The Review at a Glance: (max score: 5 )
Film:
Extras:
Audio/Video total rating:
( Max score: 100 )
92
Studio and Year: 20th Century Fox - 2009
MPAA Rating: PG-13/Unrated
Feature running time: 97 Minutes
Genre: Action/Martial arts
Disc Format: BD-50
Encoding: AVC (MPEG-4
Video Aspect: 2.35:1
Resolution: 1080p/24
Audio Format(s): English DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, French
Starring: Kristin Kreuk, Chris Klein, Neal McDonough, Robin Shou, Moon Bloodgood, Michael Clarke Duncan
Directed by: Andrezej Bartkowiak
Music by: Stephen Endelmen
Written by: Justin Marks
Region Code: A
Blu-ray Disc release Date: June 30, 2009
"Some fight for power, some fight for us"
Film Synopsis:
Brace yourself for the hard-hitting action and high-flying excitement of Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li. including an all new unrated cut! Based on the wildly popular Street Fighter video game series, this powerful martial arts adventure explores the origins of the Street Fighter universe through Chun-Li (Kristen Kreuk), who avenges her father's death at the hands of Bison (Neil McDonough) and his evil Shadaloo Empire. Now the stage is set, the challenge is clear, the legend will be forged...but who will prevail? Round One. Fight!
My Take:
I am not intimately familiar with the Street Fighter universe but I do know that Chun-Li is one of its more iconic, powerful, and popular figures. This film attempts to provide a sort of dramatic narrative of her origins. It offers a brief back story of her childhood, her introduction to martial arts by her father and ultimately the events that would turn her into the imposing street fighting figure she becomes. The film establishes several characters that are integral to the story. Bison was born the son of Irish Missionaries, was abandoned as a child and left to grow up in the slums of Bangkok. He clawed/fought his way to the top by intimidation and viscous ruthlessness and now sits atop the city's criminal element as the leader of The Shadalao. His interest lies in forcing out any resistance in the slums of Bangkok and turning it into high end real estate that only he controls. When Chun-Li was a child Bison and his henchmen kidnapped her father Xiang, imprisoned him, and forced him to use his knowledge of the business world in furtherance of Bison's interests. Bison used Chun-Li (who believed her father to be dead) as leverage to maintain Xiang's cooperation. Gen, once a member Bison's posse, grew tired of the criminal element and set out on his own to form the order of the web. It is made up of a large network of people in the Bangkok slums who help those who can't help themselves. He is a powerful martial arts/mystic who uses his contacts to lure Chun-Li to Bangkok. He senses her undeveloped abilities and righteousness which he feels can be used in their fight against Bison's increasing threat. He ultimately teaches Chun-Li to focus her martial arts abilities and channel them properly. Chun-Li, Gen, and The Order of Web go up against Bison with the help of an Interpol agent and the Bangkok police.
I think at some point over the last twenty years we have all played Street Fighter whether at the arcade, home, or a friends house. Adapting a popular game franchise to film can be a tricky thing that requires careful actor/character selection, an intelligently conceived screenplay, good special effects, and a director who can combine all of those things while keeping the mythology/premise/feel of the game in mind (because fans will be watching). Both the theatrical version and an unrated cut are offered from Fox on this dual layered Blu-ray disc. I watched the unrated version which adds an additional minute to the film's run time. Unfortunately it lacks the casting and plot focus to make its dramatic aspects effective. The storyline is pretty shallow, which isn't necessarily detrimental, but its lack of strong characters, cohesive flow, and poorly integrated elements keep it from rising above mediocre and at times nonsensical. Initially Gen is portrayed as a powerful martial arts master whose abilities far exceed Chun-Li's. Later in the film during an encounter with Bison (who would appear to have limited martial arts skills) he is practically unable to defend himself and has to be bailed out by Chun-Li. I found the back story provided on Bison to be ill conceived and more like an incomplete thought. The two law enforcement officers, Detective Maya Sunee and Interpol agent Charlie Nash (Moon Bloodgood and Chris Klein) were poorly written characters that contributed nothing viable to the story. On top of that Klein's attempts at portraying a smooth operating, slick talking, international case agent were simply horrible. His dialogue came off as campy, one lined twaddle that never felt genuine. According to the story Bison is the son of Irish Missionaries who was orphaned as an infant and grew up in Bangkok. For some reason he seems to have a faint Irish Brogue, that wasn't particularly pulled off very well by Neal McDonough. While not a big deal it just added another element of illegitimacy to the already shaky plot. Kristen Kreuk wasn't bad in the role of Chun-Li however from a physical stand point she doesn't have much in common with the character. I thought that Robin Shou was a good choice for Gen and Michael Clarke Duncan had no trouble being believable as Balrog. A few of the fight sequences and the special effects weren't bad. In the end there were just too many problems to overcome for this to be a credible entry in the genre.
