Was 11pm on a Friday night the perfect time to watch MORTAL KOMBAT? Was it all the fun references to a game we used to play relentlessly or the filmmakers tireless commitment to graphic, Tarantino-ish bloodletting? Whatever sorcerer’s magic was in play, I enjoyed this trash WAY more than I probably should have.
The adventure starts off with a 13 minute prologue from 1600’s Japan.
The reliably great Hiroyuki Sanada (Wolverine, Westworld, Avengers:Endgame) is Hanzo Hasashi, a legendary warrior enjoying a serene day with his family when he is attacked by the evil Chinese warrior Bi-Han.
Their standoff is beautifully shot. Picture “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” slathered in 100 buckets of blood, gore and some excellent effects. Frankly, the rest of the movie never exceeds the class of the opening scene, jettisoning all its “Last Samurai” vibes when it moves forward to modern day.
We meet MMA fighter Cole Young, played with plenty of muscles but little range by Lewis Tan. He’s early Arnold or classic Chuck Norris, meaning he couldn’t act his way out of a paper bag, but he sure can kick some ass.
He’s quickly recruited by Sonya Blade (Jessica McNamee) and Jax (Mehcad Brooks) who conveniently explain the entire mythos of a universe wide tournament that’s been happening for centuries. In about 30 seconds, Sonya shows Cole a room covered with post-it notes and newspaper clippings and manages to relay about 500 years of galaxy/dimensional bending competition. I laughed out loud. This team could have explained the entire Lord of the Rings story in three minutes and saved us all 18 hours.
Suffice to say that the “biggest tournament of all time with the survival of the Earth hanging in the balance” is about to start. Which is terrific for us, as we get to see all those characters that we love from the classic video game come to life.
Lord Raiden’s lightning flash arrival, Liu King’s endless floating roundhouse kicks and SubZero’s ice weapons are a blast. My favorite character was Kano, the foul-mouthed mercenary with Deadpool’s one-liners and a bottomless can of whoopass. Josh Lawson carries the movie with his endless tirade of put downs and f-bombs. Between the blood, graphic violence and constant profanity, this is definitely not for the easily offended or ANY kids!
But for adults with a nostalgia for the original game, the movie’s relentless in delivering big, well-staged fights on live versions of the arenas you’ll all remember. The words “FLAWLESS VICTORY” made me laugh out loud and really took me back to all those times by daughter kicked my butt in the video game.
This is the biggest budget film to ever film in South Australia and it looks like it in all the right ways.
Benjamin Wallfisch (Blade Runner 2049, It) crafts a killer music score that punches you in the face during the battles.
If you have a tolerance for some bad acting and jaw dropping violence wrapped up with big laughs from Kano, GET OVER HERE!
Mortal Kombat is stupid, profane, perfect late-night escapism and improbably gets a B.
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