Classic Fighter

Street Fighter is a 1994 martial arts action film based on the video game series developed and published by Capcom. It was one of two films released in 1994 specifically adapting Street Fighter II, following Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie. Written and directed by Steven E. de Souza, the film stars Jean-Claude Van Damme and Raul Julia (in his final theatrical film role), with supporting Byron Mann, Damian Chapa, Kylie Minogue, Ming-Na Wen and Wes Studi in supporting roles. The adaptation focuses on the efforts by Colonel William Guile (Van Damme) to bring down General M. Bison (Julia), the military dictator and drug kingpin of Shadaloo City who aspires to conquer the world with an army of genetic supersoldiers, while enlisting the aid of street fighters Ryu Hoshi (Mann) and Ken Masters (Chapa) to infiltrate Bison's empire and help destroy it from within. The film was commercially successful, with a worldwide box office gross approximately three times its production costs. Home video releases and television broadcasts were also profitable. While it earned Capcom a return of ¥15.5 billion ($165 million) from the box office and home media, it was poorly received by critics and fans for its campy tone, unfaithfulness to the source material, and overblown effects. However, Julia's performance as M. Bison was singled out for widespread critical acclaim and garnered him a posthumous nomination for the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor and the film has since developed as a cult classic. The film was Julia's final theatrical performance, as he died of a stroke two months before the film's release; the film is dedicated to his memory.