Parental Guide:
The PG-13 rating is for sequences of martial arts action, violence, and some sensuality.
AUDIO/VIDEO - By The Numbers:
REFERENCE = 92-100 / EXCELLENT = 83-91 / GOOD = 74-82 / AVERAGE = 65-73 / BELOW AVERAGE = under 65
**My audio/video ratings are based upon a comparative made against other high definition media/blu-ray disc.**
(Each rating is worth 4 points with a max of 5 per category)
Audio: 94
Video: 90
(Each rating is worth 4 points with a max of 5 per category)
Street Fighter: The legend of Chun-Li comes to Blu-ray Disc from Fox featuring 1080p AVC encoded video that has an average bitrate of 27 mbps and lossless DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio sound that has an average bitrate of 3.4 mbps.
While I didn't care for the film itself I found little to complain about with its presentation in high definition. Images exhibited high level detail, razor sharpness and resolute definition that brought out the lifelike textures captured by the camera. Dimensional perspective had an infinite appeal that was visually arresting at times. Close ups were incredibly detailed and revealing of even the subtlest nuance visible within facial and physical features. Mid level camera pans of the city locations were equally enriching and exhibited excellent depth and dimension. Colors were deeply saturated with wide variable textures and eye catching quality that was accentuated by the video's higher contrast. Whites were occasionally on the hot side but maintained good delineation so that details were visible during brightly lit scenes. Flesh tones were mildly affected by this, especially those with lighter complexions, but overall the balance was good. There were a few exceptions where faces had a golden glow to them which was obvious but didn't appear out of place. Blacks were rich, deep and dynamic which enhanced sequences containing mixed content that had both light and dark elements. This was especially appreciable during the wide angle panning shots of the nighttime Bangkok cityscape. Shadow detail was strong and fell just shy of being definitively revealing. Grain was noticeable in darkened segments (primarily backgrounds) and appeared in even, stable layers that were not objectionable. I noticed some aliasing in the buildings during the film's opening shot of Hong Kong but that was the only instance I saw of it. Dark scenes tended to appear less resolute however fidelity remained very good. This was a great looking presentation.
The lossless DTS-MD MA sound mix is an aggressive one that utilizes the system to near its full potential. This is a powerful mix that utilizes the entire system to create a theater like experience. Balance between the front and rear soundstages is spot on so that sounds that pass between the speakers going in either direction is done so in a seamless fashion. Sound effects traverse the room during the large fight sequences. Dynamics are energy filled and impact felt with incredible articulation and high level clarity. This is an aggressive presentation that makes regular use of the subwoofer to accentuate its already powerful dynamics. The result is that all points of contact seem to resonate with low bass impact. This included punches that landed during the many one on encounters in the film. Bass fanatics will love the deep bass impact but there were times where I felt it was mixed a little too hot. The quality of the bass was first rate as it was hard hitting with deep extension, quick attack, and excellent room resonation that simply rocked the house.
** CIH users should note that the subtitles appear in the picture area**
Bonus Features:
Final Thoughts:
Street Fighter: The legend of Chun-Li is a poorly conceived and executed film adaptation that is based on the popular game franchise from Capcom. Fans will more than likely be disappointed in its rendering of the characters as well as the story's development. Fox has done an excellent job with its high definition presentation on Blu-ray Disc. Its reference quality audio and great looking video might be enticing to enthusiasts who crave quality high definition source material to show off the potential of their home theater systems. For fans of the film Fox has included a balanced set of bonus supplements that includes the Blu-ray exclusive In Movie Enlightenment feature as well as a Digital Copy Bonus disc so you can take the film on the go. I would be hard pressed to recommend this one but if you have already seen it and found it appealing then it's worth picking up.
