The Street Fighter Collection is a release that I’ve been anticipating for ages. Having collected so many Gray Market releases of these films, I’m thrilled that Shout finally got to work their magic on it.
Sonny Chiba is a phenomal and humble action star who is as great now as he was back in the 1970s. However, this is a bizarre trilogy of films. Picked up by the newly born New Line Cinema for its American run, the film was quickly hit with an X-rating. Due to fears over excessive Eastern violence, the films were recut to hype the violence without showing the intense kills. Thankfully, Shout presents us all with the real cuts of the film.
The three films are a solid action film, so-so Yakuza revenge movie and an Eastern spy knock-off film. Still, these films helped build a studio that helped to create 80s American horror. Why don’t these films get more love?
No Street Fighter means no horror picks up and that means no Freddy Krueger. Get the importance now? Yet, kids know Krueger and only deep film nerds can wax poetic on Chiba. When I got to meet the Street Fighter himself, he seemed shock that he had any fans in Middle America.
Well, that’s because they were so graphic and unapologetically Eastern. In a time when Bruce Lee was just warming up audiences to martial arts, this was a punch in the face. Hell, Blaxploitation Martial Arts films fared better than these films or even Five Fingers of Death.
If you haven’t seen these movies, then I recommend giving it a shot. You can’t be a true martial arts cinema fan without understanding Chiba.
Special Features
DISC ONE: THE STREET FIGHTER
- NEW 2K Scan Of The Original Film Elements Of The Uncut Version
- Uncut Version Of The Film (91 Minutes) With English And Japanese Audio
- Two English Dubs – The Theatrical Dub And The New Line Home Video Dub
- NEW Street Fighting Man – An Interview With Star Sonny China
- NEW Cutting Moments – THE STREET FIGHTER Trailer – An Interview With Filmmaker Jack Sholder
- U.S. Theatrical Trailer
- Japanese Theatrical Trailer
- Still Gallery
DISC TWO: RETURN OF THE STREET FIGHTER
- NEW 2K Scan Of The Original Film Elements Of The Uncut Version
- Uncut Version Of The Film (83 Minutes) With English And Japanese Audio
- U.S. Teaser Trailer
- U.S. Theatrical Trailer
- Japanese Theatrical Trailer
- Still Gallery
DISC THREE: THE STREET FIGHTER’S LAST REVENGE
- NEW 2K Scan Of The Original Film Elements Of The U.S. Cut (80 Minutes)
- NEW 2K Scan Of The Original Film Elements Of The U.S. Cut With Standard Definition Inserts From The Original Japanese Cut (84 Minutes)
- U.S. Theatrical Trailer
- Japanese Theatrical Trailer
- Still Gallery
The Street Fighter Collection is available now!
