 |
| Images courtesy of Warner Bros. |
What is it about Mortal Kombat that has kept the franchise relevant for almost thirty-five years? I first encountered it as an eleven-year-old at our local Pizza Hut. Back in the day, most Pizza Huts had arcades in them, and I was immediately drawn to the colorful and dynamic cabinet, with Johnny Cage and giant yellow dragons emblazoned on the sides.
There was an older kid playing by himself, and I popped in a quarter to challenge him. He mopped the floor with me using Sub-Zero, and at the end of the last round, as my character swayed defenseless, the words FINISH HIM! splashed onto the screen, and Sub-Zero ripped off my head, with the spine still attached, dangling ever so slightly in the breeze. This blew my mind. I had never seen blood in a video game before, let alone a violent, gruesome death. I was immediately intrigued, as was every other kid my age; the trajectory of video games was forever altered.
The atmosphere of Mortal Kombat is somewhat campy, occasionally serious, and carries a grindhouse influence. The secret sauce is carefully balancing these elements to create a compelling universe, and even the various games have had mixed success. The 2021 film had a great opening sequence that felt promising, but it played it too safe in the rest of the narrative and never achieved a perfect equilibrium. The 1995 adaptation, directed by Paul W. S. Anderson, is a fun film that captures much of the spirit of the game, but it is missing the ultra-violence that defines the series.
Mortal Kombat II (2026) is a course correction for modern films, channeling the elements that make the games entertaining. For one, we actually get to see the tournament this time around, and the fights are the main attraction. Johnny Cage (Karl Urban) is the protagonist, and he is unwillingly sucked into the fight to save Earthrealm from being taken over by Shao Khan (Martyn Ford).
Everything is more "gamified" with a literal scoreboard of torches in the sky indicating the win/loss ratio of the two sides. The second act is dominated by a series of battles, with fighters pitted against each other in different areas ripped straight from the games. While the fight choreography is dynamic, it often pans out to the classic side-view instantly recognizable from classic fighting games before they transitioned to 3D.
Although it's full of goofy humor, mostly courtesy of Cage and Kano (Josh Lawson) and wacky ninja magic, and eye-lasers, it knows when to pull these elements back to let the character arcs shine through. There are too many characters, however, so some plot threads are unfinished, and a McGuffin that doesn't add much to the story bogs it down somewhat.
This flick won't be winning any awards for the dialogue or the story beats, but it at least feels like it was written by someone who actually played the games and understands the aesthetic. It's the type of movie young me, fresh out of a Pizza Hut after seeing my head get ripped off, would have loved.
--Michelle Kisner