Based on the iconic fighting game franchise of the same name, and greatly improving on the previous live-action Street Fighter film from the 90s in terms of character development and visuals, Street Fighter 2026 is more of a love letter to fans of the franchise than anything. The plot follows Ryu and Ken as they compete in a tournament for not only the honor of being crowned the greatest fighter, but also to face off against iconic antagonists such a M. Bison and Akuma before they use Ryu’s concealed darkness for their own personal gain. For starters, this movie is just like its source material, unapologetically campy. Between the goofy dialogue and the exaggerated action shots, this is definitely not a film that is meant to be taken too seriously. This movie is filled to the brim with fan service, featuring many characters from the game such as Chun-Li, Guile, Blanka, the film’s antagonists and many others. There are many references to locations and stages from the games as well. (The stage involving destroying the car within a certain amount of allotted time was fun to see.) You could also tell that the actors were just having a blast playing these roles as well. From a filmmaking standpoint, there were actually some pretty impressive choices made by the director. Accompanying the vibrant video game-esque visuals, the fight choreography was actually quite impressive, especially considering that the most of the star-studded cast are actual martial artists and wrestlers. (The casting of each character was fantastic by the way. I don’t think I could’ve picked anyone better to play these roles.) The film serves as a pretty creative period piece of the 80s-90s timespan the narrative takes place within, reflecting the release of the original arcade games. There were also many beautifully animated sequences throughout the film whenever the film recounted past events that kind of made me wish the whole movie was animated. As for cons, like I mentioned earlier, a serious flick with complex story is probably not what you’re going to find here. There are many instances in the film where I could possibly see the campiness being too much for casual viewers. However, anyone who’s already a fan of the franchise or anyone looking for some fun, entertaining action will most likely be satisfied. I’d even say that the animation sequences are worth the price of admission alone. Score: 7/10
