Hollywood, Los Angeles, Southern California.
Inside a Lucasfilm studio.
Given the complexity of the equipment and props required for the Mortal Kombat project, filming ultimately took place in Hollywood, rather than at Gamenova's Delta.
"You mean... I'm going to deliver a flying kick from one end of the field to the other?"
Brandon Lee was speechless with exasperation.
Although he had worked as a stuntman for Street Fighter and the King of Fighters, he was used to these things.
However, whenever Lin Lixin makes new outrageous demands, it still makes him somewhat uneasy.
"Lin, did you laugh when you said that?"
Martial arts and superpowers are two different concepts.
Even the most highly cultivated person cannot overcome Earth's gravity, right?
"Huh? You can't do it? Okay, okay, if it really doesn't work, we can synthesize it later."
Lin Lixin shook his head regretfully. Such a signature move; it would be so cool if the whole thing could be filmed live.
"This is Liu Kang's signature move and that of Mortal Kombat! If you can do it, the meme effect will be just as good as Guile's Sonic Boom."
"I have no doubt about that..."
Brandon Lee gave a few wry smiles, tinged with a hint of helplessness.
If Lin says it will be a hit, then it definitely will be.
The problem is that I simply don't have the ability to help myself.
"Alright, alright, anyway, this ' Flying Dragon Kick ' is essentially a flying kick, so I'll try to make it as standard as possible. The rest is up to later on."
He flipped through the document in his hand, looking at the description and sketch of the next action, and his head began to ache even more.
"Then what about this ' Bicycle Kick '? A normal human being probably couldn't kick that many times in mid-air unless they were suspended by wires."
[ Bicycle Kick ]: The body is airborne, and the legs are used to kick the opponent at high speed, as if pedaling a bicycle.
This is yet another "imaginary" martial arts move.
"Look, what we're doing isn't martial arts in the real sense, but rather the 'martial arts' that the United States envision. It's just an exaggerated version," Lin Lixin explained, peeking at the contents of the paper.
Mortal Kombat is a very unique work.
Unlike Street Fighter and the King of Fighters, which pay very restrained and serious homage to and learn from China arts techniques, Mortal Kombat, being an United States work, is indeed quite adept at being unconventional.
It pays homage to or draws heavily on China martial arts, but it doesn't gamify itself like other fighting games.
Instead, it has developed in an extreme direction.
Simply put, it's evolving in the direction of Hollywood.
It is filled with United States "imagination" of mysterious Eastern power, Hollywood martial arts movie content, and of course, a lot of Hollywood violent aesthetics.
Stereotypical, exaggerated, crazy, cartoonish, and unrestrained.
The most representative example is Liu Kang, a game protagonist who is clearly paying homage to Bruce Lee.
His action sequences are heavily inspired by classic Kung-Fu Master films such as " Enter the Dragon " and " Fist of Fury ".
The numerous high-speed fighting moves and continuous kicks, along with the iconic battle cry, all bear the imprint of Bruce Lee.
In other words, he represents the image of an "Eastern martial artist" in the minds of Hollywood, or rather, in the minds of all United States. He is also the Bruce Lee in the eyes of United States.
Frankly speaking, Lin Lixin has no intention of making any changes to this.
Mortal Kombat is a work that caters to the tastes of the Western market and has a more "mainstream" feel.
This unique American style of martial arts is actually quite fitting.
If you force rigorous martial arts content into it and portray Liu Kang as a true Eastern martial artist, it will cause MK to lose its soul.
Shaolin Kung-Fu Master, various dazzling flying kicks, mysterious internal energy, a mysterious martial arts master living in the mountains...
These "stereotypical" cultural symbols, crafted by Hollywood over the years, are exactly what MK needs.
Given MK's positioning, it shouldn't be "homage" but rather "deconstruction".
"However, to be fair... the Bicycle Kick move isn't actually that difficult to do."
Lin Lixin looked around, his gaze settling on a chair used for resting on the set, and his eyes lit up.
"Aha!"
He ran a few steps, picked up the chair, and returned to Brandon Lee. He gestured with his chin, "Here, lie flat on the chair and imagine you're riding a bicycle. Try it."
"Okay..."
Brandon Lee nodded.
This format is actually quite common on filming sets.
He sat sideways in the chair, adjusted his center of gravity to make sure he wouldn't fall over, and then slowly lay down.
Because the chair only supports his buttocks and part of his lumbar spine, Brandon Lee needs to use his upper body muscles and core muscles together to forcefully grip the edge of the chair in order to prevent himself from tipping over.
After ensuring stability, he slowly began to move his legs.
First, I tried one or two taps, attempting a simple loop.
It's like riding a bicycle in mid-air; this is a movement that leg trainers often do.
He quickly found his rhythm, rapidly alternating his legs to kick out with incredible speed and precision.
Each foot stops at just the right point, then quickly retracts, leaving ample cushioning for the other foot.
"Very good... very good... damn, perfect!" Lin Lixin's eyes grew brighter and brighter as he looked.
This move is much smoother than the Bicycle Kick in Mortal Kombat.
As expected of a professional.