Ralph Potts
AVS Forum Blu-ray Reviews
Reference Review System:
JVC DLA-RS20 1080p High Definition Front Projector (Calibrated by Jeff Meier)
Carada Precision Brilliant White 96" Screen
Oppo BDP-83 Universal disc/Blu-ray Player (HDMI Audio/Video)
Toshiba HD-XA2 HD DVD Player (HDMI Audio/Video)
Sony Playstation 3 Blu-ray disc Player (HDMI Audio/Video)
Oppo 970HD universal disc DVD Player (480i HDMI)
Denon AVR 5308CI THX Ultra 2 Preamp/Video Processor
Sherbourn Technologies - 7/200 Seven Channel Amplifier
Philips TSU9400 Pro Series Touch Panel Remote Control
Canton "Ergo" Series speakers
Axiom Audio QS8 Quadpolar speakers
SV Sound PB-13 Ultra (Rosenut finish)
APC AV S15BLK Power Conditioner/Surge Protector
Furman SPR-20i Stable Power Regulator
Wireworld, VizionWare, Audioquest, Best Deal Cables - Audio/Video/Speaker Cabling
Cool Components - CP-CP102 cooling package
The Review at a Glance: (max score: 5 )
Film:
Extras:
Audio/Video total rating:
( Max score: 100 )
92
Studio and Year: 20th Century Fox - 2009
MPAA Rating: PG-13/Unrated
Feature running time: 97 Minutes
Genre: Action/Martial arts
Disc Format: BD-50
Encoding: AVC (MPEG-4
Video Aspect: 2.35:1
Resolution: 1080p/24
Audio Format(s): English DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, French
Starring: Kristin Kreuk, Chris Klein, Neal McDonough, Robin Shou, Moon Bloodgood, Michael Clarke Duncan
Directed by: Andrezej Bartkowiak
Music by: Stephen Endelmen
Written by: Justin Marks
Region Code: A
Blu-ray Disc release Date: June 30, 2009
"Some fight for power, some fight for us"
Film Synopsis:
Brace yourself for the hard-hitting action and high-flying excitement of Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li. including an all new unrated cut! Based on the wildly popular Street Fighter video game series, this powerful martial arts adventure explores the origins of the Street Fighter universe through Chun-Li (Kristen Kreuk), who avenges her father's death at the hands of Bison (Neil McDonough) and his evil Shadaloo Empire. Now the stage is set, the challenge is clear, the legend will be forged...but who will prevail? Round One. Fight!
My Take:
I am not intimately familiar with the Street Fighter universe but I do know that Chun-Li is one of its more iconic, powerful, and popular figures. This film attempts to provide a sort of dramatic narrative of her origins. It offers a brief back story of her childhood, her introduction to martial arts by her father and ultimately the events that would turn her into the imposing street fighting figure she becomes. The film establishes several characters that are integral to the story. Bison was born the son of Irish Missionaries, was abandoned as a child and left to grow up in the slums of Bangkok. He clawed/fought his way to the top by intimidation and viscous ruthlessness and now sits atop the city's criminal element as the leader of The Shadalao. His interest lies in forcing out any resistance in the slums of Bangkok and turning it into high end real estate that only he controls. When Chun-Li was a child Bison and his henchmen kidnapped her father Xiang, imprisoned him, and forced him to use his knowledge of the business world in furtherance of Bison's interests. Bison used Chun-Li (who believed her father to be dead) as leverage to maintain Xiang's cooperation. Gen, once a member Bison's posse, grew tired of the criminal element and set out on his own to form the order of the web. It is made up of a large network of people in the Bangkok slums who help those who can't help themselves. He is a powerful martial arts/mystic who uses his contacts to lure Chun-Li to Bangkok. He senses her undeveloped abilities and righteousness which he feels can be used in their fight against Bison's increasing threat. He ultimately teaches Chun-Li to focus her martial arts abilities and channel them properly. Chun-Li, Gen, and The Order of Web go up against Bison with the help of an Interpol agent and the Bangkok police.
