{"id":35104,"date":"2021-04-26T16:47:46","date_gmt":"2021-04-26T20:47:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/?p=35104"},"modified":"2021-04-26T17:44:46","modified_gmt":"2021-04-26T21:44:46","slug":"mortal-kombat-2021","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/2021\/04\/26\/mortal-kombat-2021\/","title":{"rendered":"Mortal Kombat (2021)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>I\u2019m one of the many who were there when \u201cMortal Kombat\u201d crashed through America in 1992. Going from an arcade hit everyone talked about because of its vicious violence, to a home console darling, \u201cMortal Kombat\u201d is a prime franchise candidate that was sadly snuffed out in 1997. After the absolute embarrassment of \u201cMortal Kombat: Annihilation<\/a>\u201d it took two decades for \u201cMortal Kombat\u201d to finally return as a potential cinematic\/franchise heavyweight.<\/p>\n

Is Warner Bros.\u2019 and Simon McQuoid\u2019s reboot perfect? No. But hot damn it is good!<\/p>\n

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MMA fighter\u00a0Cole Young<\/strong>, accustomed to taking a beating for money, is unaware of his heritage\u2014or why Outworld\u2019s Emperor\u00a0<\/strong>Shang Tsung<\/strong>\u00a0has sent his best warrior,\u00a0<\/strong>Sub-Zero<\/strong>, an otherworldly Cryomancer, to hunt Cole down. Fearing for his family\u2019s safety, Cole goes in search of\u00a0Sonya Blade<\/strong>\u00a0at the direction of\u00a0Jax<\/strong>, a Special Forces Major who bears the same strange dragon marking Cole was born with. Soon, he finds himself at the temple of\u00a0Lord Raiden<\/strong>, an Elder God and the protector of Earthrealm. Cole trains with experienced warriors\u00a0<\/strong>Liu Kang<\/strong>,\u00a0<\/strong>Kung Lao<\/strong>, as he prepares to stand with Earth\u2019s greatest champions against the enemies of Outworld in a high stakes battle for the universe. But will Cole be able to stop Outworld once and for all?<\/p>\n

While I\u2019ll always have appreciation for the 1995 OG<\/a>, the reboot works on so many levels. It\u2019s fun, it\u2019s gory, it\u2019s funny, it\u2019s action packed, and it injects the necessary amount of camp needed for this series. It also offers the necessary emotional weight we need to get behind these characters; it\u2019s emotional weight that\u2019ll allow this movie series to flourish for many more sequels. Characters Sub-Zero and Scorpion are given significant back story (Joe Taslim and Hiroyuki Sanada are superb) with an emotionally charged prologue. This gives the movie as a whole a reason to exist and injects immense motivation in every person on screen to act as they do and how they do. What fuels Kano? Why is Sonya Blade involved?<\/p>\n

Rather than the \u201cBecause the game!\u201d reasons of the original two films, McQuoid and the writers offer great motivations and allow us to root them on from beginning to end. Everything about \u201cMortal Kombat\u201d is tightly packed and manages to present so much fascinating lore and back story, while also paying homage to the games for long standing fans of the franchise. There are the fatalities, the brutalities, signature moves from various characters, and some are even improved upon. Sub-Zero is one scary motherfucker here, and Raiden is given a great presence as the film\u2019s resident Gandalf-esque force of good.<\/p>\n

Also I\u2019d be remiss if I didn\u2019t offer big credit to Josh Lawson who, often times, carried the movie as the ruthless villain Kano. The man is the SOB you love to hate, and I hope he returns for the potential follow up. Meanwhile typically boring characters like Kabal actually become formidable on screen villains. If anything I wish we\u2019d seen so much more of Jax, while I think the writers should have opted to focus on a more interesting protagonist. While Cole Young is fine, as is star Lewis Tan, Young pales in comparison to the more appealing heroes the script could have set its sights on. While yes, Cole exists as a means of giving entry to new audiences, I wouldn\u2019t miss him if he doesn\u2019t appear in “Mortal Kombat II.”<\/p>\n

Most of all, there isn\u2019t an actual tournament that ensues. Much of the movie is preparation for a tournament and then once Shang Tsung begins cheating, the tournament never actually unfolds. That said, I loved \u201cMortal Kombat.\u201d I love the direction McQuoid takes offering substance, great action, and characters we can root for. I\u2019m convinced this mythology can produce some great sequels down the line, as well as a new generation of fans.<\/p>\n

Now in Theaters Worldwide and Streaming Exclusively on HBO Max.<\/strong>
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