Mortal Kombat Legends: Cegueira Glacial

I sat down to watch the 2022 animated movie "Mortal Kombat Legends: Snow Blind" with my son. And I have to admit that I was not familiar with all the characters in this storyline. But then again, I haven't been playing the games for a long, long time, so I don't keep up with who is in the franchise.

I have seen the 2021 animated movie "Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle of the Realms" and the 2020 animated movie "Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion's Revenge" as well. And of these three, then this 2022 is the weakest addition to the "Mortal Kombat" franchise, simply because the storyline is all over the place, and there isn't really much to keep your attention to the various characters. So writer Jeremy Adams didn't exactly impress with the storyline here.

Visually then "Mortal Kombat Legends: Snow Blind" is good. You know what you get when you sit down to watch something like this; an abundance of fighting and over-the-top violence. And yeah "Mortal Kombat Legends: Snow Blind" offers that as well, and that is one of this particular animated movies strongest aspects. But it is hardly enough to make it worthwhile watching.

The art and animation style used in "Mortal Kombat Legends: Snow Blind" is adequate. It does look and feel like it belongs in the "Mortal Kombat" franchise.

The voice acting, since this is an animated movie, is adequate, though there wasn't a single familiar voice on the cast list, aside from David Wenham. I didn't recognize his voice though, and it was only when I perused the cast listing on IMDb that I realized it was him.

"Mortal Kombat Legends: Snow Blind" is something for the hardcore fans of the "Mortal Kombat" franchise, for sure. For a casual viewer, then this is adequate enough for a single viewing, then you forget about it and move on.

My rating of "Mortal Kombat Legends: Snow Blind" from director Rick Morales lands on a bland five out of ten stars.

'Mortal Kombat Legends: Snow Blind (2022)' takes place in a post-apocalyptic future, presumably decades after the events of 'Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle Of The Realms (2021)'. A cyber-enhanced Kano rules over the desolate realm with an iron first, his Black Dragon clan viciously raiding the few remaining settlements to mercilessly kill, maim or capture whoever they can find. Enter Kenshi, an arrogant up-and-comer whose desire to prove himself the best fighter of all puts him in the unfortunate position of not having any eyes. After he's wounded and left for dead, he crosses paths with a mysterious cold-shouldered individual who nurses him back to health and shows him how to survive - and fight - without his sight. The story is simple and to the point, setting up its world and characters before shifting its focus to an extended training montage and a brutal final battle. Its pacing drags in places and feels rushed in others, with some plot points even coming across as completely uncooked. However, it's generally entertaining and features a number of exciting, blood-soaked set-pieces that do justice to the notoriously violent nature of the games it's based on. Speaking of which, the cast is comprised of several characters who've appeared in various entries in the series and there are several references to the games sprinkled throughout. Fans of the source material will surely find a lot to appreciate here, and it's interesting to see how the post-apocalyptic aesthetic is transposed onto characters we've previously seen. The piece has a different look to its predecessors, with their harsh black shading being replaced with softer colouring and their blocky outlines being replaced with sharp yet slightly sketchy line work that overlaps in unexpected places. The visuals are distinct and effective, especially during the high-octane action. It's during these sequence that the animation really shines, remaining fast and fluid yet snappy and impactful. The blows are all crunchy and the gore is all grisly, leading to a series of scenes in which pain is almost palpable. Sometimes, the violence seems over-the-top for the sake of it, designed to shock rather than support the action or the atmosphere, but it generally enhances the experience rather than distract from it. It's one of the picture's unique selling points, too. The 'X-ray' elements aren't present, but I'd be lying if I said I actually missed them - or even noticed their omission prior to writing this sentence - despite the fact that they were fairly effective in the previous movies. Ultimately, this is an enjoyable and typically exciting action flick. It's a fair bit of fun throughout.

Having watched the previous two film in this Mortal Kombat Legends trilogy, Snow Blind feels quite different. There are different characters and the graphic animations here is vastly more gruesome, violent and brutal. Right from the opening scene, it sets the tone for the rest of the film.

The story is a step up from the second film Battle of the Realms and overall more engaging throughout. The animation and color is just as good. There could have been more developed work for the characters.

At times, there are confusing scenes as but in general this film seems more fitted for hardcore fans of the franchise.

I'll start by saying I'm a fan of Sub-Zero (especially Kuai Liang) so giving him central focus obviously sways my preferential treatment of this movie. Additionally, I always enjoy his team up with the grandmaster of his rival clan so yeah this works for me. It's removed from the klassic Mortal Kombat storylines but we have (several) other movies about that so this one is a nice supplementary story to the franchise. Favorite part is when Kuai Liang teaches Kenshi about "...nothing more poisonous than 'I can't.'"

The only thing I'm not sure is whether this connects fully to the previous installments "Scorpion's Revenge" and "Battle of the Realms". As a stand-alone it works thanks to MK11 timeline shenanigans. Best to take it as an individual offering.

Although not as action-heavy as the previous part, it still performs reasonably, primarily because of how organic the narration is.

I love how they had given proper time to Kenshi, one of those characters in this Mortal Kombat universe, which I believe has always been sidelined because of other prominent personalities, underappreciated, in spite of possessing a remarkable set of powers and skills!

He finally got his due recognition, and I couldn't be happier.

Now as far as the film is concerned, it is an enjoyable ride with fair amounts of bloodshed to entertain your yearnings, to satisfy your innermost appetite. Still, somewhere the story comes across as very routine, with the same arc we have encountered thousands of times! I wish the writer here had taken more risks instead of playing a safe hand!