I think at some point over the last twenty years we have all played Street Fighter whether at the arcade, home, or a friends house. Adapting a popular game franchise to film can be a tricky thing that requires careful actor/character selection, an intelligently conceived screenplay, good special effects, and a director who can combine all of those things while keeping the mythology/premise/feel of the game in mind (because fans will be watching). Both the theatrical version and an unrated cut are offered from Fox on this dual layered Blu-ray disc. I watched the unrated version which adds an additional minute to the film's run time. Unfortunately it lacks the casting and plot focus to make its dramatic aspects effective. The storyline is pretty shallow, which isn't necessarily detrimental, but its lack of strong characters, cohesive flow, and poorly integrated elements keep it from rising above mediocre and at times nonsensical. Initially Gen is portrayed as a powerful martial arts master whose abilities far exceed Chun-Li's. Later in the film during an encounter with Bison (who would appear to have limited martial arts skills) he is practically unable to defend himself and has to be bailed out by Chun-Li. I found the back story provided on Bison to be ill conceived and more like an incomplete thought. The two law enforcement officers, Detective Maya Sunee and Interpol agent Charlie Nash (Moon Bloodgood and Chris Klein) were poorly written characters that contributed nothing viable to the story. On top of that Klein's attempts at portraying a smooth operating, slick talking, international case agent were simply horrible. His dialogue came off as campy, one lined twaddle that never felt genuine. According to the story Bison is the son of Irish Missionaries who was orphaned as an infant and grew up in Bangkok. For some reason he seems to have a faint Irish Brogue, that wasn't particularly pulled off very well by Neal McDonough. While not a big deal it just added another element of illegitimacy to the already shaky plot. Kristen Kreuk wasn't bad in the role of Chun-Li however from a physical stand point she doesn't have much in common with the character. I thought that Robin Shou was a good choice for Gen and Michael Clarke Duncan had no trouble being believable as Balrog. A few of the fight sequences and the special effects weren't bad. In the end there were just too many problems to overcome for this to be a credible entry in the genre.
Parental Guide:
The PG-13 rating is for sequences of martial arts action, violence, and some sensuality.
AUDIO/VIDEO - By The Numbers:
REFERENCE = 92-100 / EXCELLENT = 83-91 / GOOD = 74-82 / AVERAGE = 65-73 / BELOW AVERAGE = under 65
**My audio/video ratings are based upon a comparative made against other high definition media/blu-ray disc.**
(Each rating is worth 4 points with a max of 5 per category)
Audio: 94
- Dynamics:
- Low frequency extension:
- Surround Sound presentation:
- Clarity/Detail:
- Dialogue Reproduction:
Video: 90
(Each rating is worth 4 points with a max of 5 per category)
- Resolution/Clarity:
- Black level/Shadow detail:
- Color reproduction:
- Fleshtones:
- Compression:
Street Fighter: The legend of Chun-Li comes to Blu-ray Disc from Fox featuring 1080p AVC encoded video that has an average bitrate of 27 mbps and lossless DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio sound that has an average bitrate of 3.4 mbps.
While I didn't care for the film itself I found little to complain about with its presentation in high definition. Images exhibited high level detail, razor sharpness and resolute definition that brought out the lifelike textures captured by the camera. Dimensional perspective had an infinite appeal that was visually arresting at times. Close ups were incredibly detailed and revealing of even the subtlest nuance visible within facial and physical features. Mid level camera pans of the city locations were equally enriching and exhibited excellent depth and dimension. Colors were deeply saturated with wide variable textures and eye catching quality that was accentuated by the video's higher contrast. Whites were occasionally on the hot side but maintained good delineation so that details were visible during brightly lit scenes. Flesh tones were mildly affected by this, especially those with lighter complexions, but overall the balance was good. There were a few exceptions where faces had a golden glow to them which was obvious but didn't appear out of place. Blacks were rich, deep and dynamic which enhanced sequences containing mixed content that had both light and dark elements. This was especially appreciable during the wide angle panning shots of the nighttime Bangkok cityscape. Shadow detail was strong and fell just shy of being definitively revealing. Grain was noticeable in darkened segments (primarily backgrounds) and appeared in even, stable layers that were not objectionable. I noticed some aliasing in the buildings during the film's opening shot of Hong Kong but that was the only instance I saw of it. Dark scenes tended to appear less resolute however fidelity remained very good. This was a great looking presentation.
