This cult mix of fantasy action and bloody 90s trash is actually too absurd to be true

We already published this article in a similar form as a VOD tip on February 2, 2021.

Before Resident Evil director Paul WS Anderson pounded multi-part zombie epics out of the ground, he was already raging through another video game implementation with fireworks, CGI trash and physical fights: Mortal Kombat is a wonderfully absurd action kid of the 90smixes fantasy epic with trash and can be seen on TV today.

Fantasy action on TV: That’s what Mortal Kombat is all about

The brawling fun follows the 1992 video game template: fighters from Earth and the alien Outworld go head-to-head in turn until the contest between the realms is decided. The stakes are high: if the brutal Outworlders win, theirs stands invasion of earth nothing more in the way.

It’s good that the best of us stand in the way of the otherworldly meanies: Under the direction of thunder god Raiden (Christopher Lambert in a tailor-made role), ex-Shaolin Liu Kang (Robin Shou), elite soldier Sonya Blade ( Bridgette Wilson) and actor (!) Johnny Cage (Linden Ashby) about the fate of our world.

They have to survive all sorts of duels against the Outworld minions with their supernatural abilities until they finally Obermotz and Mortal Kombat organizer Shang Tsung (Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa) to dance.

That’s why the cult film by the creators of Resident Evil is worth it

According to the conventional criteria of film criticism, Mortal Kombat doesn’t make much: The story is absolutely outrageous, the character development is consumptive and the over-emphasized acting turns every point of the finger into a dying swan.

But that’s exactly why you can love the martial arts hit: It doesn’t even try to be more than an adaptation of a brute fighting game. Authentic plots and depth of character do not interest him. Instead, he puts his strengths in the parts that matter most in a video game brawl: the Look and the choreography.

Mortal Kombat has a great look

With much attention to detail enchanted temples, dusty battlefields and the apocalyptic Outworld were prepared here. With their tendrils, pillars and burning fires, they immediately pull the spectators into the heart of the action.

Not everyone likes the fact that a lot of CGI is used from the very beginning. To me, it makes the look of the film delightfully surreal. As if Mortal Kombat were already so bright and colorful that flesh-and-blood actors are not enough for him and he prefers to use bloodthirsty, computer-generated lizards.

Mortal Kombat underscores exciting fights with a pumping 90s soundtrack

The martial arts fights in particular make the film entertaining, which are extremely successful for an American action hit. Handmade stunts are supported by a dynamic camera and give us the feeling of having to seek cover even in a hail of fists.

Mortal Kombat is great because the film delivers pure exaggeration on every level – this also applies to the soundtrack, which has meanwhile become legendary. With pumping 90s trance the brawls are heated up so ambitiously that you either cling to your chair or burst out laughing.

I’m fine with both, maybe that’s why I always like Mortal Kombat. Paul WS Anderson’s fantasy cracker is honest popcorn cinema: full of effects, unsubtle and really entertaining.

When is Mortal Kombat on TV?

Mortal Kombat is running this Saturday, November 19, 2022, at 8:15 p.m. on Tele 5. If you don’t have time, you can catch up on the film at 2:20 a.m. It has a running time of 101 minutes without ads.

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In this installment of the Moviepilot podcast Stream Gefluer we talk about Guillermo del Toro’s dark new version of Pinocchio, the Will Smith comeback Emancipation, the Knives Out sequel Glass Onion with Daniel Craig and the horror hype Barbarian, among others.

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What do you think of Mortal Kombat?