This is a great movie, i remember watching in theaters, it was amazing, The scorpion and Johny cage fight was the high point in this movie, i didint know how complecated it was to film.
PS: Christopher Lamber is great, I Always wanted to know, why doesnt he appear in more and better movies. Bad agent maybe? Highlandar was great thanks to him. by the way, any plan for a highlander review?
Everything about Mortal Kombat was great and pretty much the perfect movie adaption that could have been done of the game series based around the story of the first game and incorporating best elements and characters of MK1 and 2 including catchphrases from the game, signature moves, some fatalities and Johnny Cages friendship and not trying to include every character possible from the game unlike the sequel.
The casting was great especially Shang Tsung and his delivery of his classic Mortal Kombat catchphrases with maybe the exception of Sonya Blade and the music was great throughout the film.
I was hoping the Machinima series was going to have a second series but I guess it was used to garner interest in a Mortal Kombat reboot film that they are supposed to be making this year I think.
You need to watch MK2 again.
I hated it when I first saw it in the cinema but watching it again from a comedic perspective it is a great good bad flick.
Bad special effects especially when they morph into their animality at the end, cheesy dialogue and constant fight scenes and flips. Lol!
Are you talking about Mortal Kombat Legacy? They are working on season 2 as we speak!
MKA was awful. It was such a quick, cheap cash in to capitalize on the original and even though it cost more than twice the original, it looked way worse. I may revisit it, I haven’t seen it in ages.
Great review as usual. Although a good movie I myself have never been a huge fan of Robin Shou. While he did win some Wushu competitions when he was younger he simply doesn’t have the grace and fluidity of movements that other Wushu practitioners such as, say, Jet Li and Jacky Wu Jing have. Still, I respect Robin Shou for some of the stuff he has done, especially his documentary/short film “Red Trousers” that highlights the demanding careers of Hong Kong stuntmen and stuntwomen.
That was a great intro, Cecil. All hail the angry orange cat! What’s his name, anyway? I can only assume you have/had an angry orange cat at home.
You pretty much nailed this review. I remember seeing it in theaters and being amazed at how well they did. As bad as the Reptile CG was, it wasn’t too horrible for the time. Or at least not as gawdawful as it seems now. Sadly, they completely dropped the ball on the sequel. About the only good thing in the sequel was how they did Sonya’s fatality. Oh, and the soundtrack.
I remember my friends and I cheering at Cage doing the nutshot on Goro. It was great that they snuck in that semi-secret move from the game (even though it didn’t actually work on Goro as I recall).
Thanks! Yes, the angry orange cat is real. You can see a picture of him in the Reindeer Games episode in the “twas” portion. His name is Nall, which is the name of the cat from the game Lunar, which is one of my all time favorites. He was separated from his mother when he was only a few weeks old and I found him in the woods near a place I used to work. I took him home and nursed him back to health. Ever since he has been a major part of my life. He is a red tabby maine-coon mix so on top of being super furry, he is all muscle. (which he likes to remind me by crushing my chest under his weight in the middle of the night) He often sits with me when I am watching all these movies and he usually keeps me company for all the long hours I have to edit these videos. He is my best friend and I love him with all my heart.
So glad you liked it. I wanted to do something special with the opening and so I got to talking with a good friend of mine who does VFX. I came up with the concept and he did the tough stuff. Since this was such a hit we have new intros for both TMNT and Krull. Not sure about after that because these things are quite an endeavor but we’ll see. I may just do one once in a while for a special episode.
Reptile was badass back then but now he looks silly, Still, not worse than some other movies of the time, including ones with way bigger budgets! They rushed the sequel and completely blew the franchise. Ah greed. It’s like the first was such a success they completely ignored all the things that made it so.
The nut shot was hilarious and another example of how much the original crew understood the games. I believe it worked on everyone but Goro. I hated Goro but Motaro was worse.
