Mortal Kombat (1995)

Three unknowing martial artists are summoned to a mysterious island to compete in a tournament whose outcome will decide the fate of the world.

Director:

Paul W.S. Anderson (as Paul Anderson)

Writers:

Ed Boon (video games), John Tobias (video games)

Stars:

Christopher Lambert, Robin Shou, Linden Ashby

1 win & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Christopher Lambert	...	Lord Raiden
Robin Shou	...	Liu Kang
Linden Ashby	...	Johnny Cage
Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa	...	Shang Tsung
Bridgette Wilson-Sampras	...	Sonya Blade (as Bridgette Wilson)
Talisa Soto	...	Kitana
Trevor Goddard	...	Kano
Chris Casamassa	...	Scorpion
François Petit	...	Sub-Zero
Keith Cooke	...	Reptile (as Keith H. Cooke)
Hakim Alston	...	Fighting Monk
Kenneth Edwards	...	Art Lean
John Fujioka	...	Chief Priest
Daniel Haggard	...	Assistant Director
Sandy Helberg	...	Director

Storyline

Based on the popular video game of the same name "Mortal Kombat" tells the story of an ancient tournament where the best of the best of different Realms fight each other. The goal - ten wins to be able to legally invade the losing Realm. Outworld has so far collected nine wins against Earthrealm, so it's up to Lord Rayden and his fighters to stop Outworld from reaching the final victory...

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Plot Keywords:

based on video game | campy | evil man | villain | woman breaks a man's neck | 

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Taglines:

Nothing In This World Has Prepared You For This

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Fantasy | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for non-stop martial arts action and some violence

Did You Know?

Trivia

There are six symbols on the wall during the reptile fight. A question mark, Girl and the MK logo repeating. It's a code for the Mortal Kombat 3 arcade game that at the time was just released. Entering the code would have you switch characters at random.

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Goofs

(at around 1h 30 mins) After the souls are released from Shang Tsung, the camera pans down to show Johnny Cage, Sonya and Kitana walking on the spiked Mortal Kombat logo where defeated Shang Tsung's body decomposed into a skeleton. However, Shang Tsung's body is missing in that shot.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Chan: No! Please!
Shang Tsung: You're brother's soul is mine!
Chan: Liu!
Shang Tsung: You will be next.

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Crazy Credits

There is a statement in the closing credits: "Snake and insect action was monitored by the American Humane Association, which commends the filmmaker for his responsible and sensitive treatment of even the smallest of Earth's creatures."

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Alternate Versions

The UK versions were missing shots of nunchaku, Scorpion's "snake" attacking Johnny Cage and a brief moment from the Art Lean/Goro fight. These cuts were waived for the 2003 EIV DVD.

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Connections

Referenced in JonTron: Foodfight! (2014)

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Soundtracks

Halcyon + On + On
Written by Phil Hartnoll, Paul Hartnoll, Edward Barton
Performed by Orbital
Courtesy of Internal/London International Records, Ltd.
Sample of "It's A Fine Day"
Performed by Opus III
(Courtesy of PWL International)

User Reviews

Paul Anderson's only good movie.

I've always believed that video-games will never make good movies. But Warner don't seem to understand what a goldmine they're sitting on when it comes to Mortal Kombat. The franchise has so many characters, complex back-stories, and mythology that it honestly dwarfs the X-Men. There is a huge amount of potential in Mortal Kombat. This juvenile 1995 effort only scratches the surface of that potential, but still manages to be an enjoyable no-brainer.

I remember when this was released back in October 1995. It had been No. 1 at the US box office for three straight weeks. The audience did actually manage to go along with the silly, tongue-in-cheek hokum, and it worked. By modern standards this film is laughably awful. The CGI effects look like they were rendered on a Commodore 64, even when the technology to make much better was readily available at the time. I feel so old thinking about how dated and retro Mortal Kombat is.

A bunch of muscular tough-guys are called to an exotic island to take part in a fighting tournament that could decide the fate of the planet. The Outworld Emperor wants Earth as his new dominion and is one tournament away from victory. His mortal, demonic minions, led by the brilliantly over-the-top Cary Hiroyuki Tagawa as dark sorcerer Shang Tsung, must fight Earth's toughest warriors. All but three are expendable: Liu Kang, Johnny Cage, and Sonya Blade. The film follows them as they fight their way through many colorful environments.

It looks and feels very much like an old-fashioned kung-fu movie. The production design is frequently wonderful, and there's hardly any unlikeable characters. Even 4-armed Prince Goro (brought to life by lovely puppetry) is fun to watch. The story however is paper-thin. Like I said, it could be so much more but the talent or motivation to make such a film in 1995 just wasn't there.

I've never been a fan of Paul Anderson (as a matter-of-fact, he's one of the worst filmmakers currently working), but his US debut is a fun, little pot-boiler with some funky 90s techno.

Details

Official Sites:

The Threshold Network

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 August 1995 (USA)

Also Known As:

Mortal Kombat

Filming Locations:

Santa Monica, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$18,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$23,283,887, 20 August 1995

Gross USA:

$70,454,098

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$122,195,920

Company Credits

Production Co:

New Line Cinema, Threshold Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS (8 channels)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1