Father and child sit together smiling while looking at a smart phone.

Want more recommendations for your family?

Sign up for our weekly newsletter for entertainment inspiration

Parents' Guide to

Street Fighter

By Charles Cassady Jr., Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 14+

Campy video game-derived action-fest.

Movie PG-13 1994 102 minutes
Street Fighter Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

See all
age 9+

Based on 2 parent reviews

desunda
desunda Adult
July 25, 2020
age 5+

Perfect

it had plenty of action and followed the comic book.
derek642
derek642 Adult
March 8, 2012
age 13+

Bring the Wine, Cheese Provided

Ok, first off, let me say that I put that it's 'too violent' only to say that there is a lot of action-packed violence in it. Considering what you can do in the video game (from my day and the PS3 version we just got on clearance) what would you expect from a movie based on it... That being said, it's kindof a cheesy movie version of the game that adds a plot and includes most of the characters I believe. It has an interesting backstory/plot for the 'creation' of the character Blanka also. It's definitely not the best movie production, but I got this for my son to watch as he really liked playing SF4 for PS3 and I think he will get a kick (pun intended) out of the movie. It has language in it, definitely ones that our kids can't say. They have been exposed to language already, not that we go out of our way to promote movies that have it, but given this is based on a video game we have played, this will be the expeption reason for me, but usually I wouldn't suggest a movie with tons of language in it.

This title has:

Too much violence
Too much swearing
See all 2 parent reviews

What's the Story?

STREET FIGHTER derived from a popular Capcom video game in which players could choose a gallery of martial-arts contestants to go up against each other. Screenplay-wise, this translates as high-tech warlord General Bison (Raul Julia) wreaking havoc in the mythical Asian nation of "Shadaloo" and holding relief-workers hostage for a $20 billion ransom, while forcing a captive scientist turn a prisoner into a Hulk-like monster soldier. His main opponent is Col. Guile (Jean-Claude Van Damme), stalwart leader of international military forces, who tries to find Bison's hidden base. Other two-fisted characters ultimately brawling in Bison's temple of doom include Chun-Li (Ming-na Wen), a TV reporter out for vengeance because Bison killed her father 20 years ago in her border village.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (2 ):
Kids say (1 ):

Though it scored low at the box-office, Street Fighter racks decent cinematic junk-food points for rainy days when the game console won't boot up. Except for unnecessary swearing it's mostly PG-level inoffensive, and even a bit of a guilty pleasure compared to later (R-rated) movies derived from fancier and more savagely gory joystick material, such as Doom and Resident Evil. This, while lacking in plot surprises, still has a self-mocking sense of humor about itself throughout, with some sly jokes insinuated amongst the colorful-gaudy production design (note the clown painting in Bison's bedroom).

The cast acts it up with relish, especially Raul Julia's eye-popping caped villain. Julia died suddenly before the film's release; he reportedly took this untypical part mainly because his children were fans of the game, and the movie is dedicated to him. In addition to assorted tie-in anime cartoons, another game-spinoff live-action movie appeared in 2009

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the idea of basing movies on video games. What are some favorites? What game would make a good movie? Is it more fun to watch if you're a player of the video game or not? Would you rather see a movie based on a simple action-combat game, like Street Fighter II, or a more problem-solving and story-dependent game, like Myst, Riven, or the Seventh Guest?

Movie Details

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

See all recommended movie lists

Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.

See how we rate