I was 12 when this movie came out (almost 13). I definitely haven’t seen it, but my brother and I were HUGE on Mortal Kombat games – he even bought the third game in the fall of 1995, and spent hours on it after he got his Sega. I’m not sure if he has seen this movie, but considering my current taste in movies, this is right up my alley. I do need to find this one. Johnny Cage is kinda hot too.
As always, not to be repetitive, great video!!! 🙂
Between this and Street Fighter me and my friends lived for these games. (Street Fighter on SNES and MK on Genesis since the SNES version cut the gore) The movie is a blast, you should totally watch it. It still holds up!
I vaguely remember this movie at the show when it initially came out, I was only 11 and I don’t think I understood the plot but was impressed by the characters, especially how well Sub Zero and Scorpion looked……and Bridgett “Veronica Vaughn” Wilson as Sonya.
I do remember being very disappointed at MK3 (video game) when they unmasked Sub Zero and made him some muscle jock but after over dosing on MK and MK2 maybe I was just ready to move on anyways.
For Veronica Vaughn, I really wanted to work in a Billy Madison joke but just couldn’t figure out how to make one that felt right. Oh well, there’s always House on Haunted Hill…
I liked MK3 but I also felt a little bummed out, especially with how amazing MK2 was. Well, they turned Sub-Zero into a good guy for some reason and felt the need to unmask him. I guess they wanted him to stand out more? Since originally he and Scorpion were just palette swaps to save disk space, they no longer had that restriction. I did like Kabal, he was a cool character.
If I remember correctly the games were on the index. Which means they couldn’t be sold openly (only if you ask at special stores… Doom & Wolfenstein suffered the same fate till last year).
The Movie still has a rating of 16 (years) to watch it. I think it was 18 once and is still cut in some scenes. In retrospect hilarious to what games and movies we have now a days.
The two major ones in the US that were on the “naughty” list were Mortal Kombat and Night Trap. They were the two games that were frequently pulled out in front of congress to show how reprehensible these things were. The thing that will always be funny to me is if Night Trap was a tv show, no one would have cared. The scene that they frequently referenced and freaked out about was laughable. (where the one girl was attacked in the bathroom) It was no worse than the 50s sci-fi shows that people have no problem showing their kids because they are so cheesy.
Cecil, sir, you did it again! What an entertaining episode 🙂
I never noticed the MK3 code that was snuck in. I don’t know how I missed it!
I said it before & I’ll say it again – thank GOD Cameron Diaz got injured because Bridgette Wilson does a fantastic job as Sonya. I would hit it. Again and again and again. And some more on Saturday. And again on Sunday. Yum!
Lastly, awesome intro. Nall obviously inspires you =>.<=
Bridgette Wilson was a decent actress and very attractive, I’m kind of surprised she never really took off.
Thanks! Nall is usually either sleeping nearby while I’m working on these or attacking me for being up so late. He was mrowing very loudly a few weeks ago because I had to re-record some audio and he thought I was talking to him. =>.<=
I hear you about Roger Ebert. While I respect him for his contributions and longevity, but I’ve read far too many of his recent reviews of otherwise critically acclaimed features were he spends a long time writing about his inability to get the 3D glasses out of their packaging.
I agree, this movie is awesome. It appears to even have influenced the games in that after the movie came out, Kano was made Australian in the games. The actor actually was going for cockney accent, though.
follow:
I really loved this review and the intro was awesome lol. Question you ever buy or download movie soundtracks? If so whats your favourite one?
Thanks!
I have some soundtracks…hmmm…favorite? That’s tough, I’ll have to think about it.
Most awesome intro everrrr.
This is a great movie, i remember watching in theaters, it was amazing, The scorpion and Johny cage fight was the high point in this movie, i didint know how complecated it was to film.
PS: Christopher Lamber is great, I Always wanted to know, why doesnt he appear in more and better movies. Bad agent maybe? Highlandar was great thanks to him. by the way, any plan for a highlander review?
Great Review, Thank you.
Thanks! A lot of work went into the intro so I am glad it turned out well.
The JC/Scorpion fight was a technical marvel. They had martial arts masters and even gold medal gymnasts doing the flips and what not.
