If Capcom wishes to avoid repeating the same mistakes of the Van Damme film, I have compiled a personal wishlist of things I would like to see, things that I think would go a long way towards making the movie enjoyable for both SF fans and general audiences.
First, no romantic involvements. The movie should be about Chun-Li and her mission, nothing else.
It's not enough to see Chun-Li kicking lots of ass. Sure that's always good, but you also need to do her sensitive side justice, as well. It's not enough to say "Bison killed her father." True, Chun-Li doesn't take shit from anybody, but that needs to be balanced with some depth of feeling when she's alone. This could come in the form of Chun-Li's father is alive at the start of the movie and does shortly in, or maybe he's dead from the beginning and we see flashbacks of Chun-Li bonding with her father. Make us feel what she's feeling.
Definitely don't forget to include her strong sense of justice and duty! Chun-Li isn't out for vengeance; she wants to shut Shadowlaw down and bring Bison to justice... or, more likely, bring justice to Bison, hehe.
It's far from impossible to demonstrate a burning passion for justice, a disregard for cold-blooded revenge, a sensitive spirit and a take-no-shit attitude all in the same character. Just look at the bang-up job they did in Batman Begins. No excuses, Capcom! We want to see Chun-Li's character done as it should be.
No romantic involvements.
Avoid filler characters. Keep the cast at no more than a dozen. However, I think it'd be really cool if minor SF characters still made cameos, even if they were just in the background. For example, let's say there's a scene that takes place inside a prison. Why not have Birdie and Cody show up in the background as inmates even though they aren't actively engaged in the scene? It wouldn't hurt the movie at all, and fans would love it.
Dan would be perfect for a cameo as "the guy who gets the crap kicked out of him in the very first round" at some fighting tournament. Martial arts movie frequently have need for some nameless schmuck to get the shit kicked out of him early in the movie to demonstrate the power of one of the more important characters. If you're gonna do that, why not just go the extra mile and make it be Dan? The fans will love it.
No romantic involvements.
Charlie is optional… he could be useful for the plot, but good luck helping the audience look past how ridiculous that haircut would look on a real actor.
Cammy should be on Bison's side, at least for the first half of the movie or so. Rescuing her could come later in the movie, or maybe even the very end, but Bison needs more allies than simply Balrog, Vega, Sagat, and Birdie. And honestly, who gives a crap if Balrog or Birdie are even in the game?
For the love of God, don't fuck around with characters' backgrounds too much. I don't want to see Dee Jay, Zangief, and Dhalsim working for Bison just because you think the sides need to be more even.
That being said, Adon might fit as a potential bad guy if they just place him in the role of Sagat's protégé. He's not really a bad guy in the games, but he's certainly not a GOOD guy either, and he does have strong ties to Sagat. But, I'm actually kinda hoping for a subplot where Sagat is torn over serving Bison, and should that be the case, Adon could play a role in giving him a "wake-up call."
No romantic involvements.
Rolento would probably make a good addition to Bison's forces. True he actually runs his own gang in the games, but he's still a bad guy cut from the same cloth as Bison. Hell perhaps he could simply be the leader of a group of hired guns being hired by Shadowlaw, that would preserve his independence while at the same time clearly placing him on Bison's side.
Bison should be a believable villain – keep "conquering the world" stuff to a minimum. Simply making him an ambitious warlord hoping to seize control of a country would be plenty.
If Bison dies at the end, don't have it be anything idiotic like he accidently falls off a cliff. This isn't a Disney movie. Don't be afraid to let Chun-Li have her mortal vengeance if that's what the plot calls for.
This is just a personal preference, but I'd like to see at least one big fight scene where it's just one or two heroes versus all 12 of Bison's dolls. It'd be a good place to give Ryu & Ken a decent fight scene while still saving the big fish for Chun-Li.
On the subject of fights I'd like to see, why not a Zangief Vs Vega fight? I'm not really much of a Zangief fan but even I think he deserves a good fight scene, and actually wins. Vega would be perfect for that. Vega would initially have the upper hand and really tear Zangief up with his claw in the beginning, with Zangief powerless to fight back as Vega's too fast. But at some point during the battle, Zangief pulls off a massive feat of strength that catches Vega completely off-guard and allows Zangief to squish him like a bug. Come on, I can't be the only one getting tired of Zangief being used like a big dumb ogre where his opponent is always the underdog we're supposed to root for.
Keep fan service kept within boundaries of reason… I'm realistic, chicks in action movies often show some skin. In Chun-Li's case, I'm sure there'll be lots of chances to show off Kristen Kreuk's legs. That's fine. That's more or less to be expected. But please, for the love of God, avoid any slow-motion running shots or wet t-shirts or other such crap. Give Chun-Li the respect she deserves.
No romantic involvements!
As far as casting goes...
Zangief - I don't have any particular person in mind, but he should be played by an actual pro-wrestler. Get one of the giant guys from WWE or something to do it and it'd be a perfect fit.
Sagat - Like Zangief, would be best if played by a very large professional athlete.
Cammy - Natalie Portman! No real reason, I just think she's awesome.
Guile - Tom Jane. If you need to know why, just watch the Punisher. He'd be perfect for Guile. Though, he'd be pretty damn good for Bison, as well. But if Tom Jane gets cast in either of these rolls I'm gonna be stoked.
Bison - As mentioned above, Tom Jane would make an awesome Bison. Perhaps David Boreanaz could too, but he's a bit of a pretty-boy.
Owen Wilson as Ken? - Okay, I don't really see this actually happening, but it's a good fit. Wilson's done plenty of movies where he plays the cocky blond pretty-boy, including action films like Shanghai Noon. So he's got the look and the experience. But in all honestly I'm kind of tired of seeing Owen Wilson play nothing except cocky blond pretty-boy, and I wouldn't be surprised if Ken's role in the film would be "too small" for Wilson anyway.
Vega - I don't have any major preference, but I definitely think the actor playing him should be of Spanish descent. I don't care if that means he isn't blond. To me, Vega's a Spainiard first and a blond second.
The Olson Twins as Bison's 12 dolls! ...(kidding)
Oh, and lest I forget, no romantic involvements goddammit!
