I am a HUUUUUUUGGGEE MORTAL KOMBAT fan and I have never thought they have done a good film (except Scorpions Revenge), but this film is so close to being the perfect Mortal Kombat film but a few things let it down.

So let's start with the good, I actually think all of the castings is perfect as I felt everyone embodied their characters perfectly with the standouts being Hiroyuki Sanada (Scorpion), Joe Taslim (Sub-Zero), Mehcad Brooks (Jax) and the best being Josh Lawson (Kano) who just plays Kano in such a way that he makes he almost makes scenes that can be generic even better with his great one-liners and great comedic but scum bag timing. Also, you can see the passion for the franchise from the cast and crew because they nail references and also many different things like fatalities which feel sooooo good when it happens.

Now here is where I say the negative, whoever edited this film needs to be supervised better because some of the scenes are edited so poorly but especially the fight scenes which you can see they shot the actions but they use quick cuts which ruin some of the fights in the film. Also, though Lewis Tan (Cole Young) grew on me I feel like it would have been easier to use a character from the franchise already though he wasn't bad in the film just a little bit generic and they spend too much time on him and not enough on the other characters like Scorpion who you would think according to the trailer he would be in it more.

Anyway, if you are a Mortal Kombat fan I feel like you will enjoy it and I give it a 7/10 because they have shown they care about the fans but as a film, it isn't great and I wouldn't recommend it if you aren't a Mortal Kombat fan.

Mortal Kombat Gives Fans Of The Franchise The Brutal Live-Action Version They Deserve
Fans of the Mortal Kombat series have known that the path to bringing the violent and controversial game to live-action formats has been a mixed bag. While the first film in 1995 was a decent hit; the follow-up in 1997 disappointed fans who had grown weary of the PG-13 take on the series.

Subsequent efforts such as the 2011 television series also left fans wanting more; especially since the game series had become even more graphic and violent.

An animated film released in 2020 gave fans a taste of what they wanted as it featured graphical violence which many fans believed was essential to properly catch the spirit and action of the series.

The latest offering in the series “Mortal Kombat”; reboots the cinematic universe and gives fans the intense, brutal, and graphic violence that they have demanded. The film keeps the basic premise that the Outworld realm has won nine tournaments in a row, and based on the ancient laws; one more victory would allow them to take control of the Earth.

Raiden the Thunder God (Tadanobu Asano); who has been tasked with protecting Earth looks to assemble and train a band of champions to save Earth. Naturally, this is not going to be easy as Shang Tsung (Chin Han); is not willing to follow the rules of the tournament and dispatches his top fighter (Sub Zero (Joe Taslim) to dispatch the champions of Earth before the tournament in a clear violation of the rules in order to ensure total victory.

What follows is solid and very graphic action which contains gore and brutality on a level that almost kept the film from earning an R-rating. The action sequences are well-choreographed and there were some great recreations of classic moves by characters from the game series which were really well utilized and did not seem like gratuitous pandering.

While the plot is fairly simplistic and does not deviate greatly from the source material; it does give a larger backstory to the universe. It was really enjoyable to see many nods to the franchise throughout both subtle and overt and while some characters were glaringly absent which was a surprise; the characters that were included were really solid to see and the door was wide open for their inclusion at a later date.

While the cast does not contain any star power in terms of what Western audiences might expect from a major studio release; the ensemble works well and do a great job in bringing their characters to life.

The film leaves sequels wide open and teases a character that in my opinion was a glaring omission from the film. That being said; “Mortal Kombat” gives fans a solid adaptation that does not shy away from gore and violence and gives fans the cinematic experience that they have wanted.

3.5 stars out of 5

I liked this more than I should have.

I have tried the games, but am not into the fighting genre of games (although the Injustice series grabbed me for its story). The previous movies were fun and didnt take themselves seriously - which was good, but they got too hammy and over the top. The last cartoon took itself way to seriously and was disappointing and forgettable to say the least.

This movie, however seemed to grab everything good from the previous attempts, added actors who know some martial arts, used some of the key terms and moves from the games and had a stand out performance from Josh Lawson as Kano adding the 'very dry type of Australian' humour. Hell, the score was even good.

Given that this is pretty much the same as the game - 10-12 fights some spectacular fatalities and a basic plot with no character development - this was a very fun way to spend 2 hours.

I will be short. You should understand how hard to make movies based on such a legendary universe (expectation is too high!), with a lot of characters that need screen time, and with limited budget, PLUS in a pandemic situation, - the director made a great job.

This is the best adaptation of such a legendary title.

Fluff entertainment at its most bland. The fighting is pretty forgettable but at least they utilized the R rating for some decent gore that honors the game at least. Acting is at best so-so while the dialogue was pretty bad and it probably 10-15 minutes too long. Can't say I'll remember this but for what it is, it's fine as a time-waster. **2.75/5**