In order to save Earth from an interdimensional tyrant, 90s action star Johnny Cage (played by Karl Urban) must join a group of fighters to compete in a martial arts tournament.
So let’s get right to the point; this is a martial arts movie, and I can safely say there are some pretty cool fight scenes throughout the film. It was fast-paced and kinetic, but not so fast you didn’t lose track of what was happening. Plus, how they used all the different weapons I thought was pretty creative and distinct for each character.
I think people are really going to enjoy Karl Urban's performance; he does the action scenes convincingly, and you believe his emotional arc, but he also has really good comedic timing. Like, I think this is one of the funniest performances he’s ever given; it feels very natural and it’s pretty funny.
I would say the two main characters of this movie are 1. Johnny Cage and 2. Kitana (played by Adeline Rudolph), a princess of an alternate dimension called Edenia whose land was taken over by the villain Shao Kahn (played by Martyn Ford), and she’s out for revenge. I like the relationship between Kitana & Shao Kahn. After he takes over, he adopts Kitana as his own daughter, and this gives Rudolph’s acting a chance to shine, as she’s very good at showing someone conflicted and trying to save millions, but by getting close to someone she hates, it was an interesting dynamic, and I thought they gave her a fun arc in a "Lord of the Rings good versus evil” kind of way.
But I have to say my favorite character was a returning Josh Lawson as Kano. You could tell the actor was having a blast playing this gruff but sarcastic bounty hunter, and a good chunk of his dialogue was probably improvised lol, but they were pretty funny and a real highlight of the film.
While not getting a whole lot of character development, I thought the supporting cast was solid: Jessica McNamee had a lot of fun spunk; Mehcad Brooks was sold as the “Tough Guy."
I was pleasantly surprised with Ludi Lin as Liu Kang; he was probably the best fighter in the movie, and his relationship with his resurrected cousin Kung Lao was very enjoyable in a "Star Wars, Darth Vader, and Obi-Wan” kind of way.
Lewis Tan did a good job and has one of the most unintentionally funny scenes in the movie.
Oh, this sequel infuses the story with more comedy than the original, and I think that’s when the script is at its strongest. The first half is good but nothing you haven’t seen before and very self-serious, but once they go to the outland (which is a great location) and run into Baraka (which, like the location, has a great design), the movie's humor really starts to shine, and the film really finds its groove as a fun comedic adventure film.
There are a lot of characters in this movie, like the movie is nearing its climax before Scorpion is roped back into the story, but he is fun to see, and as always, Hiroyuki Sanada is very good and enjoyable.
The CGI is solid; the best shots are saved for the over-the-top kills, which is good, and some locations can look a little green screen-ish at times, but they work with enough actual sets that for the most part they’re able to blend it well.
I wish Raiden had a little bit more to do, but they used him well in the story.
The art department was very creative with all the different locations for the tournament. I especially liked the character Sindel’s creepy boiler room torture basement; her character is basically a zombie witch, and I thought her location added a fun Hellraiser-themed haunted house atmosphere with spikes coming out of the floor during the fighting and strange, bubbling, green liquids; it was quite spooktacular lol.
Sort of spoiler: at the beginning of the film, they show one of Johnny’s 90s action movies, and that was one of the funniest scenes in the movie, just how they play it so seriously while doing some fun, silly things with really spot-on
While not a perfect movie and definitely having its moments of cheese, Mortal Kombat II has an enjoyable sense of humor and dedication to the fight, choreography, special effects, and fun tone that the film overcomes a decent script and really delivers a fun adventure film, best enjoyed on a lazy day. I give a film 3 1/2 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫. I’d actually be interested in a sequel; what better compliment can you give a film? 😂
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