When Johnny Cage (Joel McHale, Animal Control, Community) was a child, he was constantly bullied in school, until he found martial arts, and learned how to fight back. Now, decades later, he’s the biggest A-list action star in 1980s Hollywood—at least in his own mind. Johnny’s latest film project, Ninja Mime, is in danger of shutting down when his co-star goes missing from the set. So Johnny goes to Jennifer’s (Jennifer Grey, Dirty Dancing, Red Oaks) home to check on her, but soon finds himself in the middle of a dangerous battle between good and evil, and he isn’t sure which side is which. Johnny also learns that many of the people in this so-called City of Angels are actually literal demons—an evil secret society is plotting to resurrect their god from the Netherrealm so it can take over the Earthrealm and bring about the end of the world. Johnny can’t really finish his movie if the world ends, so he teams up with his trusty, loyal assistant Chuck (Dusan Brown, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom), and supernatural being Ashrah (Kelly Hu, Arrow, X2: X-Men United), in hopes of saving the world… and his career. In the process, Johnny unlocks powers he didn’t even know he had.
Mortal Kombat Legends: Cage Match is the fourth animated film in the Mortal Kombat Legends franchise, though it’s it’s own stand alone story. This is a thoroughly-entertaining and hilarious film that is a love letter to both 80s action movies as well as the Mortal Kombat franchise in general. The 1980s setting is evident right from the start, with the use of pastel colors, a throwback soundtrack/score, and everyone dressing to excess. Johnny has earrings, big hair, and is dressed in his white Miami Vice style suit, and drives a Ferrari. Johnny is a bit misogynistic and narcissistic, always talking about himself as he narrates his innermost thoughts about what’s going on to the audience, sometimes even pausing the action as he talks. The film pays homage to the many tropes you often find in 1980s action movies films—from high speed chases, to shootouts, to slow motion explosions, to the hero rising from near-defeat, and more.
Johnny has a Jack Burton from Big Trouble in Little China kind of vibe to him. He’s cocky and already a legend in his own mind, constantly talking about himself to the audience, and throwing out humorous one-liners. Joel McHale is perfectly cast in this role, and in his performance he is able to ride that fine line that makes Johnny both despicable and likable, showing that he does have a heart underneath all the bravado. Johnny’s only real friend is his assistant Chuck, who looks up to him like an idol, even though Johnny often treats him like garbage, and takes him for granted. This dynamic is so much fun to watch, especially in those moments where you can tell that Johnny really does appreciate Chuck. Even as Johnny finds himself fighting with demons, gods and other creatures rising from the Netherrealm, this doesn’t really faze him.
Most people probably don’t associate Mortal Kombat with humor. So you may be wondering how this fits into that franchise. The simple answer is gore and violence. The kills are sometimes surprising, but always bloody and over-the-top. The film has some fun surprises and twists that I didn’t see coming. As Johnny finds himself kicking his way through these demonic creatures, it doesn’t really faze him. He just sees these creatures as another form of a bully, and he won’t let these bullies win!
The film features a talented supporting cast that also includes Gilbert Gottfried (Aladdin, Royal Crackers) as Johnny’s foul-mouthed agent David Doubldy, as well as Grey DeLisle (Teen Titans Go!), Robin Atkin Downes (Luck, DC Showcase: Constantine – The House of Mystery), Zehra Fazal (Beavis and Butt-Head Do the Universe), Matt Yang King (Elemental), Phil LaMarr (Futurama), Matthew Mercer (Resident Evil: Death Island), Dave B. Mitchell (Call of Duty franchise), and Armen Taylor (Justice Society: World War II). This film is not for younger viewers. In addition to the graphic, gruesome violence, Johnny and several other characters are constantly dropping the F-bomb.
