Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li

Starring: Kristen Kruek, Neal McDonough, Michael Clarke Duncan, Robin Shou, Chris Klein, Moon Bloodgood
Directed by: Andrezej Bartkowiak
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Action, Adventure, Thriller
2008

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A concert pianist, Chun-Li (Kristen Kruek) decides to take matters into her own hands, searching for M. Bison (Neal McDonough), a criminal mastermind who abducted her father years before. Along the way, she joins with an experienced warrior (Robin Shou) and two detectives (Chris Klein, Moon Bloodgood) to bring down the criminal network.

Review:

Tim: Director Andrezej Bartkowiak has a history of making bad movies. After the awful Doom and the criminally terrible Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li, I hope someone bars him from setting foot behind camera ever again. This movie is so bad that I can barely contain my disdain. Are you kidding me with this movie? This film is only 96 minutes, but after about 70 minutes, there is truly no way audiences can still be interested or invested in the story. I was waiting desperately for the movie to end, as it is a terrible, complete waste of time. It is moronic, sophomoric, and boring.

What surprised me the most was how some talented actors got mixed up in this disaster. Kristen Kruek, I can understand her taking the titular role of Chun-Li. What else does she have going for her? It was a chance for her to carry a movie, and she does at least halfway decently. She puts some effort into the role, but the writing is so bad that it doesn't really matter. I am surprised that Michael Clarke Duncan took the role of Balrog. Yes, he looks exactly like the character from the video game, but he should know better. This movie must have looked like crap on paper, because the end product is pure crap as well. Likewise, I am surprised that Neal McDonough took the role of M. Bison. He does bring a little bit of class to the film, and it was not enough. He might be the best part of the film, but that is not saying much. I was surprised to see Chris Klein in the movie, but if his terrible performance was any indication, we won't be seeing him in anything but similar trash anytime soon. I wanted to punch him in the face, he was so bad in his role. I like Robin Shou, but he was completely ridiculous in his role. Moon Bloodgood actually wasn't bad, but her role was pretty pointless. The entire cast bored me, both with their performances and with their weak characters. Plus, the dialogue is atrocious, which doesn't help at all.

There are so many problems with this movie. The story is a tired one, offering very little new or interesting. The characters are awful, the action scenes are forgettable and silly. There was almost nothing or no one I liked in this movie. Perhaps the most amazing thing about this movie is that it makes 1994's Street Fighter look like a great film in comparison. That is unbelievable. And then, this might be my favorite part of the movie- the film ends in a fashion setting up the sequel. The sequel! As if a wretched, stupid movie that made $8.7 million at the box office would ever warrant a sequel. My god, the nerve of this movie.

Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li has almost no redeeming qualities. I couldn't even recommend this movie to the biggest action fans or the biggest Street Fighter fans. There is simply no reason to waste your time with this arrogant, unaware movie. This film is awful.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 2.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend:
Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat