Mortal Kombat (1995)

Mortal Kombat is a 1995 American fantasy martial arts film written by Kevin Droney, directed by Paul W. S. Anderson, and starring Robin Shou, Linden Ashby, Bridgette Wilson, and Christopher Lambert. It is a loose adaptation of the early entries in the fighting game series Mortal Kombat.

The plot of the film follows the warrior Liu Kang, the actor Johnny Cage, and the soldier Sonya Blade, all three guided by the god Raiden, on their journey to combat the evil sorcerer Shang Tsung and his forces in a tournament to save Earth. The film's primary source material was 1992's original game of the same title, but it was also inspired by and incorporates elements of 1993's follow-up game Mortal Kombat II.

Mortal Kombat, a co-production between Threshold Entertainment and Midway Games, was filmed primarily in Los Angeles, as well as on location in Thailand, and premiered on August 18, 1995 in the United States. Its tie-in media included hit soundtracks Mortal Kombat: Motion Picture Score and Mortal Kombat: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, and a prequel animated film, The Journey Begins.

Despite receiving mostly mixed to negative reviews by critics, Mortal Kombat spent three weeks as the number-one film at the U.S. box office, earning over $122 million worldwide. Critics praised the fight sequences, production design, cinematography, exotic locations and direction but commented on the weak performances, simplistic plot and the lack of gore in contrast to the violent nature of the game the film was based. Due to its commercial success, Threshold Entertainment followed with a 1997 sequel film, Mortal Kombat: Annihilation, and created two spin-off television series, Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm and Mortal Kombat: Konquest. A Mortal Kombat film reboot was announced by New Line Cinema in 2011, but as of early 2015 it remains in development hell.

Synopsis

The film is centered on Mortal Kombat, a fight tournament between the representatives the realms of Earth and Outworld conceived by the Elder Gods amid looming invasion of the Earth by Outworld. If the realm of Outworld wins Mortal Kombat ten consecutive times, its Emperor Shao Kahn will be able to invade and conquer the Earth realm.

Actors