Video game movies have had a long and uphill road to finding legitimacy over the years. For decades, studios have been trying to figure out the puzzle of taking million dollar properties from consoles to the big screen. There is a literal graveyard of failed attempts with fans of Super Mario Bros, Double Dragon, and Warcraft, wondering why Hollywood can't get it right.
There has yet to be a movie that truly galvanizes audiences, or one that has found significant success. (One of the biggest anomalies was this year's The Angry Birds Movie, however that was an animated feature.) The video game movie genre had perhaps its largest win in 1995, with the adaptation of Mortal Kombat. The B-movie adventure had a $23 million dollar domestic opening, while going on to gross over $120 million dollars worldwide. However that doesn't mean the movie didn't have its share of flaws.
This week's release of Assassin's Creed is the video game movie genre's latest attempt at cinematic acceptance. It seems that the adaptation is having the same issues as its predecessors, with an early reaction from critics that is hard to qualify as positive. Just in time to distract us from further disappointment, the Emmy-nominated Screen Junkies is taking a look back at the high point for the genre with an Honest Trailer for Mortal Kombat.
Midway Games' Mortal Kombat has been one of the gaming world's most profitable and popular franchises since its debut in 1992. The 1995 movie of the same name was a loose adaptation of the fighting game phenomenon. The movie followed a collection of fighters from all over the world, who gather to battle to the death in the ultimate tournament of warriors. Popular characters from the game including Sub-Zero, Scorpion, and Goro, all make appearances, while Highlander's Christopher Lambert took on the role of Raiden.
The original Mortal Kombat films have been a camp fest since their initial release two decades ago and haven't aged well, as Screen Junkies illustrates in their video. However, the franchise still has a tremendous amount of potential and this fact has not escaped New Line Cinema, who is relaunching the film series from the ground up. They have already hired James Wan (Aquaman) to produce the reboot of Mortal Kombat for the 21st century, while the studio is reportedly in talks with a new director for the film. Everything goes in cycles and it seems that one day the Mortal Kombat franchise will once again try to legitimize the genre. But for now, just enjoy the laughs courtesy of Honest Trailers.
Mortal Kombat currently has no release date, but we will keep you updated as more news is uncovered.
Source: Screen Junkies