This week marks the release of Mortal Kombat II, the sequel to the rebooted franchise from 2021. Gaming Respawn were invited down to Vue in Leicester Square by Warner Bros. to check out how this installment shapes up compared to the long-running fighting game franchise. This article will take you through my evening at the movies.
The Prelude
Upon arrival at the Vue, there was the major distraction down the road of what looked like a red carpet for a film about the old school rock band Iron Maiden (but I’m sure you’re not interested in all that hoopla). Coming into the cinema, I was greeted by my first freebie of the night: lots of pin badges. These badges had iconic catchphrases from Mortal Kombat, like “Finish Him!” and “Get Over Here!”. A nice touch, I must say.
I then headed up the escalators to what can only be described as the best two words in the English language: free bar. While there were some oddities, such as the absence of soft drinks like Pepsi or Sprite, there was plenty of beer, wine and juice on offer that was music to my ears.
Heading into what Vue call their Epic screens, the name truly didn’t do it justice. The plush leather recliner seats played second fiddle to an incredible screen that, once the film started, really did dazzle with all sorts of sights and sounds, thanks to HDR and Dolby Atmos sound.
Mortal Kombat II- The Film Itself
Now, onto the main part of the evening, the early premiere of Mortal Kombat II. This is possibly the most well-done stupid movie I have ever seen. I will try my best to not spoil too much of the story, but who really checks out Mortal Kombat media for the story?
This movie’s storyline mainly focuses on Kitana and Johnny Cage.
We start off with a flashback to a young Kitana in the kingdom of Edenia, where the latest Mortal Kombat tournament is nearing its end. Big baddie Shao Kahn enters to take Edenia by killing Kitana’s dad, King Jerrod, in order to claim this world for Outerworld and, thus, set in motion the events of the film.
Following the jump forward in time, we catch up with Karl Urban’s Johnny Cage, who is a washed-up 90s action star at a pseudo Comic-Con. He is approached by Sonya Blade and Raiden, who tell him he has been chosen by the gods to be Earth’s fifth champion in the latest Mortal Kombat tournament.
What rolls on for the next 90 or so minutes is the cheesiest action movie I have seen in ages. The dialogue straddles the line between being serious and meaningful, and it is at a similar level to films like Kraven the Hunter, Madame Web and Morbius.
Where this film does truly shine is in the brutality of each fight. From Liu Kang splitting Kung Lao in half with his spinning blade hat, to Sonya spiking Kitana’s mum Queen Sindel through the floor, the gore is on full display. This is surprising given the 15-age rating.
The fights in general are the best, and it was great to have a lot of fan service with lots of recognisable characters from the games here, and when the film leans into the humour, it does it fantastically.
The Characters
The characters in general are pretty decent, for the most part, with Karl Urban being a massive standout as he really does portray the washed-up action star superbly. He starts off as this quite pathetic man who leans into being an actor a lot, but by the end of the film, he is the arrogant Johnny Cage that I know and tolerate to some extent. Also, he does do his trademark nut punch to Baraka, and it lands with the same crunch that you would expect in Mortal Kombat 1 on PS5.
The other main standout character for me was the returning Kano played by Josh Lawson. Kano was hilarious, which is not surprising as I know the actor from his time as Tate Staskiewicz in the comedy Superstore, which is well worth a watch if you haven’t seen it already. Kano provides superb one-liners and acts almost as the audience’s window into the plot, and I could easily watch a film focused on him.
Mortal Kombat II – Final Thoughts
My last thoughts on Mortal Kombat II would be that if you are a fan of the franchise, then this is a must-watch. It lives up to the cheesy nature of the franchise and delivers the gore fantastically.
If you’re wanting a film with a deep and meaningful story, then you are wasting your time. If you have a spare couple of hours and want to see lots of guts, gore and semi-superpowered fights, then go for this, and you will be hard-pressed to find a worse way to spend this time.
