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Mortal Kombat (1995) More at IMDbPro »

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232 comments in total

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51 out of 54 people found the following comment useful :-
Street Fighter Correction, 22 September 2003
Author: jaywriterXIII from USA

Following up the spectacular disaster of competing fighting game turned movie, Mortal Kombat succeeded where Street Fighter failed. Not a fantastic movie nor one that goes in my top ten, but Mortal Kombat (without a doubt) is one of the better game-based-films.

MK wisely avoids inventing plot in unwelcomed places and sticks to the game as frequently as it can get away with. Actually the biggest contradiction that comes to mind is Scorpion and Sub-zero on the same team. Die hard fans will call the screenwriter on this, the rest of us won't care.

All the mistakes Street Fighter made, MK avoided. Instead of colorful campy cameo-fest, Mortal Kombat comes across as a dark tale about a handful of martial artists shot with an exaggerated epic style with humorous undertones to provide comic relief every now and again. Then again, it is ironic that Street Fighter would feel cartoony and Mortal Kombat more concrete when looking at the style of the games (drawn sprites versus live actors). MK is a little silly when reproducing game effects and trademark moves, though now more and more films are moving in that direction (Matrix, anyone?)

The movie's premise is the first Mortal Kombat arcade game featuring a few plot hints (journey to Outworld) and a few characters from Mortal Kombat 2 (Kitana, Jax, a youthful Shang Tsung.)

Christopher Lambert and Cary-Hiroyuki Takawa make the most memorable impact as Thunder God Rayden and Shape-shifting Sorcerer Shang Tsung. Both ham up their performances just enough to remind us that we're watching a live-action video game, but they don't go overboard into Street Fighter's territory. The rest of the cast plays their part straight forward and makes their characters believable.

It's a quick and slick film, gets to the action and gets over with before you can ask too many questions. It's a pretty decent martial arts film, and an outstanding ‘video game' film. And in 1995, it was the best game-inspired film you could find. Today it's still in the top five.

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62 out of 80 people found the following comment useful :-
Anderson's best and definitely better than the sequel, 31 October 2000

Author: Shawn Watson (gator_macready@yahoo.com) from The Underverse

Okay, let me just say that the plot ain't exactly up to much. It's just one fight scene after another but this film is miles ahead of other video game movies like Tomb Raider or House of the Dead. Video games will NEVER make classic films or even half-way decent movies. They CAN be entertaining in a no-brainer way and at this Mortal Kombat succeeds. It's a low aim after all. The sequel is terrible but this is a pretty cool film.

Cary Hiroyuki-Tagawa loves his role. He plays the part of Shang Tsung with unholy relish and delivers each line of dialogue like a REAL tyrant. 'Fools!', 'Seize them!' and 'YOU-WILL-DIE!' are but three examples. All villains in all other movies can learn from this guy.

There are three fight scenes in particular that are way cool. Liu Kang Vs Reptile, Liu Kang Vs Sub-Zero and Liu Kang Vs Shang Tsung. George S. Clinton's music is brilliant and the main Mortal Kombat theme is sooooooo cool. Also the music during the final showdown is ace. It does feel rather 90s when watching it today but when it sounds this cool, who cares? A lot of the budget was clearly spent on production design as the sets are very impressive. That particular place that Scorpion takes Johnny Cage to, for example, is very atmospheric. Every scene in this film is like jumping from one theme park ride to another.

Director Paul Anderson went on to make the dull 'Event Horizon', the terrible 'Soldier' and the horrendous 'Alien vs Predator'. After making such a promising start with Mortal Kombat one can only assume now that it was a fluke.

The DVD leaves a lot to be desired. The film is in non-anamorphic 1.85:1 but does have a terrific Dolby 5.1 sound design. Though I would liked to have had a DTS option. There are also no features. Considering how much money this film made and that it was No. 1 at the box office for three consecutive weeks, I would have expected New Line to put a lot more thought into this DVD. I can only hope they release a Special Edition some time.

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48 out of 62 people found the following comment useful :-
Fun Martial Arts/Fantasy Film, 25 January 2005

Author: Brandt Sponseller from New York City

A number of martial artists converge in China, from which they're taken to a seeming alternate dimension to fight in a tournament that's only held "once each generation". This time, however, the stakes are even higher, as the outcome of the tournament will determine the fate of the Earth.

