The 1994 Street Fighter movie, based on Capcom's popular fighting game franchise, earned $99.4 million worldwide despite critical disapproval. While objectively poor in quality, the film maintains entertainment value through its unintentional humor and memorable performances.

Writer-director Steven E. de Souza, known for Die Hard and Commando, transformed the fighting game's tournament premise into a military action plot. This dramatic departure from the source material saw characters reimagined as international peacekeepers fighting a dictator in the fictional nation of Shadaloo.

Jean-Claude Van Damme stars as Colonel William F. Guile, delivering notably awkward one-liners that became unintentionally comedic. However, Raul Julia's performance as M. Bison steals the show in his final role before passing. Despite battling cancer during filming, Julia's charismatic portrayal of the megalomaniacal villain produced iconic moments, including the famous "For me, it was Tuesday" line.

The supporting cast includes Ming-Na Wen as Chun-Li, though her character was changed from an Interpol officer to a news anchor. The film's biggest misstep was relegating main game characters Ryu and Ken to minor roles as con men, stripping them of their martial arts significance.

Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie, released in Japan shortly before the live-action film, provided a more faithful adaptation. It properly featured Ken and Ryu as protagonists and delivered superior action sequences.

The franchise attempted another adaptation with 2009's Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li, starring Kristin Kreuk, but it performed poorly at the box office. A new reboot by Legendary Entertainment is scheduled for March 20, 2026.

The 1994 film also spawned a video game adaptation, Street Fighter: The Movie, featuring most of the film's cast. However, it received a lukewarm response and has been largely unavailable for nearly 30 years.

While Street Fighter fails as a serious adaptation, its combination of campy performances, unintentional humor, and Julia's memorable portrayal of M. Bison has earned it an enduring place in video game movie history.

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