Mortal Kombat has a wide disparity between the reactions it caused in both audiences and critics, leaving its sequel with the interesting task of bridging the gap between the two. A modern reboot of the film franchise that adapted the infamously grisly American fighting game series, 2021’s Mortal Kombat puts forth a new take on the тιтular battle for supremacy between the various realms of existence. Premiering simultaneously in theaters and on HBO Max, Mortal Kombat wound up being one of the perennial action franchises of the COVID era of film premieres.
Compared to its lovably cheesy ’90s predecessors, 2021’s Mortal Kombat is a more faithful adaptation in some ways, but strays from the path of the original games even further than the ’90s films in others. Unlike the PG-13 films of the past, Mortal Kombat bathes in an R-rating that takes full advantage of the gore the franchise has come to be known for. However, a few notable changes were made to the story compared to the games, namely original protagonist Cole Young and the Arcana magic system that gives each Mortal Kombat tournament fighter special powers.
Mortal Kombat Was A Much Bigger Hit With Audiences Than Critics
A Sharp Divide That’s Easy To Understand
A crowd-pleaser through and through, Mortal Kombat features one of the most drastic divides between critical consensus and the opinion of casual viewers of any film of the 2020s so far. On RottenTomatoes.com, Mortal Kombat is listed as having a measly 55% critical approval rating and an 85% audience rating, making up an astounding 30% disagreement between professional reviewers and general audiences. It’s not an altogether surprising result considering the ambitions of the film and what came before from previous adaptations of the games.
Vocal detractors bemoaned the fact that, despite literally being тιтled Mortal Kombat, the 2021 film actually ends before the eponymous tournament can even begin, with all of the fighting therein essentially amounting to professional sabotage before the formal Kombat even begins. Cole Young also didn’t impress fresh critics or the rare reviewers familiar with the source material, correctly identifying him as an arcless Mary Sue that simply acts as a bland vessel for the audience to experience the fantasy multiverse through. That’s not even to mention Lewis Tan’s painfully bland performance as the new character.
Cole Young also didn’t impress fresh critics or the rare reviewers familiar with the source material, correctly identifying him as an arcless Mary Sue that simply acts as a bland vessel for the audience to experience the fantasy multiverse through.
That being said, sharp storytelling has never been the main appeal of the Mortal Kombat series. When it comes to properly bloody Mortal Kombat, the 2021 film more than delivers, with most of the best fight scenes in Mortal Kombat movie history stemming from the film’s creative choreography and faithful renditions of iconic characters from the games. Even looking with a critical eye, one area in which Mortal Kombat is genuinely affecting is in Sub-Zero and Scorpion’s famous rivalry, turning their bitter personal fued into a truly delicious dramatic spectacle.
Mortal Kombat 2 Can Bridge The Audience-Critic Divide
Johnny Cage Might Be The Key To A Flawless Victory
With the upcoming Mortal Kombat 2, Warner Brothers will have the chance to win over critics that weren’t impressed by the fatalities of the first film while still retaining the goodwill of the average viewer. Critical to fixing this problem will be eclipsing Cole Young with Karl Urban’s Johnny Cage, everyone’s favorite Hollywood jerk turned savior of Earthrealm. Johnny and Liu Kang’s dynamic as two competent fighters with vastly different personalities and upbringings will be key to creating a lively buddy dynamic that can carry the film, unlike Cole’s charismatic void.
A more compelling story that spends less time spinning wheels going through the motions of a training montage and more time actually delivering on a high-stakes tournament with the fate of multiple worlds at stake will also be key. Mortal Kombat had an admittedly weak sense of story progression that made it hard to get invested, and a better structure could go a long way in winning over the more incredulous critics unwilling to turn their brains off and enjoy the gory fun. Ideally, Mortal Kombat 2 will reinvigorate the franchise after the awkward, stumbling start of Mortal Kombat.
