Mortal Kombat (2021)

Today I got a chance to check out the new “Mortal Kombat” movie, which came out in theaters and on HBO Max, last month. Is it any better compared to the adaptations from the 90s?

The film starts off in the past with a serious fight between Bi-Han or Sub-Zero (Joe Taslim) and Hanzo Hasashi or Scorpion (Hiroyuki Sanada). There is a prophecy that says Hanzo’s bloodline will give birth to an offspring who has the ability to win Mortal Kombat and defeat Shang-Tsung’s (Chin Han) opportunity of getting control over Earthrealm.

This prophecy is the main factor for the entire film, and the rivalry between Bi-Han and Hanzo Hasashi brings us to Cole Young, played by Lewis Tan. What he doesn’t know is that he is Hanzo’s decedent, born with a birthmark in the shape of a dragon, and is prophesized to fight in Mortal Kombat.

At that part, the movie introduces every single protagonist. It does the right thing in giving each character a proper introduction, along with carrying their story throughout the almost two-hour runtime. Every protagonist (and some of the villains) are given time to develop their own story arc while the world is fighting around them.

For his part, Cole Young is our look into this universe. He is an original character created for the film, but by the end of the movie, you could think that he could have been included into the video game and fight with any of the popular characters.

We then meet Jax (Mehcad Brooks), whose biceps look like he could really punch a man, and Sonya Blade (Jessica McNamee), who’s even better than the previous actresses who played the role. They make a good team, but each one stands on their own. Karen Rought said in her review, “I was happy to see Sonya have a front seat to the action throughout most of the movie.”

Now we have come to Kano, played with complete brilliant perfection by Josh Lawson. He is a sarcastic, randy, cruel man who will make you laugh one minute and turn against you the next. He’s the definition of a character you love to hate.

He is hands down one of the biggest highlights of the film, and most of the movie’s humor comes from his reactions and one-liners.

Another surprising highlight was Kung Lao, played by Max Huang. Looking at his special ability (known as his arcana) is a flying hat; he could’ve been completely ridiculous. In actuality, he was one of the most well-done characters in the film, and his presence uplifted the entire story.

A lot of this movie really felt like the video game, from the scenes to the fatalities to the careful way they played out interactions with each of the characters.

Rought admitted, “My one major criticism of the film (that we didn’t technically see a Mortal Kombat tournament) was offset by the way they threw two characters together in an arena that felt like it was right out of the game. And then we got to watch them fight to the death.”

At those moments, the film was allowed to party with what has made Mortal Kombat so memorable over the years – the bloody and horrible deaths that, at least one point in the film, probably startled you completely.

Rought is right when she said, “As I said before, video game adaptations are notoriously tricky to get right, but Mortal Kombat (2021) managed to get as close as it could. If nothing else, it’s an improvement over the 1995 film of the same name.”

One part where this “Mortal Kombat” adaptation really highlights is, obviously, the CGI. If you remember what Outworld looked like in the original movie, you’ll be happy to know the new Outworld is greatly improved. Actually, you could say the same about CGI-created characters like Goro (Angus Sampson) and Reptile, who both get their parts.

This “Mortal Kombat” review would be negligent not to mention the many other character who live in this realm and were brought to life with great care for the film.

Mileena (Sisi Stringer) is completely scary, and a real standout amongst Shang-Tsung’s other fighters, which include General Reiko (Nathan Jones), Nitara (Mel Jarnson), and Kabal (Daniel Nelson). Rought admitted, “Though he doesn’t get too much time to shine, Kabal was an instant favorite and his effects and fighting style are truly to be commended.”

With the heroes, we also have Liu Kang (Ludi Lin) and Lord Raiden (Tadanobu Asano), both who are powerful and patient leaders. Rought said, “Even Cole’s family, Allison (Laura Brent) and Emily (Matildo Kimber), pulled their weight in the movie, and while I would love to see more female fighters on the roster moving forward, I’m happy with how they treated the ones we got.”

At the end of the day, “Mortal Kombat” did what it promised of being loyal to the characters we love and gave some bone-breaking fight scenes in the process. Rought said, “I’m excited for this to be a fresh start to a new franchise, led by a diverse Asian cast ready to keep putting their blood, sweat, and tears into making these characters come alive.”

