Mortal Kombat (1995)

Directed by Paul W. S. Anderson. Starring Robin Shou, Linden Ashby, Christopher Lambert, Bridgette Wilson, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, Talisa Soto, Trevor Goddard, Kenneth Edwards. [PG-13]

Sure, this adaptation of the popular fighting game has scant plot, generic dialogue, and cheesy performances, but it looks pretty good, has lots of energy, and doesn’t insult one’s intelligence so long as they accept the film’s screwy reality. A grab-bag of fighters are assembled to a fighting tournament called Mortal Kombat, where they must compete against opponents from a realm called Outworld, with the stakes being especially high for Earth because…well, it doesn’t matter. After the introductory segments, it’s pretty much just one fight after another, shot mostly on Thai locations and inside vast interiors with lots of gloomy atmosphere, smoke, fire, etc. But it’s professionally made (especially surprising, considering where Anderson’s directorial career would go from here) and fairly entertaining; there may not be any fights here to compete with the best martial arts sequences coming out of Asia (and it’s a shame that the producers went the PG-13 route, spoiling the chance for some of the gruesome “fatalities” that the video game series is known for), but the production values are a few steps up on average. Plus, whether you love it proudly or love it contritely (there’s no third option), the “Techno Syndrome” theme is instant adrenalin. Followed by Mortal Kombat: Annihilation.

59/100