1/5
This adaptation of the gory video-game franchise is, by turns, ludicrous and soporific – an insult to the kung-fu classics it’s knocking off
6 May 2021 • 1:00pm
Mortal sinners: the various warriors of Mortal Kombat are locked in an eternally dull battle
Credit: Mark Rogers
Dir: Simon McQuoid. Starring: Lewis Tan, Jessica McNamee, Josh Lawson, Joe Taslim, Hiroyuki Sanada, Ludi Lin, Max Huang, Mehcad Brooks, Tadanobu Asano, Chin Lan. 15 cert, 110 mins
“In Mortal Kombat,” warns Kung Lao (Max Huang), a warrior monk with an Oddjob-ish razor-rimmed hat, “talent will only get you so far.” That’s certainly one way of putting it. The largely unknown cast of this video-game adaptation seem like a nice bunch, but if the next Tom Hardy or Charlize Theron happens to be among them, you would struggle to pick them out on the basis of anything here.