Review by C.J. Bunce
Who knew Karl Urban was going to propel the Mortal Kombat franchise ahead to make a third movie a shoo-in? Okay, it should have been obvious. The 2021 big-budget release Mortal Kombat found the sweet spot that bridged the cool parts of the game and the expectations of modern action movie fans with a remake, reboot, and adaptation of the popular series of martial arts fantasy games that dates back to 1992. If you loved the 2021 movie, you might agree Mortal Kombat II is even better, introducing Karl Urban as game hero Johnny Cage, with Chilling Adventures of Sabrina co-stars Adeline Rudolph as Kitana and Tati Gabrielle as Jade, and returning leads Jessica McNamee, Lewis Tan, Mehcad Brooks, Ludi Lin, Chin Han, Josh Lawson, Damon Herriman, and the great Joe Taslim and Hiroyuki Sanada.
It really is the video game come alive. Even better, just two months after its theatrical release you can stream Mortal Kombat II now on HBO Max.
The ability to bring back so many game heroes is the movie’s success, which all but ensures another sequel. Screenplay writer Jeremy Slater (Moon Knight, Umbrella Academy) uses the rules of the video game world and years of the franchise’s own fantasy worldbuilding to allow characters to return from the dead. “Would you like to play again?” isn’t a trope used as blatantly as in the new Jumanji movies, but it means raising the stakes and eliminating any character is possible, along with bringing them back for more.
The story borrows some tried-and-true roadmaps. Urban’s cocky take on game hero Johnny Cage is a step ahead of Tim Allen’s actor-turned-hero in Galaxy Quest, creating the kind of over-the-top performance by his sub-A list action movie star-turned real-life hero that makes you think Jean-Claude Van Damme or Dolph Lundgren probably can relate to his character. Part meta plot device and fueling much of the humor, Cage’s story finds him plucked by the Gods to join the warriors from the first movie, and yes, every hero is expendable. The Last Starfighter, another video game movie, should come to mind. Joe Taslim has reportedly signed on for four more sequels, and a new amulet (like one you’d find in a Doctor Strange tale) is a clever MacGuffin that will certainly open up the movie to more opportunities and movies.
Mortal Kombat II is exactly what it needs to be, the kind of movie that doesn’t disappoint, satisfying to the last scene. You might not think of the franchise as being capable of supporting the kind of backstory of something bigger, like Assassin’s Creed or World of Warcraft. But the depth and layered universe arrives via the other main plot thread, which features the co-lead of the film, Adeline Rudolph, star of another big game adaptation: the Resident Evil streaming series. Here she plays Kitana, a heroine whose backstory mimics Gamora from Marvel Comics, yet Kitana is used decisively as the glue that holds the movie together. Kitana is supported by her own bodyguard Jade, played by Tati Gabrielle. Rudolph and Gabrielle were sisters in Chilling Adventures of Sabrina and they are able to continue their chemistry here.
For anyone not familiar with the game, it follows human warriors who carry a special tattoo that identifies them as able to compete at a galactic level with warriors of other realms. In the first movie the heroes of the tale are street fighter Cole Young, played by Lewis Tan from Wu Assassins, and Jessica McNamee as Sonya Blade, who has worked with “marked” warrior Jax Briggs (Supergirl’s Mehcad Brooks)–a cyborg–to research how to defend Earth from a sorcerer known to cheat at Mortal Kombat called Shang Tsung, played by Chin Han (Avatar: The Last Airbender). In a lair called Raiden’s Temple, the marked heroes learned their “arcana”–an exclusive superpower that will help them in battle.
Returning composer Benjamin Wallfisch (Blade Runner 2049, Shazam!) paints the fantasy world with a mix of action movie and fantasy themes. We’re all here for the Kombat, and the choreography delivers, along with the visceral brand of carnage you’d expect. The visuals use fire, light, and sheer energy in ways audiences haven’t seen since Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
A surprise is the return of Josh Lawson as the mouthy Kano, whose character and performance turn around one of the few weaker elements of the first movie. A big win is applying one of the best genre tropes: turning enemies into allies. Don’t miss larger-than-life actor C.J. Bloomfield as the Bone Tomahawk-inspired Baraka.
Rudolph is a great genre actor who should be tapped for the Avatar: the Last Airbender streaming series. Urban is as suave and funny as ever, adding another memorable role to his portfolio, which includes the biggest sci-fi and fantasy franchises–probably more than any other actor. But Ludi Lin remains the story’s best hero, back again as Liu Kang.
It’s the latest game adaptation that continues the blend of Bruce Lee’s Enter the Dragon with rich fantasy worlds like that of Big Trouble in Little China and even The Lord of the Rings. Don’t miss a contender for best fantasy movie of 2026. Mortal Kombat II is now streaming on HBO Max.