Believe it or not, this is the first time I've seen this film, and I've not yet had experience with any of the games, the other films, the animated series, the lunchboxes, or anything else related to the Mortal Kombat universe. After watching the first film, however, I definitely will seek out some of the other material, as I enjoyed the film quite a bit--it earns an 8 out of 10 from me. At this point, however, I can't compare it to any other instantiations of Mortal Kombat.

The film is basically a combination of a classic Hong Kong-styled martial arts actioner and a fantasy that leans slightly to the horror side of that genre. To the film's benefit, it's also not something that either director Paul W.S. Anderson or writer Kevin Droney take too seriously--the film is ultimately an adaptation of a popular video game, after all. There is a tongue-in-cheek, slightly campy sense of humor and playful cheesiness throughout the film, the humor being primarily fueled from two characters, Johnny Cage (Linden Ashby) and Lord Rayden (Christopher Lambert). True, Lambert has a kind of almost smarmy campiness to anything he says or does, in any film, but for me, that's part of his attractiveness--it's a large part of what sold me on the Highlander films.

The fantasy aspect was something I didn't expect before watching the film. It was a very pleasant surprise. Being a huge horror fan, I was especially taken with the set design. The fantasy characters, such as Goro, and the fantasy traits of other characters, were well done and even subtle at times.

As for the fights, which are the propelling force behind the film, they're pleasantly varied and well choreographed, although having just watched Master of the Flying Guillotine (1975) again recently, I was slightly disappointed that the fights weren't more brutal and gory (and in fact, this is one of the areas where I subtracted a point). But they almost make up for the lack of violence but their imaginativeness, especially the fights with Sub-Zero and The Scorpion. That cleverness was required over brawn in most instances was also a nice touch.

Overall, this is a great film that any fans of martial arts or fantasy films should enjoy.

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41 out of 52 people found the following comment useful :-
Best video game movie to date, 5 September 2005

Author: K-Mac017 (xxxtheman88xxx@aim.com)

And that really says a lot about how the not-so-current trend of games-to-movies are received among critics. But this one was easily the best of all of them. This is easily in a league higher than the likes of Super Mario Brothers, Double Dragon, Street Fighter, Wing Commander, the Tomb Raider movies, Resident Evils 1 and 2, House of the Dead and Alone in the Dark, not to mention that this was one of the few that actually stayed true to the game, from the costumes to the tourney fights, from the characters to the plot lines, everything was done right, and it makes for one hell of a fight-'em-to-the-finish type movie.

But heed my warning: AVOID THE SEQUEL AT ALL COST! Just stick with the original. You won't be disappointed (well, maybe you will, just maybe).

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29 out of 34 people found the following comment useful :-
awesome opening music, 15 June 2006

Author: composer_mike from Edoass

-a select group of fighters are chosen to enter a secret tournament known as mortal kombat which will ultimately decide the fate of mankind. The foe that fighters have to face off against have won the past 9 tournaments and if they win this one then their dark leader will take over earth or something like that so the warriors being combat with people that make ice and snakes come from their hands.

-I was more than a little disappointed when I found out that the hardcore M rated "Mortal Kombat" game that set of a huge outcry from people who thought it was too violent was being made into a family friendly PG-13 movie but somehow the toned down violence works really well in the movie although it would have been nice to see Scorpion rip someone's spine out of their back. Unlike the superb "Silent Hill" in which you have to be a fan of the game in order to fully enjoy the movie this one is very user friendly and doesn't go too deep so for the 2 people who have never played the game the movie won't be too confusing but there still are a lot of references to the game spread throughout the movie from the "Finish him" line which the announcer from the game shouts to you to perform a fatality move to the "get over here" line by Scorpion which he says in the game as he throws his snakes at you to rip your body into tiny little pieces.

-without a doubt the opening music is one of the best pieces of music to ever accompany a movie. It's a nice piece of electronic techno that feels so cool that it feels like you need sun glasses in order to hear it. The characters do look very similar to the iconic ones from the game especially the actor that played Raiden and I also love the way they handled the Sub Zero character by making him a badass without going over the top. The fight scenes coupled with some kickass techno beat are a lot of fun to watch and should make kids and immature people like me very happy to watch and imitate some of the moves. The only fight that doesn't live up to the others is the final battle which starts out really fun but then goes all crazy with the effects which just really takes you out of the movie but it's still enjoyable although not as fun as the fights before it.

