IR Film Review: MORTAL KOMBAT II [New Line Cinema/Warner Bros.]

While the trailer definitely created a sense of anticipation specifically around the Johnny Cage character, played with gusto by Karl Urban, the tonal unevenness specifically with the performances still relegates this new entry in "Mortal Kombat II" into B movie territory despite its B+ intentions. Granted the actual play of the Kombat competition makes sense. But in a new world, it is not as simple as the 90s version that was all balls and fury. Here the trauma of the beginning context for Kitana is palpable and the gore is meant to be R. This is not your PG-13 approach but there is something about that restriction which might serve this better. Having not seen the previous Kombat film in this series apparently released day and date with HBO Max, there are likely very deep cuts from the game but like the Sonic adaptation in many ways (and likely "Streetfighter" coming from Paramount) there is an emptiness to a lot of these proceedings. Sure certain fight sequences are gory and entertaining but the end goal is a little silly in the way it is played (save for Kitana and her final battle which is the one with the most representation to the brutal prologue of the film). The Liu Kang misdirect actually is pretty well done but it almost belittles the character. Jax and Sonya are there and get some good hits and moments in but their characters aren’t really required to do more though Sonya’s fight with a certain character does show an interesting dynami. However, that intent is never fully realized.

There is a MacGuffin in an amulet that motivates a lot of the story especially with a descent sequence which is actually the best part of the film because of the way a certain villain can fight. Urban as Johnny Cage is great in many ways (and is obviously what the trailers promoted) but the dialogue of the film is so wooden that a better script would have suited him better (see his take on "Dredd" which is vastly better scripted). One wonders if the script was a little tighter before...or if it was changed in production. The whole satire is that Cage is a washed up action actor from the 90s and while that is fun to those of use who were alive and perhaps teenagers in the 90s it likely doesn’t resonate with the kids born after 9/11. The tricky thing about remakes or reboots now is relevance. Does Mortal Kombat maintain that balance? Hard to say. It just feels fairly inconsistent in tone and like "Shazam" with Zach Levi, it wants to elevate itself a little bit above what it is.

Partially it is really the fault of the script with substandard dialogue here. The sequences are fine though mostly strung together. The reality is that Cage is a unstrung hero and his reveal of power makes sense but it is more about satire when if he played just more gusto and less sarcasm, it might have worked better. Cage has the most F-Bombs of course and that is part of his allure. The reality is that the tone of "Mortal Kombat II" (perhaps like the upcoming "Masters Of The Universe"), might have been better served by a TV show/series but the powers that be wanted to engage the theatrical experience which is a noble pursuit. But like most things, the ROI needs to match the budget which might have not been the case here. "Mortal Kombat II" is entertaining enough but because of weak dialogue, uneven performances and a shifting tone it feels effective in ways but empty. C

By Tim Wassberg