Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie

Viewed on: Amazon Prime Video.

Adaptation of the popular fighting game franchise of the same name, it follows a wandering warrior known as Ryu (the "face" of the franchise) as he's hunted down by the villainous M. Bison (series long villain & usual endboss in the games, here he heads off a terrorist organization known as Shadaloo that is capturing powerful "street fighters" & brainwashing them into supersoldiers). Interpol & the U. S. military (represented by series regular good guys Chun-Li & Guile) involve themselves by trying to warn Ryu before he's endangered.

It doesn't have a deep narrative, and it probably won't appeal to anyone not already familiar with the games, but if you do fall into the fan base there's a lot to like here. Ryu's wandering nature provides ample opportunities for most (if not all) of the playable characters of the time to make an appearance, most of which are involved in at least one scuffle. The fights themselves (as well as the true to the game character design) are expertly animated & detailed, with weighty, crunchy impacts that hit hard. The infamous Chun-Li shower scene is another plus (& uncensored on my viewing platform of choice), and is directly followed up by the most tense confrontation in the entire film.

When I first bought this film, I bought it for two reasons: it's based on the popular video game (of which I play often) and I wanted to start off my own collection of anime films. I probably would have trashed it right away because the live-action film version of the video game wasn't that great, but after watching my newly bought anime, I actually enjoyed it. The people who made SF2TAM managed to keep the movie faithful to the video game it was based upon and managed to fit every character into it in one shape or another. The characters themselves are portrayed the way they should be and the fights were well drawn. Worth watching if you're a fan of the series and even if you're not, do watch this film. It's a good movie on its own right.

Well, I must say I LIKED THIS FILM!!! The drawings were great (manga, what else?), and combined with the magic touch of manga artists for dramatic scenes and action, this is a PIECE OF FINE ART. A lot is being revealed and we are finally aware to a little of the characters' background (if you want more try Street Fighter Zero or Alpha, which is the same movie...). This movie should be replaced with that dumb variations that had been made before (with all doe respect to Mr. Van Dam, Ryu still kicks his ass).

I would very recommend watching Street Fighter Zero after this.

Street fighter the animated movie is a well animated fight fest that serves as a superior companion piece to the revolutionary fighting game on which this anime is based .

Its silly plot is full of holes and would make little sense to a non street fighter fan but not to worry, the story is merely an excuse for street fighter characters to dragon punch and shin kick the hell out of each other, and its in this department that the film delivers on a huge scale.

The battles that these characters have are truly incredible to watch! Well thought out, well animated and just astounding to gawk at, they work just as well as the best live action fight sequences out there. The two stand out fights are a masterfully executed battle between Chun li and Vega that will make your jaw drop and the final climatic battle of the film which wraps everything up in an adrenalin pumping fashion .The animated fighting on display here more than makes up for the films faults like its annoyingly slow establishing shots that seem to go on forever.

Street fighter the animated movie is first-rate animated action that does its source material justice and allows you to contemplate on how good that garbage live action version could have been.

Knowledge gives this : 4 out of 5 (It makes me want to throw fireballs baby!)

I was one of the many Street Fighter fans that left the theatre in withered disappointment after seeing the live action movie. One would have thought that, after several incarnations of this classic videogame, they'd at least get the storyline right. It was a massive letdown to see them mangle all the characters, too. So, when I heard there was an animated movie being released, I literally jumped with excitement; there was no way an anime would (or could) screw up as badly, after all. To my delighted surprise, it not only didn't screw up, it brought each character from 'Super Street Fighter 2: The New Challengers' to life.

I've heard people complain about it lacking plot and depth; IMHO, these people have missed the entire point of the movie. The main protagonist, Ryu, is a wandering warrior seeking to improve his fighting skills by constantly testing himself against other fighters in different parts of the world. He is an uncomplicated, unpretentious person with a gentle soul and the heart of a dragon (no pun intended), with no notion of the destiny that lies before him. He and his fellow trainee/best friend Ken parted ways ere they could settle who was the better fighter. The way this part of their fates was handled is well done; and the introduction of each supporting character within this deceptively simple storyline kept me rooting for more, with the buildup to the final minutes masterfully accomplished.

There is no debate whatsoever that both the art and animation in this movie is nothing short of amazing; every movement is smooth and clearly visible, from the flexing of Ryu's toes as he takes a step to every single punch and kick thrown in a fight. The music and dialogue, both in the original and the dubbed versions, is quite suitable (there has yet to be a soundtrack for the dub, pity), and although the dialogue at the end seems anti-climactic, what a setup for a sequel!

An elegantly simple story that captures the essence of the Way of the Warrior personified. I'm still watching it happily more than four years later.