Mortal Kombat

Cheesy, sincere, and somehow the best video game movie of its decade

Long before Hollywood figured out how to adapt games without embarrassing itself, this one stumbled into the formula almost by accident. Director Paul Anderson, hired off the strength of his scrappy debut Shopping, had never touched visual effects before taking the job. He learned on the fly, and somehow that improvisational energy became the film's biggest asset.

Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa shows up to his Shang Tsung audition already in costume, reading lines standing on a chair, and the filmmakers never look at anyone else again. His performance still sets the bar for every sorcerer who has followed. Add Christopher Lambert hamming it up as a thunder god and Robin Shou anchoring the fight choreography with real wushu credentials, and the cast overperforms a script that critics rightly found thin.

The Story

Every generation, Earth and the otherworldly Outworld settle their fate through a martial arts tournament, and Outworld is one win away from conquest. Shaolin monk Liu Kang, action star Johnny Cage, and Special Forces officer Sonya Blade get pulled into the competition by the thunder god Raiden, each carrying a personal grudge into the ring.

The plot pulls from the original 1992 game, with Mortal Kombat II filling in gaps.

Viewing Guide

At 101 minutes, this moves fast and never pretends to be anything deeper than a tournament bracket with mythology attached. The PG-13 rating strips out the games' trademark gore, a decision that still irritates purists but let the film reach a wider audience in theaters back in 1995. Go in for the fight choreography, the Thailand locations standing in for Outworld, and Tagawa chewing scenery with real conviction.