The lossless DTS-MD MA sound mix is an aggressive one that utilizes the system to near its full potential. This is a powerful mix that utilizes the entire system to create a theater like experience. Balance between the front and rear soundstages is spot on so that sounds that pass between the speakers going in either direction is done so in a seamless fashion. Sound effects traverse the room during the large fight sequences. Dynamics are energy filled and impact felt with incredible articulation and high level clarity. This is an aggressive presentation that makes regular use of the subwoofer to accentuate its already powerful dynamics. The result is that all points of contact seem to resonate with low bass impact. This included punches that landed during the many one on encounters in the film. Bass fanatics will love the deep bass impact but there were times where I felt it was mixed a little too hot. The quality of the bass was first rate as it was hard hitting with deep extension, quick attack, and excellent room resonation that simply rocked the house.
** CIH users should note that the subtitles appear in the picture area**
Bonus Features:
- Theatrical/Unrated versions of the film
- Commentary by Patrick Aiello, Ashok Amritraj, Chris Klein, Neal McDonough
- Street Fighter: In movie enlightenment - Bonusview PiP feature
- 14 deleted scenes
- (HD) Marvel vs. Capcom 2: sneak peek - Game trailer
- (HD) Becoming a street fighter - 17 minute featurette
- (HD) Chun-Li:Bringing the legend to life - 6 minute featurette
- Fox Movie Channel presents: Making a scene - 9 minute documentary (Alleyway fight sequence)
- Recreating the game: arcade to film comparisons - still gallery
- The fight in black & white - Storyboard gallery
- Behind the fight: Production gallery
- (HD) Two Fox on Blu-ray previews
- Disc 2: Digital Copy Bonus Disc - Standard definition version of the film that can be downloaded to a portable media player from a compatible PC
- Disc 3: Street Fighter Round One: Fight! Full length animated origins comic movie DVD
Final Thoughts:
Street Fighter: The legend of Chun-Li is a poorly conceived and executed film adaptation that is based on the popular game franchise from Capcom. Fans will more than likely be disappointed in its rendering of the characters as well as the story's development. Fox has done an excellent job with its high definition presentation on Blu-ray Disc. Its reference quality audio and great looking video might be enticing to enthusiasts who crave quality high definition source material to show off the potential of their home theater systems. For fans of the film Fox has included a balanced set of bonus supplements that includes the Blu-ray exclusive In Movie Enlightenment feature as well as a Digital Copy Bonus disc so you can take the film on the go. I would be hard pressed to recommend this one but if you have already seen it and found it appealing then it's worth picking up.
Ralph Potts
AVS Forum Blu-ray Reviews
Reference Review System:
JVC DLA-RS20 1080p High Definition Front Projector (Calibrated by Jeff Meier)
Carada Precision Brilliant White 96" Screen
Oppo BDP-83 Universal disc/Blu-ray Player (HDMI Audio/Video)
Toshiba HD-XA2 HD DVD Player (HDMI Audio/Video)
Sony Playstation 3 Blu-ray disc Player (HDMI Audio/Video)
Oppo 970HD universal disc DVD Player (480i HDMI)
Denon AVR 5308CI THX Ultra 2 Preamp/Video Processor
Sherbourn Technologies - 7/200 Seven Channel Amplifier
Philips TSU9400 Pro Series Touch Panel Remote Control
Canton "Ergo" Series speakers
Axiom Audio QS8 Quadpolar speakers
SV Sound PB-13 Ultra (Rosenut finish)
APC AV S15BLK Power Conditioner/Surge Protector
Furman SPR-20i Stable Power Regulator
Wireworld, VizionWare, Audioquest, Best Deal Cables - Audio/Video/Speaker Cabling
Cool Components - CP-CP102 cooling package