Mortal Kombat

Disclaimer: Warner Bros. Home Entertainment provided us with a free copy of this Blu-ray/DVD that we reviewed in this blog post. The opinions we share are our own.

“MMA fighter Cole Young must train to unlock his true power and stand with Earth’s greatest champions against the enemies from Outworld in a high-stakes battle for the universe.”

The film opens in Japan, centuries earlier, as Hanzo Hasashi (Hiroyuki Sanada) and his family are tracked down by the villainous Bi-Han (Joe Taslim), tasked with destroying the Shirai Ryu clan and all its descendants. After a bloody battle, Lord Raiden (Tadanobu Asano) is able to rescue an infant, hidden by Hasashi’s wife, ensuring the lineage will continue. As we fast forward to modern times, we learn that Earth Realm has lost nine of the last Mortal Kombat tournaments, and losing one more will cause it to be enslaved by Outworld and the evil sorcerer Shang Tsung (Chin Han), but, there is a prophecy that a descendant of Hanzo Hasashi will arise to prevent this, thus beginning the search on the sides of good and evil to find this person for the fate of all mankind.

I’ve been a fan of the Mortal Kombat series since I was introduced to the very first in the Arcade, and eventually on home consoles. It’s hard to believe that almost thirty years have passed since then, with countless different incarnations of the game, all with an intertwining story that is surprisingly in depth and a lot of fun to learn about as new fighters were added to the roster with each game, bringing unique aspects each time. While the 1995 film sought to capitalize on the wild popularity of the game, it provided decent enough entertainment, which was of course limited by the technology at the time, as well as the PG-13 rating to ensure the targeted demographic was able to flock to the theaters in droves to see their favorite graphical fighters come to life on-screen. Mortal Kombat: Annihilation was an absolute travesty, and it seemed that there would be no recovery save for a few short-episodic series that gave us fans hope for a future in which movies based on video games could be good.

I believe that Mortal Kombat achieves just that. With the introduction of a new character, Cole Young (Lewis Tan), we leave behind any presumed storyline the film would feel obligated to follow if it focused on let’s say, Liu Kang like the original film, or any of the other original characters. This also lets those unfamiliar with the characters identify with a new part of the story and not feel lost. Cole is a perfect character to introduce us to this new world, as rules and ideas are explained to him as the story progresses. The ‘mark’ you get that allows you to compete in the tournament is something completely new, and using it for each fighter to identify their power within is an interesting take on explaining how these people get their abilities, and not just that Kano is some guy with a laser eye installed in his head. There is a nice balance between being entertaining for fans and newcomers alike.

With 77 total playable characters in the Mortal Kombat universe, there is no possible way to reference or show every possible one, but the ones that they do choose to represent this newest incarnation are pretty solid choices, choices you would probably expect the beginning of a Mortal Kombat story to focus on. However, there are quite a few surprises and lesser-known characters thrown in. What I think the film does best is its handling of the Kano (Josh Lawson) character. His conflict with Sonya in the original story spans the entire history of the game, but it’s more light-hearted nature here is an interesting choice that injects quite a bit of humor into the film where I didn’t expect it. His journey is one of the most fun to watch, and if it’s any indication about its reception, I’m hoping he’ll be back in any sequel that may arise, as well as the character that’s teased at the very end.

As far as the story goes, the only thing that left me a bit puzzled was that the entire film hinges on Earth Realm winning it’s tenth tournament, but that never even takes place. There is a continuing storyline that the bad guys are trying to cheat their way to victory, but it kind of gets a bit muddled at the end trying to wrap up each individual character’s conflicts all at once. Hopefully this opens a door to a sequel and the introduction of the tenth tournament, but it’s a big gamble that might hinder its success. For me, it’s a very small area of criticism, because the overall tone of the film and it’s loyalty to fans of the franchise wins out.

Video

Mortal Kombat is presented in 1080p High Definition Widescreen 2.39:1. The Blu-ray looks great, very clear and detailed picture that highlights each scene in the best ways possible. Color comes through very rich and vibrant, and there are quite a few sequences where this is very noticeably beautiful: the opening scene, the desert sequence, all the sequences in Outworld, these are stunning, and if you are given the choice, I’m sure they would look even better in the 4k version that was released as well.

Audio

The audio is presented in Dolby Atmos. Perhaps my favorite part of this set, the track is incredible. The opening sequence alone and the epic battle against Hanzo and Bi-Han will be sure to impress you with the range of information coming from the surrounds. Levels are well balanced, with clear and concise dialogue coming from the center channel. Crank the volume up a few notches above normal for this film, it’s worth it.

Special Features

Fans will enjoy all the extras you get on this set, and even has great re-watch value, as I picked up quite a few Easter Eggs I missed the first time I saw it.

• Deleted Scenes
• From Game to Screen: The Making of Mortal Kombat
• Mortal Kombat: Fan Favorite Characters – 11 Featurettes
• Fight Koreography
• Into the Krypt: Easter Eggs of Mortal Kombat
• Anatomy of a Scene – 7 Featurettes

Mortal Kombat, simply put, is a blast. There could have been things done differently, more focus on certain characters or the tournament itself, but in the attempt to revitalize the franchise into the film medium again, during one of the worst times for films, it should be considered no less than a smashing success.