Street Fighter MPAA Rating: PG-13 Entertainment: +3 Content: -2

In the besieged city of Shadaloo, the Allied Nations forces are restoring order, but the evil warlord General M. Bison (Raul Julia) has taken hostages. If the Allied Nations don't pay the ransom, the hostages will die in 3 days. The local leader of the AN forces, Colonel William Guile (Jean-Claude Van Damme), has to find Bison's secret base and rescue the hostages. Complicating matters is a female journalist, Li Zang (Ming-na Wen) with her own vendetta against Bison. Guile recruits two con men, Ken Ryu (Damian Chapa) and Cammy (Kylie Minogue), to infiltrate a drug lord's gang, hoping they'll find Bison. But time is running out. Plenty of martial arts action, explosions, and some tongue-in-cheek dialogue make an almost fun movie for those into comic-book action films.

Taken from a popular video game, this movie carries a strong theme of overcoming violence with violence. But it's rather nice to have well-defined heros and villains, and the two con-men are converted into crimefighters wanting to do the right thing. Also refreshing is the lack of sexual content and profanity. However, there are a few obscenities spoken. When Li is captured by the evil Bison, who attempts to seduce her in an almost comical scene, she uses martial arts to successfully defend herself. There are numerous explosions and gunshots in the military assault on Bison's castle, but without closeups of bullets hitting bodies. Martial arts kicks and hits are abundant, and the showdown between Guile and Bison includes shocks and a death-defying electrocution. A friend of Guile's is transformed into an Incredible Hulk type monster by Bison's scientist and brainwashed with scenes of violence through computer virtual reality technology. Visions of violence are used by the villains to brainwash, yet that is exactly what this film is doing. The scientist repents, however, changing the monster by reverting to peaceful, wholesome visions in the computer. When the castle explodes, the scientist chooses certain death by staying with the monster. STREET FIGHTERS illustrates how computer/video games make the viewer the center of violence, projecting a sense of involvement rather than just observation. The violence is excessive and another example of exploiting violence to entertain.

Preview Reviewer: Paul R. Bicking
Distributor: Universal Pictures, 100 Universal Blvd., Universal City, CA 91608