Mortal Kombat

PG-13

1995

1h 41m

Action

List

47%

Tomatometer

45 Reviews

58%

Popcornmeter

250,000+ Ratings

Lord Rayden (Christopher Lambert) handpicks three martial artists -- federal agent Sonya Blade (Bridgette Wilson), Shaolin monk Lui Kang (Robin Shou) and action movie sensation Johnny Cage (Linden Ashby) -- and mentors them. After intense training, Rayden transports the trio to Outworld, the site of an inter-dimensional fighting tournament. There, the three humans must defeat the demonic warriors of the evil Shang Sung (Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa) -- or allow Sung to take over the Earth.

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Critics Consensus

Despite an effective otherwordly atmosphere and appropriately cheesy visuals, Mortal Kombat suffers from its poorly constructed plot, laughable dialogue, and subpar acting.

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Nigel Andrews

Financial Times

It is too violent for children and too silly for anyone else.

Mar 17, 2021

Full Review

Geoff Brown

Times (UK)

Novices may find the ground rules difficult to follow, though if you cut away the baroque detail you are left with a blunt, noisy, violent fight between good and evil.

Mar 17, 2021

Full Review

Gene Siskel

Chicago Tribune

The only decent video game turned into a movie. Why? Obviously because the filmmakers have really tried to offer some eye-popping visuals that can provide the same stimuli as the video game itself.

Rated: 3/4

Sep 14, 2020

Full Review

Jae-Ha Kim

Jae-Ha Kim

The producers of "Mortal Kombat" know that the film's strength movie is based on the actors' roundhouse kicks, not soliloquies. So it's not surprising that the sci-fi action-adventure is heavy on fight scenes and low on plot.

Rated: 2.5/4

Jul 27, 2023

Full Review

Don Shanahan

Cinephile Hissy Fit Podcast

The wonderful (and practical) use of a limited budget, the film's phenomenal production design, and exquisite cinematography, and the admittedly terrible application of CGI.

Oct 2, 2021

Full Review

Shaun Munro

Flickering Myth

Time hasn't been kind to every facet of Anderson's Mortal Kombat, but its well-crafted atmospherics, heightened action, and enthusiastic cast ensure it remains one of the more spirited video game adaptations to date.

Rated: 3.5/5

Apr 24, 2021

Full Review

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Eric

My theater played the wrong movie. The 2021 version was shown.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

07/20/24

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Ben W

Super fun and cheesy! Great time!

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

09/15/23

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Joaquin R

The Mortal Kombat movie is one of the greatest video game movies of all time and you can't tell me otherwise.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

09/06/24

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Ryan S

Classic movie with some mediocre acting. Still watching it every time I come across it on TV.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

08/13/24

Full Review

Joel D

I understand it was the early 90s and CGI was nowhere close to what it is today but I had more issues with the bland plots in general. A lot of hype with not much follow-through. Not to mention Raiden's always been my favorite character in the game and they hardly give him any play in the plot, let-alone actually wearing his dope outfit. Definitely a victim of Hollywood's own "individual" vision of cinema that has/had plagued fandom for as long as I can remember. This goes for MK annihilation as well btw

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

07/27/24

Full Review

Graham M

A very well-done adaptation of the arcade game. Even though some of the favorite characters, like Sub-Zero and Scorpion, are put to the wayside and have their stories changed, the main cast is well-written and played well. And even though the darker and more violent tone of the game is dulled down, the vibe of the movie is distinct and memorable. It would not be unreasonable to call Mortal Kombat the best videogame to movie adaptation.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

07/12/24

Full Review

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Paul W.S. Anderson

Director

Robin Shou

Liu Kang

Linden Ashby

Johnny Cage

Bridgette Wilson-Sampras

Sonya Blade

Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa

Shang Tsung

Talisa Soto

Princess Kitana

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4%

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Synopsis

Lord Rayden (Christopher Lambert) handpicks three martial artists -- federal agent Sonya Blade (Bridgette Wilson), Shaolin monk Lui Kang (Robin Shou) and action movie sensation Johnny Cage (Linden Ashby) -- and mentors them. After intense training, Rayden transports the trio to Outworld, the site of an inter-dimensional fighting tournament. There, the three humans must defeat the demonic warriors of the evil Shang Sung (Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa) -- or allow Sung to take over the Earth.

Director: Paul W.S. Anderson
Producer: Lawrence Kasanoff
Screenwriter: Kevin Droney
Production Co: New Line Cinema
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Action
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 1, 2009
Box Office (Gross USA): $70.5M
Runtime: 1h 41m
Sound Mix: Surround, Stereo

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