If you feel inclined to check out Rotten Tomatoes before heading out to see Mortal Kombat II this weekend, you might be surprised to see that critics have surprisingly responded positively compared to the usual assessment that video game movies receive from them. Currently, the film holds a 68 percent fresh rating on the aggregator site (which has dropped some from the 77 percent it was hovering around when the review embargo was lifted). In terms of video game films, that rating is practically an Oscar-winning moment since this particular genre usually faces evisceration from critics, with the Mortal Kombat franchise being no exception. The 1995 film is rotten at 44 percent while the 2021 reboot fared better, but is still rotten, at 55 percent.
These films tend not to be critical darlings, but what has emerged in the wake of the reviews for Mortal Kombat II aren’t the surprisingly positive reviews but the negative ones that fans and some of those who worked on the film believe have missed the mark. Mortal Kombat II is the film that the fans wanted, with the producers and creative team listening to the concerns of the fanbase following the release of its predecessor and genuinely addressing them. It’s fan service, but with the creative prowess to utilize that service without the sequel feeling like it’s merely catering to the target audience.
Even though this is a film clearly made for the fans, some critics who aren’t fans of the source material or aren’t interested in how the creatives involved made sure that the sequel would be something that the fanbase would love wrote some of the negative reviews. It once again has sparked another debate regarding what the audience wants and critical assessment, with this battle seemingly hitting a fever pitch as we head into the summer movie season.
This new debate sparked after the reviews began coming in for Mortal Kombat II, which came out of the gate primarily positive, but that didn’t stop producer Todd Garner from seeing a trend with some of the negative reviews. Garner took to his X page and stated, “Some of these reviews are cracking me up. It’s clear they have never played the game and have no idea what the fans want or ANY of the rules/canon of Mortal Kombat. One reviewer was mad that a guy “had a laser eye!” Why the f*ck do we still allow people that don’t have any love for the genre review these movies! Baffling.”
Garner received a lot of support for his tweet, mostly from fans who agreed that this sequel was made for them, with one user pointing to the Michael Jackson biopic Michael, which was rotten with critics but big with audiences, leading to huge box office, as a sign that critics are losing influence. @JBlake_ wrote, “If we’ve learned anything from Michael, it’s that critics are losing influence and fans don’t care about their opinions. It’s all about what the fans want and care about. And I’ve seen nothing but fan excitement.”
This seems to be the general opinion regarding the film’s reviews, with some even agreeing that anyone reviewing the film should at least know the lore or the basics before doing so, because without that knowledge, can a critic really give an honest assessment of the movie? Something that might seem silly to the uninitiated might be gospel to a fan who has followed the IP. religiously. Can you really criticize an adaptation of source material you aren’t a fan of or familiar with, or is a movie critic’s job to review a film solely as cinema? It’s becoming a fine line that continues to divide fans/casual moviegoers and those paid to express their opinion about the big release of the week.
Clearly, not everyone feels that a critic’s job is to have prior knowledge of the lore to review a film. Griffin Schiller, a Tomatometer-Approved critic, responded to Garner’s tweet and did his part to speak out about what he sees as a recent “wave of anti-criticism sentiment” and believes that the films shouldn’t be reviewed as a “piece of fan service.” Schiller wrote, “Idk man I’m just over this wave of anti-criticism. Your movie has a 77 percent on RT and counting. You won. You can make something for the fans without excluding the opinion of those who aren’t. I don’t think playing the games or knowing the lore should be a prerequisite for viewing. Films should be reviewed on how they function as…films, not as a piece of fan service.”
There is an element of truth to what Schiller is saying. Take comic book films, for example. There are likely many critics who are unfamiliar or just have a basic knowledge of some of the lore present in Marvel or DC Comics adaptations, but have still given those movies good reviews because, as a piece of cinema, they hit the mark and did a good job of catering to the fans, but also to a portion of the audience that lacks prior familiarity with the source material.
