Over 25 years after the 1995 original hit theaters, Mortal Kombat returned with a vengeance. Despite whatever shortcomings some critics felt this new version had in of character development or screenplay, nobody can deny just how much great action is in it.
Being based on a fighting game, it's only fitting that the Mortal Kombat movie features fantastic battles between characters. There were plenty to choose from as fights seemingly happened every few minutes. Not all were great but the majority of them already rank among the best to ever hit the big screen, especially in of video game movies.
Mileena vs. Sonya Blade
This fight only ranks as low as it does because it doesn't last very long. When Shang Tsung brought his warriors to Raiden's temple, they paired off and had various clashes, with one of them pitting Sonya Blade against Mileena. Though it was quick, it made an impact.
Mileena won out in this altercation but stopped short of killing her after licking Sonya's blood, realizing that she wasn't a champion. Although Sonya would later earn the mark of a champion and even though she said she wanted to fight Mileena again, they never got the chance to, which was a shame.
Jax vs. Reiko
As tough as he is, it's hard to take Jax seriously for a good chunk of the film thanks to his hilariously small mechanical arms. It's part of why Reiko and his massive hammer are able to beat him so handily when Shang Tsung arrives at the Temple. That changed when Jax accessed his arcana.
He immediately asked for Reiko in one-on-one combat. They have one of the shorter fights but it's hard-hitting as it was two big guys throwing their best shots at each other. Jax scored a victory with a fatality that saw him squash Reiko's head with his mechanical arms.
Kung Lao vs. Nitara
Of course, this was the shortest fight of them all but that was totally okay because it played right into the fun of the series. In the games, if a player beats their opponent without taking any damage themselves, it is called a "flawless victory." The 1995 version used the line but it didn't make much sense.
In it, Liu Kang dropped the quote after a hard-fought battle with Shang Tsung. This iteration handled it better as Nitara flew in to fight Kung Lao, only for him to hop onto her back and drive her into his spinning hat, cutting her in half. It might not have been competitive but it was in the spirit of the games and looked really cool.
Cole, Kano & Sonya vs. Reptile
When Cole Young first arrived on Sonya Blade's doorstep, he knew he had seen something that made no sense with Sub-Zero but this fight cemented how wild things would be going forward. He and Sonya were forced to work alongside the mercenary Kano when Reptile invaded.
Doing the bidding of Shang Tsung, Reptile was a tough adversary. The trio had to get creative to beat Reptile, which included using a flare to figure out their position since they kept camouflaging. Kano ripped Reptile's heart out in the end and the "Kano wins" line was too perfect.
Cole Young vs. Mileena
One of the most interesting things about Cole was that he fought differently from everyone else. His MMA background came through in his battles regardless of where they took place. After acquiring his arcana, he came up with the idea of splitting the fights up.
That led to him taking on Mileena in what became a highlight. She kept teleporting to gain the upper hand on him once she saw his skill in hand-to-hand combat. In fact, Mileena may have won this if it wasn't for Sonya reappearing and helping Cole by blasting Mileena with her arcana.
Kabal vs. Liu Kang
A major surprise in this movie was just how entertaining Kabal came across. His quippy lines were great but the character also moved with precision, was too fast to deal with, and it all looked good. His main focus in of fighting was against Liu Kang.
The two went at it during Shang Tsung's invasion of the Temple, with Kabal winning until Liu broke free ahead of Kung Lao's death. They resumed the fight after Cole put everyone into separate battles. Again, the action was top-notch and Liu winning by using a fire dragon was a sight to behold.
Hanzo Hasashi's Vengeance
The film opened up with a scene from centuries ago in Japan. Hanzo Hasashi, who would later become known as Scorpion, returned to his family to find that they had been killed by Bi-Han, the eventual Sub-Zero, as they were from rival ninja clans.
Hasashi then proceeded to get some revenge by killing several of the Lin Kuei assassins with some of the most brutal moves in the film. Using his kunai, he ripped through them before facing off with Bi-Han. They have another great fight but Hasashi loses and dies.
Kano vs. Sonya Blade
When Raiden sent Kano and Sonya Blade away to fight, it took place at Sonya's small home. That gave her an advantage as she knew the terrain. Kano was also pretty easy to outsmart as though he was vicious, he wasn't depicted as being too bright in this film.
Sonya cleverly used her surroundings and her quickness to combat Kano's power and his laser eye. She found ways to subdue it and just when she was on the verge of losing, stabbed him with a lawn gnome he had spat on earlier. The victory earned her the dragon mark and her arcana.
Cole Young vs. Goro
Although Shang Tsung is technically the top bad guy in this film and the 1995 version, Goro was certainly viewed as the most intimidating. The four-armed prince was sent to battle Cole in front of his family, directly putting them in danger. That added a level of emotion to it all.
The fight saw Cole try to outsmart Goro, who was relentless in going after him. With his family's lives at stake, Cole accessed his arcana, which was one of this movie's feel-good moments. He managed to take Goro's best shots and dish them back out before cutting off his arms and winning.
Cole Young & Scorpion vs. Sub-Zero
Cole's suggestion that they have one-on-one fights didn't include Sub-Zero because he figured they'd need to work together to beat him. However, when Sub-Zero took his wife and daughter, Cole went after him alone. Once they went at it, Cole was clearly outmatched.
Things took a turn when Hanzo Hasashi returned as Scorpion and got his revenge. The fight, as previewed in the trailer, lived up to the hype. The addition of Cole getting to team with his ancestor only helped improve the fight physically and from an emotional standpoint.
