Starring Rueben Langdon, Dan Southworth, Mark Mushashi, Brendon Hour

Fight Choreography by Vonzell Carter

Directed by Christopher C Cowan and Haile Lee

 
Not long ago I reviewed the dreadful King of Fighters, and wondered if anyone would get it right. Well, here comes an indie short film from the Thousand Pounds stunt team that shows that yes, it can be done right in all phases. These guys do what Hollywood couldn’t do with millions of dollars, high priced actors (more or less) and state of the art. Simply put: They get it right.

I’m not as up on my Street Fighter/Tekken knowledge, but here the story of Kazuya trying to control the power of the demon within Ryu was well told and clear at all times. The special effects are used to a good effect, and further shows what George Lucas predicted long ago: That computers and programs have come so far and are now so cheap that anyone with a digital camera can go and shoot their own movie. This is true, but you still have to make a good film. Thousand Pounds does that here.

All of the actors do a great job, but special kudos has to be given to Mark Mushashi as Kazuya. His Kazuya is far better–and he actually looks like the character to boot–than Ian Anthony Dale did in the Tekken film. He brings an onscreen menace that really sells the character, and some of the looks he gives…yeah, that’s Kazuya. The direction is also well done, and Vonzell Carter does a great job of mixing the moves of the characters into the choreography without “stopping” the pace of the fight to point out “hey, here’s a move from the game!”

The Thousand Pound stunt team really put out what they can do, and in their effort made a film that feels true to both Street Fighter and Tekken in ways their Hollywood counterparts haven’t figured out yet. Here’s a brilliant idea: Hollywood, just give a modest budget to these guys and gals and let them make a Street Fighter or Tekken film–the one the fans deserve.
You can find their website with other short films here: www.thousandpoundsaction.com