‘Mortal Kombat II’: Violent Fun, Which Is What We Came For [REVIEW]

Five years have passed since the first Mortal Kombat smashed its way into theaters, inviting audiences to join their favorite characters in the fight. The first movie was a no-frills kind of adaptation of the beloved game series, and Mortal Kombat II eagerly follows suit. After all, weren’t we playing Mortal Kombat for the sick fight scenes?

Simon McQuoid returns to direct, and Jeremy Slater penned the script. It’s bursting with action at nearly every moment, giving audiences just enough to become attached to these characters. The plot is there, it just really only serves to move the needle along. And that is not inherently a bad thing! Mortal Kombat II has more than enough entertainment with its fight scenes alone. It’s just unfortunate for fans of the first film, which did have a somewhat meatier plot as it brought viewers into this universe and set the stage.

Johnny Cage, who is played by Karl Urban, makes his appearance in this film. In our introduction to him we’re thrown back in time to one of his films that made him popular in the nineties, an overblown kung-fu type action film. The moves in it are absolutely ridiculous, which is part of the charm. However, Cage has long since faded into obscurity, and the scene then cuts to him sitting alone at a comic con booth with no fans in sight.

Princess Katana, played by Adeline Rudolph, is our other new addition to the movie. As a young princess her father is gruesomely defeated by Shao Kahn (Martyn Ford) and she is forced become his warrior. She is introduced alongside her friend and guard Jade (Tati Gabrielle), but the two aren’t given enough to rise out of the ensemble.

Fan-favorite returns and the promised tournament

Sonya Blade (Jessica McNamee), Jax Briggs (Mechad Brooks), and Cole Young (Lewis Tan) return. Though this film is meant to focus more on Cage, it is strange to see Tan shunted to the side, given his involvement in the first film. The trio isn’t given a lot, which seems like an underutilization of great characters.

Also returning in surprising ways: Kano (Josh Lawson), Kung Lao (Max Huang), and Sub-Zero (Joe Taslim). Kano, especially, is a much-needed one. Lawson’s Aussie humor injects the film with levity when Urban isn’t onscreen to do so with his similar Kiwi humor. They both are consistently the highlights of every scene they’re in.

It seems like what a lot of this film banks on is the premise of Mortal Kombat. Fans have been waiting for it since the first film. However, at times it makes it feel like the characters were written around it. But when it delivers it does so with gusto. And perhaps that is the most frustrating part, knowing that the potential is there.

The good thing: Mortal Kombat isn’t finished. A third installment seems like it very well could continue to iron out the kinks. And I’m sure fans will be there, ready to see what comes next.

(Featured image: Warner Bros.)

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