If we’re lucky, there’ll be a lot more where this came from. Joe Taslim told Variety that he’s signed on for four “Mortal Kombat” sequels if the first one is successful.

Even though there is no guarantee that will happen (it depends on fan reactions and profit margins, obviously), the movie has set up a lot of possibilities in the next films. Rought said, “I’d love to see more of Bi-Han and Hanzo Hasahi in the past, as well as some other Mortal Kombat moments prior to the one that’s looming during this movie.”

However, what’s really important is what’s next for the main characters. If you pay attention to background images, you’ll see a couple champions who haven’t been introduced yet. Also, there’s a moment at the end of the film that will really get everyone excited.

Rought said, “Whatever happens next, I’m glad a Mortal Kombat movie adaptation got a second chance at life.” It deserves that and so much more.

Honestly, I had a problem with having Cole as the main character when he was never in any of the games and the casting choice for Mileena. Her character was always masked and we never know what she looked like until she did her Fatality. Also, the story of Sub-Zero and Scorpion is not completely there, and Johnny Cage is not in this movie (spoilers). However, the fight scenes were just perfect. We have all the famous catchphrases, the famous moves, even the Fatalities. Even the updated theme song was actually nice to hear during the credits. The actors casted in these roles are just perfect. This adaptation makes up for the 90s movies by a long run and I think this is “way” better than those. If anyone were to ask if I wanted to see this movie again, I wouldn’t mind because I was satisfied with it, despite it not being a “great” video game adaptation. However, I will say it is one of the best. I think video game adaptations now are being given the right treatment and care that it deserved compared to when they first came out. See this if you have an HBO Max and don’t want to go to the theater.

Thank you for joining in on my review tonight, look out this Friday for the continuation of “Quentin Tarantino Month.”

Mortal Kombat

Next up is the great video game franchise known as Mortal Kombat. This was a huge deal when it first appeared in arcades. At the time, Mortal Kombat was the violent and goriest game ever made. You could literally use “Fatalities” to kill your opponent in some of the most unimaginable ways. I believe I also first laid eyes on this game at a cousin’s house and I was in shock and awe, but also intrigued at the game. I loved playing it, but never figured out how to do the “Fatalities.”

Once they had decided to come out with a “Mortal Kombat” movie in 1995, people were praising this movie saying it was “The Best Video Game Adaptation Ever Made.” Really, because there are a lot of problems with this movie, like it not following the basic concept of the game. I know people love this movie, as I did when I first saw it at a cousin’s house when I was in Middle School, but when I rewatched it years later; I started noticing all the mistakes this movie made. Before you start sending your hate mail about me bashing “Mortal Kombat,” hear me out first. Remember, all of this is simply opinion, not fact, so don’t go crazy, even if you are wrong.

First off, why is this movie rated PG-13? Wouldn’t it have been cool if they had included some of those great “Fatalities” that we all saw and loved in the games? Oh, there is a “Fatality,” but it’s a little sissy version of it. That means the violence is toned down “a lot” in this movie, so we don’t get to see any of the blood and gore that we loved seeing in the game.

The basic story is that Mortal Kombat is a tournament between the fighters of Earth and Outworld that was created by the Elder Gods who want to invade Earth by Outworld. If Outworld wins Mortal Kombat ten consecutive times, Emperor Shao Khan will invade and conquer Earth.

One of the coolest characters in the game was lightning god Raiden, but in the movie he is played by Christopher Lambert. Nothing wrong with that, except for the fact that he does NOTHING BUT TALK THROUGHOUT THE MOVIE!!!! HE ONLY LIFTS UP A FINGER TO HELP THE PEOPLE HE SELECTED!!!! WHY DON’T WE SEE HIM FIGHT AND BE IN THE ACTION YOU JERKS!?!?!?!? He basically just sits on the sidelines and acts like a Obi-Wan Kenobi style mentor.

