This article is about the 1995 film, For the 2021 film see Mortal Kombat (2021 film). Mortal Kombat is a 1995 American fantasy martial arts action film[2] written by Kevin Droney, directed by Paul W. S. Anderson, produced by Lawrence Kasanoff, 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 and the first installment of the live-action Mortal Kombat film series.
Plot[]
Mortal Kombat is a martial arts tournament that takes place once every generation between the representatives of 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 ten consecutive victories, its Emperor, Shao Kahn will be able to invade and conquer the Earthrealm. They have already won nine times. Shaolin monk Liu Kang and his comrades, action movie star Johnny Cage and military officer Sonya Blade were handpicked by Rayden, the god of thunder and defender of the Earth realm, to overcome their powerful adversaries in order to prevent Outworld from winning their tenth straight Mortal Kombat tournament. Each of the three has his or her own reason for competing: Liu seeks revenge against the tournament host Shang Tsung for killing his brother Chan; Sonya seeks revenge on an Australian crime lord Kano for murdering a fellow officer; and Cage, having been branded as a fake by the media, seeks to prove otherwise. Johnny and Sonya are unaware of the supernatural and of the true nature of the tournament at first, but are gradually convinced. At Shang Tsung's island, Liu is attracted to Princess Kitana, the Emperor's adopted daughter. Aware that Kitana is a dangerous adversary because she is the rightful heir to Outworld and that she will attempt to ally herself with the Earth warriors, Tsung orders the creature Reptile to spy on her. Liu defeats his first opponent and Sonya gets her revenge on Kano by snapping his neck. Cage encounters and barely beats Scorpion. Liu engages in a brief duel with Kitana, who secretly offers him cryptic advice for his next battle. Liu's next opponent is Sub-Zero, whose defense seems untouched because of his ice powers until Liu recalls Kitana's advice and uses it to kill Sub-Zero. Prince Goro enters the tournament and crushes every opponent he faces. One of Cage's peers, Art Lean, is defeated by Goro as well and has his soul taken by Shang Tsung. Sonya worries that they may not win against Goro, but Rayden reassures them, declaring that their own fears and egos are preventing them from winning the tournament. Rayden points out Cage's fears of accepting he's a fake, and Sonya's reluctance in accepting help when she needs it, then calls Liu Kang out for fleeing to America, which caused him to disgrace his ancestor and indirectly resulted in his brother's death. Wat Ratchaburana, Ayutthaya, was used as the place of confrontation between Liu Kang and Rayden Despite Sonya's warnings, Cage approaches Shang Tsung to demand a fight with Goro upon the realization that, as Mortal Kombat, the competition favors the mortal Earthrealm fighters. The sorcerer accepts on the condition that he be allowed to challenge any opponent of his choosing, and though Rayden tries to intervene, he is too late as the conditions are set. He is nonetheless impressed when Cage shows his awareness of the gravity of the tournament. Cage faces Goro and uses guile and the element of surprise to defeat the defending champion, who falls off a cliff to his death. The desperate Tsung abducts Sonya and takes her to Outworld as his chosen opponent. Knowing that his own powers are ineffective there and that Sonya cannot defeat Tsung, Rayden sends Liu and Cage into Outworld in order to rescue Sonya and challenge the sorcerer. In Outworld, Liu is attacked by Reptile, but eventually defeats him. Kitana then meets up with the mortals, revealing to them the origins of both herself and her home realm of Outworld. She helps them to infiltrate Tsung's castle while advising Liu Kang about three challenges in the castle: facing his enemy, himself, and then his worst fear. Inside the castle tower, Shang Tsung attempts to goad Sonya into fighting him, falsely claiming that her refusal to accept will result in the Earthrealm forfeiting the tournament. All seems lost until Kitana, Liu, and Cage, disguised as Tsung's Shadow Priests, appear on the scene. Kitana berates Tsung for his treachery to the Outworld emperor, claiming that his arrogance and greed will cost him the tournament if he doesn't honor his deal. As Johnny frees Sonya, Tsung challenges him to final combat but is counter-challenged by Liu. During the lengthy battle, Liu faces not only Tsung but also the souls of the warriors that Tsung had forcibly taken in past tournaments. In a last-ditch attempt to take advantage, Tsung morphs into Liu's deceased brother Chan. Seeing through the charade, Liu renews his determination and ultimately fires an energy blast at the sorcerer, knocking him off a ledge and fatally impaling him on a spike bed. Tsung's death releases all of the captive souls, including Chan's. Before ascending to the afterlife, Chan tells Liu that he will remain with him in spirit until they are once again reunited. The fighters return to Earthrealm, where a victory celebration is taking place at the Shaolin temple, but the jubilation halts when a giant figure suddenly appears in the roiling and darkened sky; the Emperor has come for the fighters' souls. Rayden declares "I don't think so," and the warriors take up fighting stances.
