Mortal Kombat 2 movie reviews say it’s far from a flawless victory, but still ‘dumb fun’

Despite a really weird original main character concept in the first new film in the Mortal Kombat reboot series, I actually kind of liked it.

The core cast has returned for the sequel Mortal Kombat II, releasing this Friday, and reviews are coming in to show that there's still somehow some blood left in this bloody franchise. With impressions trickling in for the first hour, the movie sits at 74 percent Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes (and rising) with several dozen scores already counted.

MK2 adds Karl Urban (Billy Butcher in The Boys among many other great roles) as a washed-up Johnny Cage, recruited by the warriors from the first movie in a familiar plot: Earthrealm needs to win this year's tournament or else Shao Kahn will imprison everyone, yada yada.

It's seemingly been done before a few times over, and the main complaints in the reviews lie with the film's story. But critics are calling it a good time, especially if you're into the Kombat itself, as the film is full of action scenes and awesome fight sequences featuring beloved, violent characters.

"It’s heartening that some lessons have been learned, making Mortal Kombat II a far more enjoyable film," said Josh Parham for Next Best Picture. "The ensemble can’t be saved by its less talented members, but the newcomers are well-suited to this world, and others find ways to make a more meaningful impact."

Alongside Urban, Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet's Tati Gabrielle joins the cast as Jade, but the majority of the cast is here from the 2021 original, including the cringy Cole Young played by Lewis Tan, who was a big source of pain for fans of the first movie. Thankfully, it seems as though he's taken a bit of a back seat in this one with the focus more so on Cage.

"The creatively gory fighting and amusing -- if shallow -- characters just about compensate for the paper-thin story," said Amon Warmann for Empire Magazine. "But at its best, it’s a lot of dumb fun." And there we have it. Dumb fun. Exactly what I was expecting. Why would I expect anything else from a Mortal Kombat movie?

"The film has its rewards, mostly of the unsophisticated kind, since the fight sequences come fast and furious and the cheesy dialogue has enough groan-worthy one-liners to inspire a thousand drinking games," remarked Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter.

Mortal Kombat II hits theaters on May 8, and I'll probably be grabbing my popcorn to go along for the silly ride soon.

The post Mortal Kombat 2 movie reviews say it’s far from a flawless victory, but still ‘dumb fun’ appeared first on Destructoid.