Overview: A high-impact fusion of martial arts mayhem, fantasy spectacle and video game mythology, the Mortal Kombat films brought arcade combat to the big screen with bone-crunching action, iconic characters and pure 90’s attitude, helping turn a controversial fighting game into a global pop culture phenomenon.

Kicking off in 1995, Mortal Kombat, directed by Paul W.S. Anderson, delivers a fast paced, crowd-pleasing adaptation that pits Earth’s greatest fighters against the forces of Outworld in a no-holds-barred tournament for the fate of humanity. Featuring unforgettable characters like Liu Kang, Sonya Blade, Johnny Cage and the thunderous Raiden, the film blends martial arts choreography, fantasy world-building and a now legendary electronic soundtrack to create one of the most influential video game movies of its era.

The saga continues with 1997’s Mortal Kombat: Annihilation, expanding the scale and mythology as the battle spills beyond the tournament into an-all out war between realms. With higher stakes, new fighters, monstrous adversaries and epic confrontations, the sequel embraces the franchise’s operatic excess and supernatural chaos, pushing the Mortal Kombat universe into full fantasy spectacle.

Restored and packed with extras, this two-film collection celebrates the brutal fun, stylized combat and mythic world of Mortal Kombat, a landmark franchise whose unparalleled high-octane action embodies the adrenaline-fueled spirit of the 90’s in all its spectacular glory!

Blu-ray Verdict: First we get Mortal Kombat (1995), which is, simply put, a great movie rendition of the original Mortal Kombat arcade video game. It’s about a group of warriors from Earth who compete in an ancient martial arts tournament for the fate of the world. In more than one way, it borrows many concepts/ideas from Enter the Dragon, but on the other hand, it has its own unique twist and storyline to it.

Everything about this movie is awesome. Simple storyline with humor in the right spots, great casting, excellent choreography, and a fun soundtrack that still rocks today. In particular, this is one of my favorite fighting movies because the fights were excellently choreographed. Some standoffs between characters were extremely convincing and fun to watch. The fights were very dirty and not too over-the-top.

They also pay homage to the video game with cool fatalities and even a funny friendship scene. Probably the only weak spot in the film would maybe be some of the CGI (especially for Reptile); Reptile didn’t look great in this 1995 version and here today, some 31 years later, well, it hasn’t gotten any better! With that being said, the non-CGI Goro looks better than any junk they would probably try to make today!

Along next is Mortal Kombat: Annihilation (1997). Having won the battle of the realms in the first film, Liu Kang (Robin Shou) and others enjoy a short period of peace on Earth. Then one day leader of the outer realm Shao Kahn (Brian Thompson) opens up a portal between the two realms and announces that he intends to merge the two realms in six days. With time ticking away, can Liu Kang and his crew stop Shao Kahn in time?

A film that has gone on to join the ranks of Batman & Robin and Speed 2 as one of the most infamous sequels of not only the 90’s, but arguably of all time. A failure that squanders all potential and destroys virtually all left-over good-will from the first movie and instead replaces it with laughable writing, strangely over-the-top performances, bizarrely dated effects even at the time and mind-blowingly bad visual direction.

Picking up immediately after the original ends, the evil emperor Shao Kahn opens a portal from Outworld and begins a process that will merge it with the Earth in six-days’ time, giving him total power. Now, our Earth-heroes Liu Kang, Sonya Blade, Jax and Raiden must find a way to stop this devious scheme or else the Earth will be lost forever.

Director John R. Leonetti seems in over his head with this film- his directorial debut, taking over for original director Paul WS Anderson. Leonetti and his army of screenwriters are never able to find any real sort-of balance with tone, pace or style. Scenes come and go are strange intervals, humor and drama never quite gel together, and sub-plots and characters are constantly jarringly introduced and dropped without consequence or reason. The visuals are also a marked step- down from the original, with many shots being poorly thought out and unable to be cut together competently.

2-DISC 4K ULTRA HD LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS:
Brand new 4K restorations of the two films by Arrow Films
4K (2160p) Ultra HD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible) of the two films
Original DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround audio and lossless stereo audio on both films
Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for both films
Collectors’ perfect-bound booklet featuring new writing on the films by Simon Ward and John Torrani
Reversible sleeves featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Matt Griffin
Two double-sided foldout posters featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Matt Griffin

DISC 1 - MORTAL KOMBAT:
4K restoration of the film from the original camera negative by Arrow Films approved by director Paul W.S. Anderson
Brand new audio commentary with director Paul W.S. Anderson
Brand new audio commentary with comic book expert and podcast host Dave Baxter
Cage Match, a newly filmed interview with actor Linden Ashby
Leveling Up, a newly filmed interview with cinematographer John R. Leonetti
Quarters to Millions, a newly filmed interview with producer Lawrence Kasanoff
The Heavyweight, a newly filmed interview with designer and suit performer Tom Woodruff
Mortal Kombat: A Journey Behind the Scenes featurette
On-set interview bites with the cast and director and B-roll footage
Theatrical trailers
Image gallery

DISC 2 - MORTAL KOMBAT: ANNIHILATION:
4K restoration of the film from the original camera negative by Arrow Films approved by director John R. Leonetti
Brand new audio commentary with director John R. Leonetti moderated by filmmaker Gillian Wallace Horvat
Brand new audio commentary with comic book expert and podcast host Dave Baxter
The Queen of the Night, a newly filmed interview with actor Musetta Vander Techno, Taiko, Orcho, a newly filmed interview with composer George S. Clinton
The Man of a Thousand Deaths, a newly filmed interview with stunt performer J.J. Perry, who played Cyrax, Scorpion and Noob Saibot
On-set interview bites with the cast and director and B-roll footage
Theatrical trailer
Image gallery

Official Purchase Link

www.arrowvideo.com