Cast[]
- Christopher Lambert as Rayden, god of thunder and protector of Earthrealm who guides the warriors on their journey. He desires to aid the heroes in defending Earthrealm, but as he himself is not mortal, he is not permitted to participate in the tournament and may only advise them and act to prevent cheating.
- Robin Shou as Liu Kang, a former Shaolin monk, who enters the tournament to avenge his brother's death. He is also Kitana's love interest and among the first who notice her sympathy towards Earthrealm. As in most of the games in the Mortal Kombat series, Liu Kang is the main protagonist. This was Shou's second American film, as his first American role was in 1990, the made-for-television film Forbidden Nights.
- Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa as Shang Tsung, a powerful, sadistic and treacherous demon sorcerer, he is the film's main antagonist who kills Liu Kang's brother Chan. Tagawa was the filmmakers' first and only choice for the role; he was instantly selected after he came to his audition in costume, and read his lines while standing on a chair.[3] Tagawa was allowed to play a "relatively young" version of Shang Tsung in order to avoid the excessive makeup that would have been required to duplicate the character's aged appearance in the first game.
- Linden Ashby as Johnny Cage, a Hollywood superstar who enters the tournament to prove to the world that his martial arts skills are legitimate. Ashby trained in karate, tae kwon do, and kung fu especially for this film. Despite the intensity of the fight scenes coupled with the actors performing most of their own stunts, on-set injuries were minimal; the only notable occurrence was a bruised kidney Ashby suffered while shooting Cage's fight scene with Scorpion.[3]
- Bridgette Wilson as Sonya Blade, an American Special Forces officer pursuing Kano after he kills her partner. Wilson, who was jokingly nicknamed "RoboBabe" during production by director Paul W. S. Anderson,[3] performed all her own stunts, including fight scenes.
- Talisa Soto as Princess Kitana, the Outworld emperor's adopted daughter who decides to help the Earth warriors. She is attracted to Liu Kang, who reciprocates and takes her advice to go further. Soto had previously appeared alongside Tagawa in Licence to Kill.
- Trevor Goddard as Kano, an Australian underworld crime boss who joins forces with Shang Tsung.
- Chris Casamassa as Scorpion, an undead warrior under Shang Tsung's control. Mortal Kombat co-creator Ed Boon voiced the character.
- François Petit as Sub-Zero, a cryomancer warrior under Shang Tsung's control. The rivalry between Scorpion and Sub-Zero is briefly mentioned by Shang Tsung at the beginning of the movie.
- Keith Cooke as Reptile, a creature who serves Shang Tsung. Cooke portrayed the character's human form, while his lizard form was computer generated.[3] Reptile's vocal effects were provided by Frank Welker.
- Tom Woodruff, Jr. as Goro, prince of the subterranean realm of Shokan and general of the armies of Outworld. Goro is the reigning champion of Mortal Kombat.
- Kevin Michael Richardson provides the speaking voice of Goro, while his vocal effects are provided by Frank Welker.
- Kenneth Edwards as Art Lean, a martial artist and friend of Johnny Cage who competes in the tournament. Lean is loosely based on Kung Lao.
- Steven Ho as Chan Kang, Liu Kang's younger brother.
- Gregory McKinney as Jax, Sonya's Special Forces partner. Steve James was originally cast, but passed away from pancreatic cancer on December 18, 1993, at the age of 41.
- Peter Jason as Master Boyd, Johnny Cage's sensei.
- Frank Welker provides the voice of the Outworld Emperor Shao Kahn.
Gallery[]
Sequel and Reboot[]
Mortal Kombat was followed by a sequel: Mortal Kombat: Annihilation (1997) a reboot Mortal Kombat is scheduled for 2021.
Trivia[]
| Mortal Kombat |
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| Mortal Kombat (1995), Mortal Kombat: Annihilation (1997), Mortal Kombat (2021) |