Lambert pops up in US movies every so often but he seems to do a lot in France, perhaps to stay closer to his family?
I love Highlander but everyone knows that is an excellent movie. I may do Highlander 4 at some point, the best of the sequels.
Everything about Mortal Kombat was great and pretty much the perfect movie adaption that could have been done of the game series based around the story of the first game and incorporating best elements and characters of MK1 and 2 including catchphrases from the game, signature moves, some fatalities and Johnny Cages friendship and not trying to include every character possible from the game unlike the sequel.
The casting was great especially Shang Tsung and his delivery of his classic Mortal Kombat catchphrases with maybe the exception of Sonya Blade and the music was great throughout the film.
I was hoping the Machinima series was going to have a second series but I guess it was used to garner interest in a Mortal Kombat reboot film that they are supposed to be making this year I think.
You need to watch MK2 again.
I hated it when I first saw it in the cinema but watching it again from a comedic perspective it is a great good bad flick.
Bad special effects especially when they morph into their animality at the end, cheesy dialogue and constant fight scenes and flips. Lol!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AY4HtOcJzSo
Are you talking about Mortal Kombat Legacy? They are working on season 2 as we speak!
MKA was awful. It was such a quick, cheap cash in to capitalize on the original and even though it cost more than twice the original, it looked way worse. I may revisit it, I haven’t seen it in ages.
Great review as usual. Although a good movie I myself have never been a huge fan of Robin Shou. While he did win some Wushu competitions when he was younger he simply doesn’t have the grace and fluidity of movements that other Wushu practitioners such as, say, Jet Li and Jacky Wu Jing have. Still, I respect Robin Shou for some of the stuff he has done, especially his documentary/short film “Red Trousers” that highlights the demanding careers of Hong Kong stuntmen and stuntwomen.
Thanks! I like Shou fine but I think Philip Rhee would have been the better choice. He is badass!
Well, to be fair, not many people are as ridiculously skilled as Jet Li. He has both speed and grace.
I never saw that short, I’ll check it out.
That was a great intro, Cecil. All hail the angry orange cat! What’s his name, anyway? I can only assume you have/had an angry orange cat at home.
You pretty much nailed this review. I remember seeing it in theaters and being amazed at how well they did. As bad as the Reptile CG was, it wasn’t too horrible for the time. Or at least not as gawdawful as it seems now. Sadly, they completely dropped the ball on the sequel. About the only good thing in the sequel was how they did Sonya’s fatality. Oh, and the soundtrack.
I remember my friends and I cheering at Cage doing the nutshot on Goro. It was great that they snuck in that semi-secret move from the game (even though it didn’t actually work on Goro as I recall).
Thanks! Yes, the angry orange cat is real. You can see a picture of him in the Reindeer Games episode in the “twas” portion. His name is Nall, which is the name of the cat from the game Lunar, which is one of my all time favorites. He was separated from his mother when he was only a few weeks old and I found him in the woods near a place I used to work. I took him home and nursed him back to health. Ever since he has been a major part of my life. He is a red tabby maine-coon mix so on top of being super furry, he is all muscle. (which he likes to remind me by crushing my chest under his weight in the middle of the night) He often sits with me when I am watching all these movies and he usually keeps me company for all the long hours I have to edit these videos. He is my best friend and I love him with all my heart.
So glad you liked it. I wanted to do something special with the opening and so I got to talking with a good friend of mine who does VFX. I came up with the concept and he did the tough stuff. Since this was such a hit we have new intros for both TMNT and Krull. Not sure about after that because these things are quite an endeavor but we’ll see. I may just do one once in a while for a special episode.
Reptile was badass back then but now he looks silly, Still, not worse than some other movies of the time, including ones with way bigger budgets! They rushed the sequel and completely blew the franchise. Ah greed. It’s like the first was such a success they completely ignored all the things that made it so.
The nut shot was hilarious and another example of how much the original crew understood the games. I believe it worked on everyone but Goro. I hated Goro but Motaro was worse.
