Screen Rant’s latest Pitch Meeting video spoofs the new Mortal Kombat movie. Starring an ensemble cast including Lewis Tan, Joe Taslim, Jessica McNamee, Mehcad Brooks, Ludi Lin, Josh Lawson, Hiroyuki Sanada, Tadanobu Asano, and Chin Han, the film has had significant success both in theaters and on HBO Max, rejuvenating the popular video game franchise for the big screen. Rumors of a Mortal Kombat sequel are already making the rounds.
Mortal Kombat retells the events of the original arcade game and the 1995 film, with a few twists and new additions along the way. The story centers on the new character Cole Young (Tan), who’s swept into the age-old conflict between Earthrealm and Outworld when the villainous assassin Sub-Zero (Taslim) comes for him and his family. Cole joins up with a crew of other champions to defend the Earth from the evil sorcerer Shang Tsung (Han) and his warriors, all while learning more about the tournament's history and his mythical heritage.
The latest Pitch Meeting video from Screen Rant’s Ryan George spoofs the brainstorming sessions that might have taken place leading up to Mortal Kombat’s production. The whole film is fair game to poke fun at, including Sub-Zero’s bad habit of leaving people alive, Scorpion’s oddly selective English, and Jax’s robot arms being conjured by…magic? Watch the new Pitch Meeting below.
Though the film has found notable success at the box office and on HBO Max, Mortal Kombat certainly isn’t without its shortcomings. The script shines at moments – primarily when Scorpion and Sub-Zero are on screen together – but most of the writing is pretty standard fare for the fantasy action genre. Criticisms have also been leveled against MK’s pacing and several apparent plot holes.
Despite all those critiques, Mortal Kombat has been widely celebrated by viewers. The film currently holds a stellar 86 percent fresh audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes, clashing substantially with its 54 percent fresh critical score. Even the critics have acknowledged what the film does well, however – exciting martial arts fights, stylish aesthetic design, and a substantial ensemble of classic characters. Given that the reboot was reportedly made on a relatively meager $55 million budget, it’s already become a significant success. That bodes well for the franchise’s future, and Johnny Cage has already been teased for the sequel. Ultimately, Mortal Kombat is what it needed to be – a fun, bloody action flick that pays proper homage to the game it’s based on.