Reviewed by Johnny McNair

Warner Brothers – 95 minutes – 1997 – Rated PG-13 – 1080p Widescreen 1.78:1 – DTS 5.1 Audio Mix – Digital Copy


The first Mortal Kombat film made a lot of loot, more than was probably actually expected. And in Hollywood you know what that means, there will be a sequel…whether you want it or not. In the case of Mortal Kombat: Annihilation, they should have stopped when they were ahead. The first film was in no way a work of art, but the second film makes it look like Gone With The Wind. For those of you who are curious, because it’s doubtful that there are any fans for this one, Mortal Kombat: Annihilation comes to Blu-ray from Warner, but someone should have put a finishing move on this one to end the pain.

THE MOVIE

You know a sequel is bad when most of the original actors didn’t even return. It would be like watching The Empire Strikes Back with new actors playing Luke Skywalker, Han Solo and Princess Leia (ok, maybe that’s a bad comparison). In Mortal Kombat: Annihilation, the only familiar face is Robin Shou who again plays Liu Kang. This time around Lord Rayden is played by James Remar; Sonya Blade is now portrayed by Sandra Hess, and Johnny Cage is played by Chris Conrad. Would it have made a difference if the original actors returned? Nope. The script would have still sucked.

The plot this time around revolves around some wacko from Outworld named Shao Kahn (Brian Thompson), who has opened a porthole from his world to the Earth and if it is not closed our planet will be destroyed in six days. Now our martial arts heroes must join forces once again to prevent the annihilation. Yup, that’s the plot. The only thing was supposed to be a highlight of the film was the introductions of new characters from the game such as Nitewolf, Jade, and Sindel. But realistically you won’t care because whatever made the first film work has completely vanished.

This time Paul W.S. Anderson, who directed the first film, made the smart move by running off to better opportunities, leaving the director’s chair to John R. Leonetti, who’s only other masterpieces includes the straight-to-video sequel The Butterfly Effect 2. (Maybe this guy likes eating other people’s crumbs). The film is a mess from start to finish, with visual effects that are right out of a Roger Corman movie, and costumes that look like a bunch of cosplayers at a convention.

And obviously you would think that at least the fighting in the movie would be cool to make up for everything else. Nope. You’ll see better choreography on Youtube with kids acting like Bruce Lee in their backyard. The worst part about this movie is that it’s so bad that you can’t even make fun of it. There are episodes of The Power Rangers that were more complex and satisfying than this. Anyone who says that sequels such as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2: The Secret of the Ooze was bad, will swallow their words when they witness this disaster. And hey, at least Secret of the Ooze had Vanilla Ice in it. Top that!

VIDEO

This Blu-ray must be jinxed because though it claims it’s full 1080p, it sure doesn’t look very impressive. The image is packaged in 1.78:1 aspect ratio and will make you believe you’re watching a DVD. There are various times when the image becomes so soft, particularly with visual effects shots, that parts of the screen look out of focus. Skin tones are too much on the orange side, making certain characters seem like they have bad tans, and bright colors appear to bleed especially during faster paced scenes. Either something went wrong in the transfer department, or they just saw the film and didn’t care.

AUDIO

The sound quality makes up for the picture quality, but it’s still no award winner. With a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix Annihilation does have some satisfactory audio moments if you’re willing to actually watch the film. This is a loud movie with explosions, kicks and punches galore. Dialogue is covered up by most of the audio effects, but this must have been purposely done, being that the script didn’t have much to say in the first place.

EXTRAS

Talk about anemic. All you’re getting here is trailer for the new Mortal Kombat videogame, a code (for Playstation 3 gamers only) to unlock Jade’s costume, and a Digital Copy of the movie. Basically, the same stuff that was on the Blu-ray for the first Mortal Kombat film. At least they could have given enticed you to buy both films by offering a code for a different character’s costume instead of Jade again.

BOTTOM LINE

Mortal Kombat: Annihilation can’t even be labeled as a guilty pleasure because it’s not clever enough. This was obviously a rushed sequel that was hoping to cash in on the Mortal Kombat craze before the well fried up. This Blu-ray is as standard as it gets with a mediocre picture and sound that’s only a tad better. If you have the choice, just get the first Mortal Kombat movie for the nostalgia of your youth. This one is a rental.

SCORES (Out of 5):

The Movie: 2.0

Video: 2.5

Sound: 3.0

Extras: 1.0

Bottom Line: 2.0