Street Fighter
Director: Kitao Sakurai
Mould: Noah Centineo, Andrew Kozy, Kailyn Liang, Roman Reigns, David Dastmalchian, Cody Rhodes, Eric Andre, Andrew Schultz, Vidyut Jammwal, 50 Cent and Jason Momoa
Rating: ★★★
with Mortal Kombat II and now Street Fighter, 2026 is the year of the idiot. The two films based on the iconic arcade game were created with unprecedented fidelity and respect for the source material while remaining entertaining and stylish. This is no mean achievement. Sure, the Street Fighter is no Mk-II. It lacks the heart of the first. But it’s more than made up for in some good old fashioned fun and plenty of Easter eggs and fan service.
Base
In 1987, Ryu won the inaugural World Warrior Tournament with his friend Ken. But then, when their master was murdered, the two brothers had a falling out. In 1993, Kane is a show fighter who makes money but lacks respect. Having given up fighting, Ryu sells noodle soup to earn a living. But the ambitious tyrant M. Bison hatches a plan to lure Ryu out of hiding by starting the Second World Warrior Tournament. He invites fighters from all over the world, even Kane. Ryu senses that Bison’s intentions may not be noble, and he enters the field against his wishes. And after that, it’s all high-octane action.
The arcade comes alive
What makes Street Fighter so enjoyable to watch is that it never takes itself too seriously. It knows the stakes. But it also knows that, in the end, this is a movie about men fighting each other in the street and shooting fireballs from their wrists. So, fun is the key word.
There are so many callbacks in the game that I couldn’t possibly list them all here. But to recap, each character brings out their moves from the game on multiple occasions. And you even get to see Hadouken not just once, but multiple times in the climax, as has been the norm for such gaming movies with ‘big’ moments. In fact, Street Fighter even pays homage to the only good thing about the previous big screen adaptation – Raul Julia’s M. Bison. And none of it feels forced, which makes Street Fighter much more than just a guilty pleasure.
This doesn’t mean that this movie is only for people who are fans of the game. Even those who have never played the game or encountered it can still have fun here with a plot that may be a bit far-fetched, but is quite serviceable. The stunning visuals and VFX add to the charm, as well as the switch to 2D animation for the flashback sequences. Even the animation is top notch.
david dastmalchian and noah centineo show
Like the 1994 film, the best actor in Street Fighter is once again the man playing M. Bison. David Dastmalchian brings a scary, lonely edge to the villain, a far cry from Raul Julia’s menacing dictator. Still, it works wonders in this movie. That David still manages to make Bison’s threat feel real shows his class. is the second star of the show Noah Centineo. As the ruthless Kane, he naturally brings out the character’s self-doubt and false ego. He lacked chemistry with Andrew Koji (who plays Ken), which diminishes Ryu-Ken’s dynamism somewhat. Jason Momoa and Cody Rhodes are other standouts in the supporting cast, bringing humor to this slugfest with great ease. Andrew Schultz is comfortable as a version of himself.
Carolina Liang is responsible for being the moral guide of the film and carrying the emotional load (along with Andrew Koji). The actress performs well in whatever little opportunity she gets from the script. Clearly, Street Fighter was more interested in having fun than caring about tugging at the heartstrings. However this is not a big loss. I can’t see more than that However, Vidyut Jammwal has suffered a loss. The actor is a perfect fit for Dhalsim, who has somehow made this impossibly racist caricature fit into a real man in a film releasing in 2026. His action is superb, but the way Vidyut has adapted the character to the world of the film is commendable.
Establishing a Franchise?
Street Fighter ends on an ambiguous note, leaving enough room for a sequel. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t dot his ‘i’s and cross his ‘t’s. It resolves all disputes raised by it. But then capitalism takes over creativity. Far from a perfect movie, Street Fighter is pure entertainment. It’s cheesy, it’s insulting, and it’s loyal to a fault. But hey, isn’t that what we’re asking from the makers of game movies? It delivers.