I was 12 when this movie came out (almost 13). I definitely haven’t seen it, but my brother and I were HUGE on Mortal Kombat games – he even bought the third game in the fall of 1995, and spent hours on it after he got his Sega. I’m not sure if he has seen this movie, but considering my current taste in movies, this is right up my alley. I do need to find this one. Johnny Cage is kinda hot too.
As always, not to be repetitive, great video!!! 🙂
Between this and Street Fighter me and my friends lived for these games. (Street Fighter on SNES and MK on Genesis since the SNES version cut the gore) The movie is a blast, you should totally watch it. It still holds up!
Thanks again! 🙂
I vaguely remember this movie at the show when it initially came out, I was only 11 and I don’t think I understood the plot but was impressed by the characters, especially how well Sub Zero and Scorpion looked……and Bridgett “Veronica Vaughn” Wilson as Sonya.
I do remember being very disappointed at MK3 (video game) when they unmasked Sub Zero and made him some muscle jock but after over dosing on MK and MK2 maybe I was just ready to move on anyways.
For Veronica Vaughn, I really wanted to work in a Billy Madison joke but just couldn’t figure out how to make one that felt right. Oh well, there’s always House on Haunted Hill…
I liked MK3 but I also felt a little bummed out, especially with how amazing MK2 was. Well, they turned Sub-Zero into a good guy for some reason and felt the need to unmask him. I guess they wanted him to stand out more? Since originally he and Scorpion were just palette swaps to save disk space, they no longer had that restriction. I did like Kabal, he was a cool character.
Fantastic intro! I’ve always loved that movie.
If I remember correctly the games were on the index. Which means they couldn’t be sold openly (only if you ask at special stores… Doom & Wolfenstein suffered the same fate till last year).
The Movie still has a rating of 16 (years) to watch it. I think it was 18 once and is still cut in some scenes. In retrospect hilarious to what games and movies we have now a days.
All the above –> Germany. Sexy stuff = nobody cares. Minimal violence = why does nobody think about the children!?
I am tired of having my entertainment interfered with because people who have kids want the government to parent them.
Thanks!
The two major ones in the US that were on the “naughty” list were Mortal Kombat and Night Trap. They were the two games that were frequently pulled out in front of congress to show how reprehensible these things were. The thing that will always be funny to me is if Night Trap was a tv show, no one would have cared. The scene that they frequently referenced and freaked out about was laughable. (where the one girl was attacked in the bathroom) It was no worse than the 50s sci-fi shows that people have no problem showing their kids because they are so cheesy.
Cecil, sir, you did it again! What an entertaining episode 🙂
I never noticed the MK3 code that was snuck in. I don’t know how I missed it!
I said it before & I’ll say it again – thank GOD Cameron Diaz got injured because Bridgette Wilson does a fantastic job as Sonya. I would hit it. Again and again and again. And some more on Saturday. And again on Sunday. Yum!
Lastly, awesome intro. Nall obviously inspires you =>.<=
Thanks Brig! 🙂
Bridgette Wilson was a decent actress and very attractive, I’m kind of surprised she never really took off.
Thanks! Nall is usually either sleeping nearby while I’m working on these or attacking me for being up so late. He was mrowing very loudly a few weeks ago because I had to re-record some audio and he thought I was talking to him. =>.<=
I hear you about Roger Ebert. While I respect him for his contributions and longevity, but I’ve read far too many of his recent reviews of otherwise critically acclaimed features were he spends a long time writing about his inability to get the 3D glasses out of their packaging.
Also, if not for this review, I would not have recognized Goro’s cameo in this video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ljD0peHNVgo&list=LL_8qfoBv49Xv6GZlbuuZeQQ
Seriously? Okay, I guess ima have to say it…
*ahem*
TOASTY!
will you review analiation one day cecil?
I agree, this movie is awesome. It appears to even have influenced the games in that after the movie came out, Kano was made Australian in the games. The actor actually was going for cockney accent, though.
1.tthis was better than the nostalgia critic and phelous review
2.why dident anderson come back for the secund mortal kombat movie?