Category: Good

Messages and Meaning

Mortal Kombat 2 makes the sensible choice not to overcomplicate things with too much meaning. The good guys, the bad guys, the battle between them. Everything is laid out quickly and simply so we can focus on what we came for – the action. As a film in its own right, Mortal Kombat 2 isn’t particularly noteworthy, but for fans of the game, it’s definitely an enjoyable experience.

The stylistic execution is flawless. From the arenas where the battles take place to the characters’ costumes and weapons, everything matches the game in great detail. The film manages to offer us numerous scenes where the fighting moves are spot-on, and it’s clear it was made with the intention of paying homage to the games, rather than simply using them as a springboard for easy money.

And even though the messages are only briefly touched upon, they are still meaningful. The Earth has value, the individual triumphs over Evil, and a true leader wants people to be free, not to obey.

Plot

The plot is more of a series of fast-paced scenes designed to crack a joke or two and get us to the next fight as quickly as possible. And for this type of film, that is exactly the right approach. Mortal Kombat 2 knew it was here to give us two things – satisfying stylistics and fight choreography. And it refused to waste our time fleshing out a story that didn’t need it.

To a large extent, the plot was structured like the campaigns in the games themselves, which was clearly the intended and achieved effect.

Characters

The characters were well-defined, without resorting to unnecessary drama, which would have felt forced in such a setting.

Kitana – A fine portrayal of the proud female warrior who remains unyielding and stands by her beliefs until her last breath.

Johnny Cage – The decision to make Johnny old and desperate is definitely a strange choice. He has always been the clown with ridiculous jokes who rarely takes things seriously. Instead, this role was given to Kano, who was definitely too much of a jester compared to his usual persona.

Jade – She was the only character they tried to build some kind of twist around, but everything was obvious from the very beginning, and the climax was practically nonexistent.

Important details

We got to enjoy a wide variety of arenas from the games, all recreated with impressive accuracy.

When Kitana defeats Johnny, he staggers just like in the games and collapses to the floor against the backdrop of Shao Kahn’s scream, “Finish him!” – a line all gamers know all too well.

We repeatedly see combat moves we’ve seen in the game – Shang Tsung, Scorpion, Johnny Cage, Sonya, Shao Kahn, Kitana. Each of them shows off their fighting skills exactly as we know them, which isn’t easy to recreate on film.