Warner Bros. has released this film on both 4K UHD and Blu-ray. I was sent the 4K for review, and it looks phenomenal. For the most part, the animation looks crystal clear and pristine, with clean, fine lines and an excellent level of detail. However, for flashbacks and film footage, there is this foggy filter and film grain added to the video, giving it an aged, stylized look. The film has a very unique color palette, which really evokes the 1980s setting with its bright pastel colors. If I had one complaint, it’s that I didn’t really care for the use of the heavy blue and green shadows added to the characters, particularly when the shadows fell on the character’s noses and mouths—it just very odd and almost like a moustache. That said, I eventually got used to this, and was no longer noticing it by the end of the film.
The film’s audio presentation is also impressive, with clear dialogue throughout and nice use of the surround and stereo channels to provice an immersive feeling. This was most noticable during high speed car chases or larger action sequences. The film also has an amazing soundtrack nd score that perfectly evokes the 1980s era without actually being songs from that decade. There’s a training montage set to “Rise to the Top” by Kevan Gallagher & Lorenzo de Feo, which felt like it could have been ripped right out of The Karate Kid.
The 4K release only includes a single 4K disc, which is packed in a standard 4K keepcase, along with a glossy cardboard slipcover and an insert with instructions on how to redeem a 4K Movies Anywhere compatible digital copy. The disc contains some nice bonus material, including a filmmaker commentary, a 10-minute making-of featurette, and a fun trailer for Johnny’s ridiculous movie-within-the-movie, Nina Mime!
What’s Included:
Film: (1:19:46)
- 2160p / Widescreen 1.78:1
- HDR10
- Audio: English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital
- Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish
- 4K Digital Copy (Movies Anywhere compatible)
- What Would Johnny Cage Do? (9:55)
The cast and crew talk about exploring Johnny Cge’s origin story, setting the film in the 1980s, casting Jennifer Grey as herself, having fun with 80s movies tropes, using the video games as reference for the shadow kicks, and more. Includes behind-the-scenes and storyboard footage, and interviews with producers Jim Krieg & Rick Morales, writer Jeremy Adams, director Ethan Spaulding, and stars Joel McHale (“Johnny Cage”) & Jennifer Grey (“Jennifer Grey”). - Ninja Mime Trailer (1:03)
Here’s the trailer for the ridiculous movie-within-the-movie, Nina Mime! Presented heavily grainy and in 4:3 format to give it that added ’80s feel. - Commentary (1:19:46)
Producers Rick Morales and Jim Krieg, and writer Jeremy Adams have a fun and lively discussion about the film, talking about the 80s setting and look, the music, the use of improv, and more. They also share some interesting factoids and behind-the-scenes stories about the production, point out Easter eggs and references, and more. It’s a very entertaining commentary.
4K Ultra HD:
Digital (code may not be valid after 12/31/2025):
Extras:
Final Thoughts:
Mortal Kombat Legends: Cage Match is a very fun and entertaining animated film that had me laughing quite a bit throughout. The film is cleverly-written with some witty, humorous dialogue as well as many nods to great action films of the 1980s. The animation and score/soundtrack also do an excellent job of transporting the viewer back 4 decades to a neon- and pastel-fueled era. The voice cast is terrific, particularly Joel McHale as the cocky Johnny Cage, Jennifer Grey poking fun at herself, and a cuss-filled Gilbert Gottfried in one of his final performances. Warner Bros.’ 4K release looks and sounds great, and contains some entertaining bonus features, including an audio commentary, a behind-the-scenes featurette and a mock trailer. This release comes highly recommended for fans of the Mortal Kombat franchise as well as fans of 1980s action movies in general. I would love to see another one of these animated Johnny Cage films!
Mortal Kombat Legends: Cage Match (4K Ultra HD/Digital) [4K UHD]
55% Off $39.99 $14.98 (as of April 26, 2024 12:37 GMT -04:00 – More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)
Mortal Kombat Legends: Cage Match (Blu-ray/Digital)
36% Off $22.98 $9.48 (as of April 26, 2024 12:37 GMT -04:00 – More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)
Mortal Kombat Legends: Cage Match
$14.99 (as of April 26, 2024 12:37 GMT -04:00 – More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)