Raiden handpicks three people, Shaolin Monk Liu Kang (Robin Shou), actor Johnny Cage (Linden Ashby), and military officer Sonya Blade (Bridgette Wilson). All three have their own reasons for joining the tournament. Liu Kang wants to avenge the murder of his brother, Chan (Steven Ho), who was killed by the host of Mortal Kombat, Shang Tsung (Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa), Sonya Blade wants to find Australian crime lord Kano (Trevor Goddard) for killing her partner, and Johnny Cage has been called a fake by the media and wants to prove otherwise. These are just some of the most clichéd and juvenile reasons for ever joining a tournament. REVENGE DOES NOT BRING THE PERSON BACK FROM THE DEAD!!!! DON’T YOU KNOW THAT!?!?!?!? WHY GO OUT AND SEEK REVENGE, JUST TO SATISFY YOUR NEEDS THAT THE PERSON WHO KILLED THEM IS DEAD!?!?!?!? In the words of Mr. Freeze, “Revenge is a dish best served cold.”

Another major problem with this movie is that Shang Tsung has mind-controlled everyone’s favorite ninja characters, Scorpion (Chris Casamassa) and Subzero (François Petit), and they are his obedient slaves. Ok Paul W.S. Anderson, here is a little story that you clearly did not even bother researching before making this movie: Scorpion was one of the best fighters of the Japanese Shirai Ryu ninja clan. He was ordered to go to the Himalayas to retrieve a map, which Subzero, a fighter on the enemy Chinese assassins team called Lin Kuei, is also ordered to find. After Subzero fights and kills Scorpion, Scorpion becomes an undead ninja spirit who wants to avenge his own death against Subzero. Later, Subzero participates in Mortal Kombat because he is ordered to kill Shang Tsung and take his treasure. He fails and is killed by Scorpion, and Subzero turns into the undead Noob Saibot. Subzero also had a younger brother who in later games became Subzero, while the older brother was changed to Noob Saibot. WHY DO YOU HAVE THEM WORKING TOGETHER!?!?!? WHAT IS WITH THE EFFECT OF SCORPION’S SPEAR, IS IT SUPPOSED TO LOOK THAT WAY!?!?!? AND WHY DOES SUBZERO TAKE TOO LONG TO CHARGE UP HIS ICEBALL!?!?!?!?

We also have Reptile in here that was created from CGI and the vocal effects were provided by Frank Welker, who does turn into a human and is played by Keith Cooke. Reptile is a Zaterran, a nearly-extinct race of Reptilian humanoids and he is an obedient slave of Shao Khan. However, the CGI effect looks nothing like it does in the game. WHY DON’T YOU HAVE SCORPION, SUBZERO AND REPTILE, EVERYONE’S FAVORITE NINJA CHARACTERS, NOT TALK THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE MOVIE!?!?!?!? Actually, Scorpion does say his famous “Get Over Here” line, which is provided by the game’s co-creator Ed Boon, but that’s about it.

Goro, the prince of the underground Shokan and armies general of Outworld, is played by Tom Woodruff, Jr, but the voice is provided by Kevin Michael Richardson. I do think his effect is decent, BUT HIS LIPSYNC IS OFF!!!!

The movie has a poorly constructed plot, laughable dialogue and subpar acting. I’m serious; Johnny Cage doesn’t stop with his horrible one-liners that make your ears bleed. The lines are just plain stupid. Also, the fight scenes are like the ones you would see in a typical martial arts movie. Sure, some of the moves are there, but they don’t save the terrible fight scenes. The first half is just talking and the fight scenes are all in the second half. BALANCE IT OUT IDIOTS!!!

Why is Sonya at first tough, but once she gets in a headlock when she gets kidnapped by Shang Tsung, she becomes a damsel in distress? WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT TO THIS TOUGH CHARACTER!?!?!? THAT’S JUST AN INSULT!!! SHE IS A MILITARY OFFICER!!!! DOES SHE NOT KNOW HOW TO GET OUT OF ANY SORT OF RESTRAINT!?!?!?!? DID SHE NOT PAY ATTENTION DURING THE SELF-DEFENCE TRAINING!?!?!?!?!? Liu Kang does kill Shang Tsung and frees all the souls he has captured, but does that bring anyone back from the dead? NO!

The worst part about this movie is, once again, THEY LEAVE US OFF ON A CLIFFHANGER!!!! Everyone returns to Earth to have a victory celebration at the Shaolin temple, along with the Emperor’s adopted daughter, Princess Kitana, played by Talisa Soto, who becomes Liu Kang’s love interest. However, Shao Khan, voiced by Frank Welker, enters saying he is there for everyone’s souls, Raiden says, “I don’t think so,” they get into their fighting stances AND THE CREDITS ROLL!!!! To quote the Nostalgia Critic: when will videogame spinoffs learn? Leaving us on a cliffhanger doesn’t guarantee a sequel, you just anger the audience! Even if you do release a sequel, it doesn’t always mean it will be good, just be self-contained!

