Mortal Kombat Wastes the Franchises Most Monstrous Villain Again

Mortal Kombat Wastes the Franchise’s Most Monstrous Villain Again

Once again, Mortal Kombat (2021) wastes its most monstrous villain on the big screen and misses an opportunity to create a truly intimidating tyrant.

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Mortal Kombat Wastes the Franchises Most Monstrous Villain Again

WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Mortal Kombat, now in theaters and streaming on HBO Max.

It was always going to be hard to dedicate ample screen time to the relatively large cast in Mortal Kombat (2021). This issue occurred in the ’95 film as well, where not even Scorpion and Sub-Zero got fleshed out properly. While this incarnation dedicates attention to these ninjas in particular — and other key figures such as Liu Kang and the new hero Cole Young — Mortal Kombat (2021) sadly wastes its most monstrous villain — Prince Goro.

Goro debuted in the first Mortal Kombat video game in 1992 and became a fan-favorite tyrant. His sinister look, with his four-arms and dragon persona, added flair to a game that mostly focused on human warriors. He opened the door to include more hybrid-creature fighters later down the line, such as Reptile, Baraka, Motaro, Onaga and Nitara.

Despite his status, Goro doesn’t get his due on the big screen. In the first Mortal Kombat film, he was Shang Tsung’s ultimate champion, just like in the game. However, he was reduced to comedic fodder for Johnny Cage to beat. In Mortal Kombat (2021), it’s even worse because he doesn’t get many lines and only appears when Shang Tsung’s assembling his legion to go after Team Raiden. There’s no real discussion regarding Goro as the Shokan Empire’s prince and how important his people are to Shao Kahn’s army.

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Shang Tsung and Goro never discuss his pride as a prize-fighter, and why Cole as a Chosen One is a threat. It simply cuts to Goro randomly teleporting to kill Cole’s family, where the MMA brawler then levels up using his dragon mark. Sadly, Goro comes off as bland, not spitting fire or even using his iconic chest pound from the games.

As Cole’s family tries to jump into a van to escape, Mortal Kombat (2021) wastes the perfect moment for Goro to leap into the air and do his signature stomp to smash the vehicle. At this point, Goro could be swapped out for any lackey because he just comes off as a prop for Cole to test his might on. The film ends with Cole using his blades to gut Goro in a gory scene that doesn’t last long at all. It’s a shame because Goro killing one of the heroes before this moment would have been impactful. But by ignoring his power, presence and heritage, the film diminishes the importance of the Shokan and makes one of the game’s most fearsome fighters a walkover.

Directed by Simon McQuoid and produced by James Wan, Mortal Kombat stars Lewis Tan as Cole Young, Jessica McNamee as Sonya Blade, Josh Lawson as Kano, Tadanobu Asano as Lord Raiden, Mehcad Brooks as Jackson “Jax” Bridges, Ludi Lin as Liu Kang, Chin Han as Shang Tsung, Joe Taslim as Bi-Han and Sub-Zero, Hiroyuki Sanada as Hanzo Hasashi and Scorpion, Max Huang as Kung Lao, Sisi Stringer as Mileena, Matilda Kimber as Emily Young and Laura Brent as Allison Young. The film is now in theaters and available to stream on HBO Max.

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Link Source : https://www.cbr.com/mortal-kombat-2021-wastes-prince-goro-villain/

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