Mortal Kombat
Ratings: 2/5
Duration: 01 Hr 50 Mins
Language: English
Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Director: Simon McQuoid
Writer: Screenplay by Greg Russo, Dave Callaham, Story by Oren Uziel, Greg Russo, based on video game created by Ed Boon, John Tobias
Based On: Video game created by Ed Boon, John Tobias
Producers: Richard Brener, Michael Clear, Todd Garner, Lawrence Kasanoff, Simon McQuoid, Dave Neustadter, Victoria Palmeri, Jeremy Stein, E. Bennett Walsh, James Wan
Music: Benjamin Wallfisch
Cinematography: Germain McMicking
Editing: Scott Gray, Dan Lebental
Art Direction: Loretta Cosgrove, Darshankumar Joshi, Tom Nursey, Michael Turner
Release Date: 23 April 2021 (India)
Released In: Theatres
Star Cast: Lewis Tan, Jessica McNamee, Josh Lawson, Joe Taslim, Mehcad Brooks, Matilda Kimber, Laura Brent, Tadanobu Asano, Hiroyuki Sanada, Chin Han, Ludi Lin, Max Huang, Sisi Stringer, Mel Jarnson, Nathan Jones, Daniel Nelson, Ian Streetz, Yukiko Shinohara, Ren Miyagawa, Mia Hall, David Field, Kris McQuade, Angus Sampson, Alice Nassery, Damon Herriman, Michael Coward, Mike Foenander, Patty Glavieux, Amy Rose Hancock, Tegan Nottle, Jack Wong, Bingchen Ye
Plot: The movie ‘Mortal Kombat’ is set in an unreal universe made up of eighteen realms or worlds, in which the Earthrealm is one. If the chosen warriors of a particular realm defeat the warrior of another in the titular tournament ten times, the victorious realm is allowed to conquer the vanquished one. Earthrealm stands on the verge of defeat after losing nine tournaments.
Review: It has been almost thirty years since Midway Games introduced Mortal Kombat to the world of video games, first as an arcade game, then as a personal home video game (currently on its 11th version), and eventually branching out to comic books, animated shows, and live-action feature films.
The first feature film that premiered in 1995 is not only considered to be the best in the Mortal Kombat franchise but also as one of the best live-action film adaptations of a video game ever. The 1997 sequel sadly did not have the same amount of success, so future films were scrapped; that is until Warner Bros. decided to reinvent the film. The new version is a directorial debut film by Simon McQuoid.
The cast is made up of lesser-known actors who all had supporting roles in some blockbuster movies. Lewis Tan shows off his martial arts skills and manages to offer some emotions as the main character. Jessica McNamee is the rebel former special ops soldier with a brain to back it up. If Josh Lawson's character was meant to be obnoxiously annoying, then he nailed the persona on the head. Even Hiroyuki Sanada and Joe Taslim embrace just enough anger to make their fight scenes believable.
Germain McMicking's cinematography is excellent and showcases some stunning visuals. The fight choreography is well done as that seen in the John Wick series, and most of the computer-generated graphics are pretty good. However, there are moments here and there that make some of the stunts and graphics look not real.
The most unfortunate part of the film is the story! The video game (at least the original) is centered on the "chosen ones" fighting in the tournament to save the Earthrealm. This version of the film barely touches upon the impending tournament and deals more with trying to create the team's backstory. Of course, this leaves the ending open to a sequel.
It is too long, slow at some points, and leaves the viewer with a sense of abandonment and emptiness by the end. Therefore, for the average filmgoer, there is enough to dislike about the movie. However, fans of the video game will find much to love about ‘Mortal Kombat’ including the various fight sequences showcasing copious amounts of blood and gore!