This goes for casual moviegoers who know nothing about the X-Men or Batman before seeing one of their films and still come out of the theater enjoying it, despite having seen or read a single panel of a comic book. It’s very possible to critically analyze a project without knowing every single turn that might be canon or not. The best adaptations tend to know that there is a huge fanbase to please, but also an audience that needs to feel involved despite only knowing of these things at a distance.
Another negative review that sparked its fair share of feelings came from Discussing Film, which gave the sequel a very negative review with an X caption that read, “MORTAL KOMBAT 2 is simply a total mess. From rough visuals to deeply unsatisfying fight sequences, Mortal Kombat fans deserve better than this.” The review points to the film being pure fan service and wearing “its various inspirations from the source material on its sleeve” but brings up valid critical assessments, if one is judging it as a film, by expressing that, in their opinion, there were too many characters to be properly serviced by the film’s plot and they weren’t impressed with some of the visuals or fight scenes.
Keep in mind, this appears to be written by someone with knowledge of the games as they praised the fight scene between Liu Kang (Ludi Lin) and Kung Lao (Max Huang) as “a near-perfect cinematic translation of the game’s aesthetic.” The reviewer is also aware of the barrage of negativity the review might receive by stating “you can already hear the preemptive defense of Mortal Kombat II as made for the fans.”
The barrage did ultimately come as the Discussing Film review was used as a large part of the beacon of negativity the film was receiving in some critical circles. It’s unclear if this review set this in motion or if it was others but it was noticed by some X users that Garner was reposting positive reviews and blocking critics on X who gave the film a negative review. On the one hand I can understand Garner and all the creatives who worked on the movie.
They put their blood, sweat and tears into the project and only they know how painstakingly hard they worked to improve on the mistakes of the first film and put out something that the fanbase deems worthy. It has to sting a bit to read a review where a critics bashes fight sequences, when you know how hard the actors and stunt team worked to put those together, or when they pick apart story elements that you know fans of the games will enjoy. Sometimes, at least in their assessments, some critics don’t appear to take into consideration how hard a film is to make and many of them have never made one themselves. As a creative, it’s understandable that some critical analysis would rub them the wrong way.
That being said, if you’re proud of your project and know you did your very best to deliver a film, in this case, that the fans wanted, it really shouldn’t matter what a film reviewer says about it at the end of day. Everyone is entitled to their opinion and entertainment is based purely on the spefic individual. What you might think is trash is a treasure to someone else who had a different experience with it. At the end of the day, a movie critic is being paid (and usually not all that much) to do their job. Would it be nice if every critic was armed with knowledge of all the lore and characters?
Sure. Should they be fans of the source material in order to review a movie adaptation? Maybe, but that would spark another argument that attempts were being made to lean in a more positive direction to please the respective studio. During a time when there is a divide between influencers who many believe are selected to give positive assessments because of perks and journalists, who pound the pavement as writers doing what they love, it would be preferred to have the latter because at least it’s honest, even if it’s an opinion someone might not agree with.
This is a divide that won’t be ending anytime soon. In fact, the gap between critics and fans/casuals appear to be growing by the day. For many of us, what a critic has to say about a movie we love but they hate really doesn’t matter (I have worn my badge of negatively reviewed films proudly) but for others, it seems like there is a chronic desire for people to love the things we love and hate the things we hate. Art and entertainment is all subjective and that seems to be getting lost in this narrative on both sides of the aisle here.
Garner and his crew have won on their end with one of the best-reviewed video game movies in years and what is sure to be ample box office receipts that ensures a third installment will be made. The audience will respond with their wallets and, in the end, that is what matters the most in the realm of a film’s success. That being said, what Schiller also saidin another tweet also rings true that some creatives may need a thicker skin when it comes to reviews. Schiller wrote in part, “Whatever, enjoy the bountiful box office returns while many of us critics continue to work paycheck to paycheck.” Perhaps there is a lot for all sides to consider here.
Mortal Kombat II is now playing theaters nationwide.
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