When Manga Video first released this, I snapped it up right away. Looking back, I remember it being good, yet I only watched it a few times before it was left to gather dust on the shelf with the rest of my impulse anime buys (the kind they snag you into buying by packing the trailer with nearly all the fast moving eye-candy the feature has to offer.) I couldn't quite remember why, though... so I popped it in the ol' VCR again.
The best thing about it (to me), and what I think is better than all of the Street Fighter branded animation before it, is the consistency and quality of the artwork - it thoroughly matches the games it is based on. All you have to do is to compare (nearly) any moment of the movie with a victory screen or portrait of the same character from Alpha 3 to see the care that was put into pulling this off. The animation is quite good too, although I think the style is adhered to the fault of creating some awkward positioning and there is definitely an excess of close-ups - to the point that you are more likely to see a zoomed-in image of someone's face (or crotch, in Chun-li's case) rather than anything else going on.
You could talk about the problems with the story (not that many game-movie conversions ever do too well in that regard), many of the clichés are there and are pretty obvious, and much of it is far too over-dramatic for it's own good, but as it is with any good action flick, those aren't the main things I'm concerned about...
My main problems are with the fights. Aside from a few quick, entertaining brawls that are merely teases (one of which plays while the credits are rolling, making you realize how good it all could've been ), they seem to take place one move at a time, and thus feel unusually slow, even by vintage SF2 standards. In nearly all of the 'important' fights, there is almost no continuous motion to the action. And to slow it down further, we also get some of the usual "is that the best you can do?" dialogue (the kind any DBZ viewer will be familiar with) between the short bursts of action. Ugh.
It's kind of sad when a video game shows more fluidity than a movie does during a fight. :(
Pros: Good animation. Nice consistency in artwork. Signature moves are well represented.
Cons: (some spoilers)
Fight scenes feel unnaturally slow. The majority of the game's fighters are limited to 'quickie' cameos (Birdie was done pretty well, though.) No climactic battle with Akuma. Missing characters: no Charlie, no Sagat, etc. A lame villain who has nothing to do with the game (I really hate that stupid grin he always has.) General stupidity: an annoying little brat holding his own against Zangief (PUH-LEASE!), Ryu dodging bullets, etc...
Despite what flaws it has, it is still worth watching if you enjoy the unique look of the Alpha series, as it has been very carefully replicated here.
The best thing about it (to me), and what I think is better than all of the Street Fighter branded animation before it, is the consistency and quality of the artwork - it thoroughly matches the games it is based on. All you have to do is to compare (nearly) any moment of the movie with a victory screen or portrait of the same character from Alpha 3 to see the care that was put into pulling this off. The animation is quite good too, although I think the style is adhered to the fault of creating some awkward positioning and there is definitely an excess of close-ups - to the point that you are more likely to see a zoomed-in image of someone's face (or crotch, in Chun-li's case) rather than anything else going on.
You could talk about the problems with the story (not that many game-movie conversions ever do too well in that regard), many of the clichés are there and are pretty obvious, and much of it is far too over-dramatic for it's own good, but as it is with any good action flick, those aren't the main things I'm concerned about...
My main problems are with the fights. Aside from a few quick, entertaining brawls that are merely teases (one of which plays while the credits are rolling, making you realize how good it all could've been ), they seem to take place one move at a time, and thus feel unusually slow, even by vintage SF2 standards. In nearly all of the 'important' fights, there is almost no continuous motion to the action. And to slow it down further, we also get some of the usual "is that the best you can do?" dialogue (the kind any DBZ viewer will be familiar with) between the short bursts of action. Ugh.
It's kind of sad when a video game shows more fluidity than a movie does during a fight. :(
Pros: Good animation. Nice consistency in artwork. Signature moves are well represented.
Cons: (some spoilers)
Fight scenes feel unnaturally slow. The majority of the game's fighters are limited to 'quickie' cameos (Birdie was done pretty well, though.) No climactic battle with Akuma. Missing characters: no Charlie, no Sagat, etc. A lame villain who has nothing to do with the game (I really hate that stupid grin he always has.) General stupidity: an annoying little brat holding his own against Zangief (PUH-LEASE!), Ryu dodging bullets, etc...
Despite what flaws it has, it is still worth watching if you enjoy the unique look of the Alpha series, as it has been very carefully replicated here.