“Mortal Kombat II” karate kicks its way onto the big screen this weekend, and for longtime fans of the hyper-violent franchise, it’s a near flawless victory. But for Earthrealm dwellers who are uninitiated in the myriad of video games, movies, comics, and decades of other related media, the new sequel probably won’t pack the same cinematic punch.
A follow-up to 2021’s “Mortal Kombat,” which took a more grounded and gritty approach than Paul W. S. Anderson‘s 1995 film adaptation, “Mortal Kombat II” is, overall, a bloody good popcorn flick for folks who enjoy over-the-top fights punctuated with the type of gore that would make “Saw” fans blush. Sure, the plot is razor-thin (and that’s being generous), but a deep character study isn’t what “Mortal Kombat” or martial arts B-movie lovers are looking for — it’s the gruesome “fatalities” (head-crushing and limb hacking finishing moves made famous by the games) and fantasy-fueled action that will likely have them packing theaters.
Taking place after the events of the first film in the rebooted series, the sequel wastes no time on long exposition or explanations for its new and returning characters, quickly moving things along so viewers can revel in all the “Mortal Kombat” mayhem. The flick kicks off with a brief origin story set-up for new hero Kitana (Adeline Rudolph), as well as the latest big bad entering the fray, the villainous Shao Kahn (Martyn Ford). He’s a Skeletor-esque ruler of the Outworld realm, a desolate alternate dimension, who has a bone to pick with the godlike Lord Raiden (Tadanobu Asano) and his team of champions. Without getting too into the weeds of the franchise’s lore, Kahn and his forces seek to defeat Raiden’s fighters in a to-the-death tournament so that he can finally take over the Earth.
For better and worse, the sequel leans heavily into its video game roots, with the action-packed fights only slightly hampered at times by their noticeably CGI backdrops. Certain scenes come across as live-action versions of a 2-D-fighting game battle. And while the few non-fight moments feel like the cinematic cutscenes from a “Mortal Kombat” game, it actually works here. We don’t need long, drawn out dialogue between characters or set-up sequences to further the story when, really, all people want to see is these super-powered brawlers ripping each other’s limbs off.
While characters like the robo-armed Jax Briggs (Mehcad Brooks), energy-blasting Sonya Blade (Jessica McNamee), armored Cole Young (Lewis Tan), and fire-wielding Liu Kang (Ludi Lin) are back from the first film, they are mostly relegated to supporting roles on Raiden’s team of champions. The real focus of “Mortal Kombat II” is fan-favorite Johnny Cage, impeccably played by Karl Urban.
Cage is by far the most compelling character in the film, a past-his-prime Hollywood action star in the vein of Jean-Claude Van Damme. Cage rose to fame in this fictional version of Earth with martial arts flicks like the cheekily titled “Citizen Cage.” Urban’s Cage is pompous and full of himself, even though he hasn’t had a hit in decades, and is making ends meet on the comic con circuit when he’s plucked by the elder gods to fight alongside Raiden’s team to defend Earthrealm. There’s some surprisingly poignant commentary from Cage during a bar scene (“Mortal Kombat” co-creator Ed Boon also pops up in the scene as a bartender) where he laments the state of martial arts movies today, as audiences gravitate more to the realistic fights of the “John Wick” films than the campy action of Cage’s era.
Shedding the gritty style of its predecessor, the sequel, directed by Simon McQuoid (who also directed the 2021 film), plays more into the fantasy action, and is also quite funny at times, with Urban’s character consistently stealing scenes with his quippy one-liners. From calling Raiden a “Big Trouble in Little China” cosplayer to likening the deadly tournament to a “Squid Game” murder party, Cage got the most laughs and applause from the fans at the screening I attended, especially when he pulls off his crotch-punching signature move. Urban also gets to crack a few meta “The Lord of the Rings” jokes, a nod to his appearances in the Peter Jackson films.
Adding the beloved Cage to his belt, Urban continues to be a god among the geek community, becoming a standout star over the years in everything from superhero series like “The Boys” to taking up the mantle of Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy in J.J. Abrams’s “Star Trek” reboot films (Urban did the legendary DeForest Kelley justice with those movies).
Another highlight in “Mortal Kombat II” is Hiroyuki Sanada as the fan-favorite ninja Scorpion, who was criminally underused in the first movie and sadly gets even less screen time in the sequel. Sanada, an Emmy winner for his role on the samurai period drama “Shōgun,” is the best swordsman in film and television today, in addition to being a great actor, so I’m begging the powers that be to throw money at him for a bigger role in the inevitable next “Mortal Kombat” movie.
Will “Mortal Kombat II” make a splash this awards season? Probably not. But this faithful adaptation should satisfy longtime fans of the franchise.
★★1/2
MORTAL KOMBAT II
Directed by Simon McQuoid. Written by Jeremy Slater, based on the video game created by Ed Boon and John Tobias. Starring Karl Urban, Adeline Rudolph, Martyn Ford, Tati Gabrielle, Jessica McNamee, Mehcad Brooks, Ludi Lin, Josh Lawson, Tadanobu Asano, Chin Han, Damon Herriman, Joe Taslim, Hiroyuki Sanada, Max Huang, and Lewis Tan. At AMC Boston Common, AMC Causeway, AMC South Bay, AMC Assembly Row, Alamo Drafthouse Seaport, Apple Cinemas Cambridge. 116 minutes. R (strong bloody violence and gore, and language)
Matt Juul can be reached at matthew.juul@globe.com.