Three martial artists compete in a vicious otherworldly
tournament whose outcome decides the fate of the world. ACTION/FANTASY
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Mortal Kombat (1995)Directed by Paul W.S. Anderson
Written by Kevin Droney Starring Robin Shou, Linden Ashby, Bridgette Wilson-Sampras, Christopher Lambert, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, Talisa Soto, Trevor Goddard, Chris Casamassa, Francois Petit, Kevin Michael Richardson Based on the video game from Midway Games |
I think it’s safe to say a lot of people are familiar with the fighting game franchise known as Mortal Kombat. It has had a pretty big resurgence thanks to the release of the last three games, has been around since the 90's, and shows zero signs of slowing down. It is also (in)famously known for creating the M rating in games thanks to its graphic violence. With that said, it’s not surprising Hollywood wanted a piece of the pie during the initial run and popularity of the franchise. So, in 1995, we got the first adaptation of Mortal Kombat. A film which has stayed relevant in popular culture due to a huge cult following and fan nostalgia for those who saw it when they were kids. Now, how does it stand up all these years later? Let’s enter the tournament and find out.
I have to say, I’m super impressed with the casting of this film. Considering the recent call out of Hollywood not being diverse enough, they’re actually pretty diverse here. Due to this, and the actors’ performances, the characters end up feeling like their videogame counterparts. Well, minus one. I’ll get to that in a minute. The filmmakers also did a pretty good job with the fight choreography. It looks good and characters’ signature fight moves pop up several times. Finally, that theme song. I get why this has become so iconic. It’s catchy as hell and a lot of fun to listen to. Not all is great, though. Remember that minus one I mentioned earlier? Well, the one character who feels terribly miscast is Rayden. The actor, Christopher Lambert, does do a good job, but he's not who should be playing this character. The film also suffers from some corny moments and bad CGI which dates it at times. The last thing is the rating. I cannot understand how they made an M rated fighting game into a PG-13 film. All in all, this is an incredibly fun movie. It gets what the fans love about the games, does a great job with its cast, and has one of the catchiest theme songs in film history. But it also suffers from moments which date it, one terribly miscast character, and a neutered rating. Still, for those who are wondering why this has endured for so many years, check it out for yourself. |
Mortal Kombat is a fun action film with likable characters and an entertaining plot. It is not at all perfect, with the acting being very subpar and the effects being laughable at best. But the film itself is fun to watch and I enjoy it every time.
One of my many gripes with the film is the complete lack of gore. For a movie based on a video game franchise known for its gratuitous gore and violence, the film is remarkably tame. If there had been even a fraction of the gore from the game, this film would have been the best film adapted from a video game ever. It is cool to see characters like Liu Kang, Johnny Cage, Sonya Blade, Scorpion, and Sub-Zero on the big screen and the fight scenes totally do these characters justice. In the depressing filmography of Paul W.S. Anderson, this film is a bright spot. |