Mortal Kombat II Review

The 2021 film promised a tournament and never held one, so the first thing Jeremy Slater's script does is deliver it, and the second is to introduce the character the reboot most obviously lacked. Karl Urban plays Johnny Cage as a fading action star who treats being recruited to save the world as a booking, and every genuinely funny line is his. The bouts, shot on the Gold Coast sets and choreographed with far more clarity than last time, are what the fans paid for, with fatalities the R rating lets play out in full.

Then the amulet plot arrives. Shao Kahn, played by Martyn Ford as a slab with a voice, becomes immortal, kills Cole Young and Jax in short order, and the last act chases the amulet into the Netherrealm through a great deal of exposition. Liu Kang's sacrifice and Kitana's coronation are meant to clean up the first film's mistakes, and there are too many characters for any to register.

Critics settled on a shrug with a smile, 64 percent on Rotten Tomatoes and 46 on Metacritic, the New York Post calling it a migraine of nonstop fights. Its 129 million dollars worldwide did not cover an 80 million dollar production once marketing is counted. Still better than last time.