Mortal Kombat

MMA fighter Cole Young seeks out Earth's greatest champions in order to stand against the enemies of Outworld in a high stakes battle for the universe.

Mortal Kombat is an American martial arts fantasy action film directed by Simon McQuoid from a screenplay by Greg Russo and Dave Callaham and a story by Oren Uziel and Russo.

Official Trailer: Mortal Kombat

Review: Mortal Kombat

Pure, mindless action cinema has been one of the biggest genre casualties of the COVID era. Perhaps only comedies have suffered more from all the shutdowns and changeups that have blighted the movie business.

Will the arrival of Mortal Kombat change that equation any? Surprisingly, it stands a better chance than most. Which is not bad going for a modern production based on an ancient video game.

Action fans with long - no, make that very long - memories will recall movies have had a previous pop at exploiting the MK franchise.

These old-timers can rest assured 2021's Mortal Kombat is roughly five times better than its 1995 equivalent (and you can double that estimate for 1997's atrocious Mortal Kombat: Annihilation).

Just don't come along expecting anything resembling decent acting or straightforward storytelling, and you'll be more than content with what you see here.

For what it is worth - not much, admittedly - the Mortal Kombat plot is barely fathomable throughout.

Here is all that can be reliably reported. There are these two competing dimensions of existence. Where you are right now? That is Earthrealm. The other world? You can call it Outworld.

According to the occasional line of dialogue slipped into the mix, Earthrealm and Outworld have been at loggerheads for centuries. The ongoing battle has been confined to organised fighting tournaments governed by strict rules.

Lots of strict rules. The only one really worth knowing is should either side lose 10 fights in a row, then they will be toast forever. As we join the action in Mortal Kombat, Earthrealm is on a 0-9 losing streak. One more defeat, and our planet becomes an Outworld outpost.

Got all that? Good. As the movie progresses, an all-new Earthrealm team sheet is assembled, with former MMA star Cole (Lewis Tan), feisty freedom fighter Sonya (Jessica McNamee) and wisecracking mercenary Kano (Josh Lawson) the freshest recruits.

Once trained up, this trio and their better-credentialed cohorts Liu Kang (Ludi Lin) and Kung Lao (Max Huang) will be on a collision course with the dreaded Sub-Zero (Joe Taslim), a centuries-old chiller-killer who can freeze you to death with the slightest touch.

All that really matters here are the fight sequences, and it has to be conceded a majority of the setpiece smackdowns deliver the goods. Not so much in terms of elegant or inspired design (the John Wick series has Mortal Kombat completely covered on this front), but definitely when it comes to excitement and sustained energy release.

Those without a taste for the very rough stuff may wish to be aware of the movie's R rating, a prohibitive tag you don't see often these days. The violence here is definitely ultra-graphic , and not for the faint-hearted .

Review by LEIGH PAATSCH April 22, 2021 issue of The Herald Sun Digital Edition. To subscribe, visit https://www.heraldsun.com.au/.