The Mortal Kombat movie tried to sell itself on a return to the video game franchise roots, particularly when it came to the graphic violence and gory fatalities. Unfortunately, they took a lot of creative liberties along the way that messed heavily with established lore. The result is a cinematic experience that feels a bit odd to fans of the video games.
This problem is driven by the implementation of the characters. Some in the roster are excellent representations of their video game counterparts, while others have fallen short in major ways, both to their detriment, and the franchise as a whole. To rank them accordingly, they need to be compared directly to their video game selves.
Liu Kang
Of all the characters in the Mortal Kombat movie to get a raw deal, Liu Kang is the worst. The story eliminates him from the main protagonist to a supporting character in order to make room for the entirely new character of Cole, which is a slap in the face to the Mortal Kombat mythos. As such, Liu Kang gets less screen time and presence.
In comparison to his video game self, this Liu Kang looks the part, but he's too soft-spoken and camera shy. This means all the enthusiasm and eccentricities of the video game character are lost in translation. His dragon Animality can't make up for it, either. Liu should have been given top billing in this film.
Kung Lao
In comparison to Liu Kang, Kung Lao fares better as a character, and he accurately represents his video game counterpart. The outfit, the attitude, and the hat are all spot-on, plus he gets the honor of having the goriest and most insane fatality of the entire film.
Unfortunately, Kung Lao checks out in this film, which means there's probably no possibility of seeing him return in a sequel. Still, he managed to make an impact while he was around, even if the manner of his death makes very little sense from a logic perspective.
Sonya Blade
It's safe to say that Jessica McNamee makes a much better and more believable Sonya Blade than Brigitte Wilson did in the 1995 film. She looks the part, and she's got the strength of character to pull off both wise and a charming delivery at the same time. She's a character the audience can root for.
Still, there's something restrained about the character that doesn't fit entirely with her video game persona. It could be the seeming lack of any backup or a bit of self-doubt on her part, but this Sonya Blade should have been much tougher, and less hesitant.
Kano
Kano is perhaps the one character who doesn't bear much resemblance to his video game counterpart at all, be it physically or in terms of personality. The biggest oversight is the lack of his metal faceplate and cybernetic eye, which are considered mainstays of the video game character design.
Then there's the backstory, which is flat, and the delivery, which is actually quite entertaining. Kano is easily the most "likeable" of the bunch, but he's in no way a match for the video game version. He lacks the self-described "mongrel" necessary to pass himself off as a sinister bad guy, and his sudden about-face at Raiden's temple seems rather silly.
Shang Tsung
Chin Han plays Shang Tsung with exactly one emotion throughout the entire film, and it wears thin fast. He lacks the charisma that Cary Hiroyuki-Tagawa brought to the role in 1995, which was closer to the video game approximation. Still, he gets the job done, setting himself up for a sequel.
He's close to the video game version thanks to his soul-sucking fatality, which is pretty spot on. Besides that, he merely looks the part, and there's nothing for Chin Han to really chew on in order to make the role his own.
Goro
When the dust settles, Goro is little more than a menacing bad guy meant to scare players of the original video game. Beyond that, the developers managed to craft a compelling backstory for the character that actually showed him to be an honorable semi-good guy in many ways.
The movie handles him as a straight-up villain with no redeeming qualities. He makes it quite clear that he's willing to murder women and children, which doesn't seem to be in line with his video game persona. Physically, he's perfect, but in terms of story adaptation, he's a million miles away.
Mileena
Fans who glimpsed the original red-band trailer for Mortal Kombat got a glimpse of Mileena licking a bloodied sai and immediately noticed that she was far less toothy than her video game self. This is a rough adaptation of the video game character on several fronts.
First, she doesn't wear a mask, which is out of character. Second, she only reveals the full extent of her fearsome, fanged jaws in the final phase of her battle with Cole. It seems like a wasted opportunity, especially considering that her checkout prevents any sort of meaningful banter between her and Kitana in the next film.
Raiden
It's hard to compare the video game version of Raiden to the film version, as the newest crop of Mortal Kombat games are the only real source of info to go on. Starting with the 2010 soft reboot of Mortal Kombat, the character was given an immense backstory and ended up playing a major part in events yet to unfold.
The video game version plays him as a low-key character who has one job, yet somehow manages to screw it up several times. Visually, he might resemble Raiden, but there's very little else to tie him to the video game character. It could be argued that he's one of the most ineffectual of the bunch, and fails to demonstrate any sort of presence or gravitas.
Scorpion
Thanks to the video game lore, Scorpion's backstory has been expanded on to give more depth and information as to what he's all about. The first Mortal Kombat games focused largely on his feud with Sub-Zero, but he'd go on to play a larger role in events yet to come as the series progressed.
The Scorpion of the 2021 movie falls short in almost every regard. The costume is wrong, his intervention at the end of the film feels completely wrong, and he simply doesn't represent the kind of presence MK fans expect from such a badass character. In essence, he's too "human" to be taken seriously as a vengeful wraith.
Sub-Zero
Costume decisions aside, Sub-Zero does look the part when compared to his video game self. Granted, the visual representation of the original Bi-Han has changed drastically throughout the franchise, which meant the 2021 film had to take its cues from games like Mortal Kombat X in order to make him work.
Story-wise, he's a good fit, but that's pushing it. His allegiance to Shang Tsung is completely out of character, especially when one factors in the events of the standalone Sub-Zero game that came out a while back. The film uses both he and Scorpion to forge a narrative too dependent on their feud, and that creates plot problems.