-I'd advice anyone that valued their sanity to avoid the sequel at all costs but no one listens to me nor takes me seriously so just know that you were warned.

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35 out of 51 people found the following comment useful :-
Test your might, 30 November 2003

Author: Kristine (kristinedrama14@msn.com) from Chicago, Illinois

"Mortal Kombat" in my opinion is just an awesome movie. I think because I was such a fan of the video games, the days when Sega was the "thang". LOL, way before Playstation there was Sega! But, I really just loved the characters and this story just always appealed to me. I think because also my friends and I enjoyed acting the movie and video game out. No, we didn't kill each other, we just loved the characters.

Yes, despite this being a typical video game movie, I still think it was cool to watch, still to this day I don't mind watching. It has an awesome soundtrack, excellent moves, and a great look and feel to the movie itself. Just let go and have fun with it, if you enjoyed the video games, I think you should enjoy "Mortal Kombat". It's just cool to watch and keeps you on the edge of your seat in excitement!

7/10

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25 out of 38 people found the following comment useful :-
Awesome, 12 August 2005

Author: Rob from Ireland

'Mortal Kombat' is a fast-paced adventure with unbelievable action and acting. The story is told brilliantly and it makes for a fun, edge-of-your-seat martial arts tale. Two men and one woman enter a contest that will decide the fate of the world - a tournament to end all tournaments. It's a very dark, shadowy film that prides itself on a gloomy atmosphere for which to muster its ground-breaking fight scenes. Few movies in recent years can match the grittiness and pure painfulness of these fights. If you're an action junkie, or just someone who wants a gripping, enjoyable movie then 'Mortal Kombat' is just what you need. A story of revenge, pride, power, weakness, determination, friendship, danger, life and death. Superb entertainment - my absolute favourite.

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28 out of 45 people found the following comment useful :-
Liu Kang and the warriors of Earth must protect their realm from the armies of Outerworld in a competition known as MORTAL KOMBAT., 14 July 2005

Author: sancho_panza from United States

Nine viewings of Mortal Kombat (MK) may not be enough to convince the movie fan of its brilliance, but undoubtedly the tenth will provide an epiphany of Outerworld proportions. MK will no longer be seen as a cheesy "Rock-em, Sock-em, action flick," but as a revolutionary film that is as astute as it is subtle. Students of the martial arts will be mesmerized by the display of skill and talent that is only found in the greatest of actor-warriors. Students of cinema will be humbled by the simplicity and utter genius of the cinematography. Students of philosophy will be enthralled by this film's interpretation of Heidegger's Dasein and will find their understanding of it born anew. This film has something for everyone and is without doubt the greatest film of the twentieth century.

MK3 or bust!

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25 out of 45 people found the following comment useful :-
Best Video Game to Movie translation., 11 June 2005

Author: hadjiquest79 from United States

I've watched this film originally in the theatres. I love this film so much. Bridgette Wilson-Sampras fit that role of Sonya Blade very well. Mortal Kombat was a phenomenon. Linden Ashby fit Johnny Cage's role very well. Goro looked fierce, but was no problem for Cage. My favourite part was when Johnny Cage does the ballbreaker move on Goro. Cary Hiroyuki-Tagawa looked ugly enough to portray Shang Tsung. The soundtrack rules. I still got the CD soundtrack. I have Midway Arcade Treasures 2 for my PlayStation 2 which includes Mortal Kombat 2 & 3. I recently got Mortal Kombat Deception premium pack for my PS2 which includes the First-original Mortal Kombat arcade version. I still love to play Mortal Kombat for my Sega Genesis.

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8 out of 12 people found the following comment useful :-
I love this Mortal Kombat!, 13 November 2001

Author: Movie Nuttball from U.S.A.

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Minor Spoilers

Based on one of the greatest fighting games ever is very entertaining and is filled with action,good acting,and great special effects.Most of the original characters are here.Christopher Lambert plays Lord Rayden very well and Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa plays Shang Tsung excellent!Goro is huge and is very powerful in this just like he is in the video game.He speaks aswell and those four arms of his is menacing.Mortal Kombat fans will love this movie!

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