitting against a wall in Calcutta shortly before the assassination attempt. However, fullscreen versions cut him out.

• In the Japanese version before the battle between Chun-Li and Vega, the former is shown completely nude (her T & A explicitly seen) while taking a shower in her apartment, which was later added back in the uncut DVD version.

• The Indian political leader, Jahan, who is killed by Shadaloo, appears to have been modeled after Gandhi.

• When Ken is driving on the highway, and is about to go head on with a semi-truck, the Capcom logo can be seen on its side.

• While the name of Ryu and Ken's master is never spoken on-screen, it appears printed as "Goutetsu" when Ryu's and Ken's profiles are compared on a monitor. In the games' continuity, Gouken is Ryu and Ken's master, while Goutetsu was actually Gouken and Akuma's teacher.

 

Washing off that fighting dirt.

• During the English credits, Cammy's and Dee Jay's names are spelled "Cammie" and "DJ" respectively.

• At the end of the credits to the Japanese version, a small announcement about the live action Street Fighter movie is shown, with a "Spring 1995" release for Japan. Edward Pressman, one of the film's producers, is alluded to in the English dub, mentioned as Shadowlaw's true leader and political figurehead, though there is no such mention in the original Japanese version.

• During his fight against E. Honda, Balrog's face is drawn differently, with his eyes constantly pointed in different directions among other details.

• Guile's clothing colors change at many random points in the film, even where it doesn't make any sense for them to have done so, such as between camera angles in the same scene.

• Thunder Hawk is voiced by Steven Blum, who would later go on to voice Ken in Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation. Though Street Fighter II V and Street Fighter Alpha are not in the same continuity as Street Fighter II, a handful of voice actors from the English dub reprised their roles in both adaptations due to the film's huge popularity overseas

Chun Li's buttocks.

Overall, if you are a fan of the game you will love this film, its very true to the source material and really adds layers to many of the characters, and its cool just to see your favorite fighters in animated form talking and doing their trademark moves in a different medium, this is a must see!

Here's the OVA trailer:

The updated OVA trailer for the Blu-Ray release:

The 30th Anniversary trailer for the re-release of the franchise: