In 1993, Super Mario Bros. made his big screen debut through a live-action adventure starring Bob Hoskins, John Leguizamo and Dennis Hopper. While that movie has garnered fans decades since it hit theaters, it doesn’t really pay homage to Nintendo’s flagship franchise in the way that all movie adaptations do. best wishes. Fast-forward 30 years, Universal, Illumination, and Nintendo finally deliver a cinematic adventure starring the iconic brother duo that’s fun, funny, exciting, and perhaps most importantly, religious source document.
Warning: While I try to keep it as spoiler-free as possible, some elements of the story and characters are covered throughout this article.
Movie Super Mario Bros. overcome a difficult story, balancing an original story with the real content of a meaningful adventure. Mario and his brother Luigi were plumbers in Brooklyn when they were sucked into a mysterious pipe and to the Mushroom Kingdom. Meanwhile, Bowser had begun his conquest en route to Princess Peach’s castle. The setup is obvious and has certainly been done before, but it effectively sets the stage for the next adventure.
As soon as Mario and Luigi reach the Mushroom Kingdom, the adventure unfolds at a near-perfect tempo. While some areas stand out as moments where the story pumps the brakes, it moves forward before stopping and stretching. Hilarious action sequences always give way to important staged moments, thus often creating hilarious jokes. The 92-minute run goes by quickly, and although I’m surprised it’s reached the final confrontation, I like that the film doesn’t stretch too much which is welcome.
Whether you’re talking about conversational moments, like when Mario and Toad are walking through the market at the foot of Peach’s Castle, or something like the big Mario Kart action sequence, Movie Super Mario Bros. is visually stunning. It’s bright, colorful, and absolutely gorgeous. Each scene is a pictorial treatment, living up to the Illumination genealogy. Expressive characters, complex environments, and consistently streamlined action.
From the very beginning of the movie, it has consistently made references to the Mario brand to audiences. References range from the core games to newer titles like Bowser’s Fury. Even the side-games, Donkey Kong titles, and other Mario media get a thumbs up. Many of the references are obvious, but few of them show the value of Nintendo’s involvement or a writing team that has an excellent understanding of the Mario fan base. One reference, in particular, left me gasping for breath when it happened.
The references come in at such machine gun speed that they can be overwhelming at times (like the standard rhythm of jokes), but I really enjoyed gluing my eyes and scanning each scene for nods. and think back to the past. Many references are not even things you discover but listen to; The music and sound effects draw from every era in Mario’s past, creating nostalgic fun – even if I can’t count the number of times I’ve listened to the Overworld Theme demo from the original Super Mario Bros.
The most attention-grabbing aspect of the film prior to its release was the voice cast. Seth Rogen and Jack Black were perfectly cast as Donkey Kong and Bowser, respectively, and Anya Taylor-Joy and Keegan Michael-Key delivered superb performances as Peach and Toad. Chris Pratt and Charlie Day, who voice Mario and Luigi, take the longest to get used to, largely because they sound so different from the iconic voices provided by Charles Martinet in the game. Still, Pratt’s comedic range and timing perfectly captures the journey Mario goes on (and the antics that happen along the way), while Day’s signature frenetic line delivery matches that. with Luigi’s panicky personality. By the time the credits rolled out, I had tuned in to the point where I only heard Mario and Luigi but not Chris Pratt and Charlie Day.
While the references and humor can be a bit thick at times, the highs elevate the experience to the point where any of my complaints would be minor things in the big picture. In recent years, the stigma that video game movies are bad by default has decreased significantly, but Movie Super Mario Bros. could be the new poster kid for the first golden age of this silver screen game adaptation. Movie Super Mario Bros. takes all the thrills of a great Mario game and, in the process, creates the best video game movie ever.
