Finally,an adaptation worthy of a name

Film Review
Tinashe Kusema

I think it is fair to say the “Mortal Kombat” (MK) movie franchise has to date been a complete disaster.

I grew up during the height of the video game’s success, thus there is a certain level of nostalgia that comes with the release of an MK movie.

It was the same with the 1994 release of “Street Fighter”.

While “Street Fighter” had the star power of Jean-Claude Van Damme and Raul Julia, the other Mortal Kombat releases that followed have failed to live up to the billing.

With the bar set low, the latest “Mortal Kombat” release could easily be the best.

It is not a classic piece of cinema, but could be a rejuvenation of the franchise.

The film opens in 17th century Japan.

We are introduced to Hanzo Hasashi (Hiroyuki Sanada), a legendary fighter and family man.

Unfortunately, Hasashi and his family soon get attacked and killed by a rival fighter Bin-Han (Joe Taslim) and his gang.

Fast forward to the present, we meet Cole Young.

He is a martial arts fighter who later turns out to be the only surviving member of the Hasashi blood clan.

Young finds himself under attack from Bin-Han, now under the moniker Sub-Zero.

Young finds allies in the form of Jax (Mehcad Brooks), Sonya Blade (Jessica McNamee) and Kano (Josh Lawson), as they search for answers why they all have the same dragon tattoo and a super-powered assassin trying to kill them.

Their search lands them in Lord Raiden’s temple. It is there that they discover they have been chosen, by virtue of possessing the dragon tattoos, to defend Earth in a tournament called Mortal Kombat.

Their biggest rival, Shang Tsung (Chin Han), soon comes calling, attacking the team way before the tournament starts.

Now, this “Mortal Kombat” film largely falls into the same traps as its predecessors — namely “Mortal Kombat” (1995) and “Mortal Kombat-Annihilation” (1997) — by sacrificing basic storytelling for cheap fan service and gory action.

I do not mind the gory violence and actually rate this particular movie very high in that department.

But they could have done without the fan service.

Phrases like “Kano wins”, “Fatality for Kung Lao”, “Your soul is mine” and “Finish him” at the end of fights do not make a movie more MK.

Rather, it makes it artificial.

A plus for the movie, besides the wall-to-wall gory violence, is that it takes time to delve deep into the storied history between Scorpion and Sub-Zero.

According to “Mortal Kombat” folklore, a god disguised himself as Bin-Han and killed Hanzo Hasashi’s entire clan and family.

The said god revives Hasashi, so he can take revenge in exchange for his eternal services and obedience.

Bin-Han and Hasashi then become mortal enemies and are destined to fight forever.

The two characters get due attention in the new release.

Taslim (Bin-Han/Sub-Zero) and Sanada (Hasashai/Scorpion) are such great fights.

I would not be shocked if they both did their own stunts.

The “Mortal Kombat” gallery has a long list of great fighters and characters, most of whom did not make it into the film.

Some, like the ever-popular Johnny Cage, are even teased.

If whetting the appetite was the goal here, it worked.

New Line Cinema can even go the Marvel route, teasing with the casting of remaining key characters — Katana, Shao Khan, Jacqui Briggs, Cassie Cage and Taven, among others.