Case in point, let’s take a look at the 1997 sequel, “Mortal Kombat: Annihilation,” which I also saw at my cousin’s house and enjoyed, but when I rewatched it years later, I had no idea it was this bad. It seems like this has a cult-following because people are saying that this movie is fun to watch but where is the fun in watching this!? Nothing about this is fun, it’s just a pain to sit through. A lot of people agree how awful of a sequel this is. It even has a 3% on Rotten Tomatoes! Even the tagline said “Destroy all expectations,” which this movie successfully did!

To start off, this movie’s opening is the exact same as the first one, only they CG’ed “Annihilation” at the end. HOW CHEAP ARE YOU PEOPLE!?!?!? Another problem is that they recasted three of the characters. Raiden is now played by James Remar, Sonya Blade is now played by Sandra Hess and Johnny Cage is now played by Chris Conrad, who ends up getting killed FIVE MINUTES INTO THE MOVIE!!! Has Chris Conrad ever been in a good movie?

Unlike the first movie, which only had the characters from the first video game, this movie gets overcluttered with every character FROM THE SECOND AND THIRD VIDEO GAMES!!!! We have Shao Kahn (Brian Thompson), Jade (Irina Pantaeva), Jax (Lynn “Red Williams), Sindel (Musetta Vander), Sheeva (Marjean Holden), Shinnok (Reiner Schone), Nightwolf (Litefoot), Motaro (Deron McBee), Ermac (John Medlen), Cyrax (J.J. Perry), Noob Saibot (J.J. Perry), Rain (Tyrone C. Wiggins), Baraka (Dennis Keiffer), Smoke (Ridley Tsui) and Mileena (Dana Hee). J.J. Perry also plays Scorpion and Keith Cooke comes back to play Subzero.

Sindel is supposed to be Kitana’s mother, but why do they look like they are around the same age? When did she give birth? Or does she never age?

There is no story in this movie because the plot is just simply exposition. Everything is just explained out. Also, there are just way too many action scenes and they're completely stupid to look at, making it worse than the first movie because this horrendous sequel is nothing more than a mindless action flick!!!!

The special effects are poorly done, the fighting is sloppier than the first and the claymation is just plain laughable. On top of that, the acting is horrendous, the dialogue is pretentious and the lines are some of the worse ever. The quotes are just some of the worse written ever in a movie. Case in point, look at what Sindel says to Kitana when she finds out her mother is alive.

Also, they made Raiden and Shao Khan brothers, their father is Shinnok and Jade is apparently Asian, when she was ORIGINALLY BLACK IN THE GAMES!!!!

Seriously, this film makes the first “Mortal Kombat” movie look like a masterpiece! Does that mean that the first “Mortal Kombat” is a good movie and I like it now? No! However, I do give it credit for actually being a movie, WHICH IS MORE THAN I CAN SAY FOR THIS GARBAGE!!!!!

I will end with another quote from the Nostalgia Critic: Maybe this is the time when filmmakers will wake up and realize that they have to work hard in order to make movies about video games interesting. They can’t just make trash and expect it to be good. In fact, now is the time that filmmakers may stop worrying about making money and just concentrate on making decent, entertaining films about video games.

Now I know I talked more about the first “Mortal Kombat” when there is so much more that I can thrash on the sequel, but seriously, I think everyone knows the problems with that one. I just wanted to explain why I don’t like the first “Mortal Kombat” movie but everyone else loves it. These two movies have definitely aged, and I would highly recommend never to watch these movies. They are just a pain to sit through and you will regret watching them later. However, if you do end up liking one or both of those movies and think they are fun to watch, I understand.

Alright, next week I will be ending off the month with adaptations on a video game franchise that I have never played because I didn’t know it existed and I didn’t know these films were based on it. I will just be judging those as movies and not as video game adaptations because I don’t know what the video games were like. Just wait and see on the finale of “Video Game Adaptation Month.”