Mortal Kombat 4K Ultra HD

In "Mortal Kombat," MMA fighter Cole Young (Tan), accustomed to taking a beating for money, is unaware of his heritage––or why Outworld's Sorcerer Shang Tsung (Han) has sent his best warrior, Sub-Zero (Taslim), an otherworthy Cryomancer, to hunt him down. Fearing for his family's safety, Cole goes in search of Sonya Blade (McNamee) at the direction of Jax (Brooks), a Special Forces Major who bears the same strange dragon marking Cole was born with. Soon, he finds himself at the temple of Lord Raiden (Asano), an Elder God and the protector of the Earthrealm, who grants sanctuary to those who bear the mark. Here, Cole trains with experienced warriors Liu Kang (Lin), Kung Lao (Huang) and rogue mercenary Kano (Lawson), as he prepares to stand with Earth's greatest champion against the enemies from Outworld in a high stakes battle for the universe. But will Cole be pushed hard enough to unlock his arcana––the immense power from within his soul––in time to save not only his family, but to stop Outworld once and for all?

Special features include five featurettes: "Deleted Scenes From Game To Screen: The Making Of Mortal Kombat," "Mortal Kombat: Fan Favorite Characters," "Fight Koreography," "Into The Krypt: Easter Eggs Of Mortal Kombat," "Anatomy Of A Scene."

The 2.39:1 2160p HEVC/H.265 Ultra HD Dolby Vision/HDR10 picture, reviewed on a Sony Bravia Z9D 4K Ultra HD HDR display, was photographed digitally in anamorphic Panavisioon® and Ultra Panavision 70 using the Arri Alexa LF and Arri Alexa Mini LF camera systems and sourced from a 4K master Digital Intermediate format. Image quality is often stunning. Color fidelity exhibits bold hues with refined shadings. Earth tones are generally muted. Fleshtones are natural throughout. This is a very stylized presentation, and HDR contrast builds textural density throughout with deep blacks, revealing shadow delineation and attractive white levels—all interplaying for a visual compelling experience. The movie presents a vast array of set backdrops such as abandoned urban sprawl, desert, underground caverns, an iced-over residence and a peaceful forest. Resolution is excellent throughout, especially in closeups of costume designs, environments, and facial features. This is a compelling visual experience that will please fans of the franchise. (Gary Reber)

The Dolby Atmos/Dolby TrueHD 7.1-channel soundtrack is dynamically intense. Atmospherics stylistically define backdrops with the sound of realism. Sound effects are often exciting and powerfully boosted with sub-25 Hz bass in the .1 LFE channel. Surround panning is discrete and directionalized. The orchestral score is dynamic sounding and spans a wide soundstage and extension to the surrounds. Dialogue is generally well integrated spatially, but there is quite a lot of ADR.

The Immersive Sound element consists of the extension of the music, a woman's scream, a yelling audience at a fighting match, a monster death scream, a man's voice "Silence!", thunder, a shed destroyed, a flying woman warrior and various atmospherics and sound effects. Far more height layer energy could have been realized but was not.

This is a surprising dialogue-driven holosonic® spherical surround soundtrack with a superb dynamic presence that will please fans. (Gary Reber)