Mortal Kombat 2 was a step up from the first rebooted movie, especially if you were a fan of the games. The sequel improves on the original in every way, especially in the way it highlights the tournament. But we recently learned that wasn't in the original script for the movie, as director Simon McQuoid confessed that it was actually a note from the studio.
Flames in the sky represent who's winning the tournament between Earthrealm and Outworld, and had it not been for the studio, they might not have been in the movie otherwise. McQuoid talked to The Wrap about the note and how it resulted in an A+ change from the original:
Honestly, that wasn’t in the first couple of drafts of this edit. It was actually one of the notes from the studio guys. Like, it would be good if we had a clear reminder of the tournament. They didn’t prescribe how that it should be, but they were like, ‘It’d be good if we had,’ and I thought, ‘Yeah, that’s a really good point.’
The first Mortal Kombat movie had a lot of good fights, and the second one has even better ones. That said, I do have to admit I kind of forgot a tournament was part of the story in the first movie, as it eventually just became a lot of battles between opponents with a lot of gore.
In the sequel, it's clear at all points in the movie who is winning, and which battles actually counted toward the tournament. Simon McQuoid admitted he was apprehensive about the suggestion at first, but eventually came around to the idea:
I initially was like, ‘Oh, I don’t know about that, is it going to get in the way of that narrative?’ And then I was like, ‘Yeah, actually, it’s a pretty good note.’ And then it was just, how do we do that in a way that feels like it’s part of the essence of the elder gods. It was like, ‘How do we make sure the audience knows who’s winning?’
Having recently watched the movie with an HBO Max subscription, I have to say it was a big help. Especially since Johnny Cage was not killed in his battle, I would've been questioning the entire time whether his loss counted against Earthrealm or not.
Is it dramatic to say Mortal Kombat II would be a worse movie without the flaming scoreboard, and that Cole would've died in vain? I don't think so, as I'm struggling to think about how the movie would've been without it. I don't think I would've been able to follow it as well, and all that prosthetic work Martyn Ford would've done as Shao Kahn would've been a waste.
Fortunately the scoreboard is there, and it creates high stakes for Mortal Kombat II as Earthrealm emerges victorious in the tournament. Unfortunately, Quan Chi appears to be plotting a big plan that could involve resurrecting more dead characters and bringing more trouble for the heroes in the future.
Mortal Kombat II is available to stream on HBO Max, and I have to wonder if we'll get word that a third movie is on the way before the end of the year. I would love for that to be the case, especially with the way the stage was set for the next chapter. Plus, we definitely need some of the wilder fatalities of the third game to make a comeback.
