The Super Mario Bros Movie - Review
If there is one video game company that has good reason to be cautious about handing the keys to their characters off to a movie making group, it’s Nintendo. While the 1993 Super Mario Bros movie was interesting and has since become a cult classic, it was so very different from the source material, it would be akin to making a Tomb Raider movie where Lara Croft does nothing but taxes. 30 years later and we have a new movie to enjoy, the only question, is it a super one?
The movie opens up with part of what was the original trailer, but obviously now features more talking. This opening sets the tone for a dramatic and dangerous tale, but it really doesn’t kick things off right away. The intro for Bowser makes him feel so dangerous that our first introduction to the brothers is a complete polar opposite. The extended tv commercial, complete with flying via yellow capes, is in a word perfection, and while it has a few funny nods to the series legacy, it is just the tip of the iceberg for what the rest of the movie has in store. While Mario and Luigi attempt to get their plumbing business off the ground, it’s an attempt at helping out Brooklyn that leads the plumbers into the Mushroom Kingdom and off on an adventure. For obvious reasons I won’t say much more about the story, Mario has to take on Bowser is about all you will get, but it has a few twists in there that even long-time fans won’t see coming.
The strength of the movie comes with the characters, players have known Mario, Bowser, the Princess and the rest for decades now and finding new ways to show them was always going to be a challenge. Thankfully they have managed to do that, each time we get to spend time with a character, there are more layers revealed and some will surprise you. Mario in this world is a plumber, like he was for many years in the games, but here he is a Cheep Cheep out of water, as there is very little that makes sense to him. As the movie progresses and he gets to experience more of the world, we see him become more comfortable in his own skin or power up suit as it might be. While Mario is the focal point for our adventure, there are plenty of times for the other characters to shine (sprite), with Bowser being especially fantastic. Honestly the weakest character from the main six is Luigi and not because he is bad or does silly things, he just never really gets a chance to do anything of note on his own.
I could wax poetic about many of the characters in detail, as they each have some great moments, but I want to highlight the sheer number of references. Other video game adaptations have done the whole, in your face joke, where they point out the item in question and clearly make it a joke. Here they are done so well, that I am sure I missed countless of them, so maybe a repeat viewing is needed. Using the commercial as an example, there are countless little bits in there, but the moment it ends, we get a Jump Man cameo, both the character and the debut arcade game. That takes place inside a pizza place called Punch-out Pizza and it is where the brothers meet their former boss, Spike whose company is called Wrecking Crew. There are so many more outside in the street, across the various lands Mario visits and more, that fans of the games will find plenty to point at, Leo meme style.
As far as the look and animation go, the movie is gorgeous. Be it Brooklyn, the Mushroom Kingdom or any of the other locales, each place looks so good that going back to the best-looking game in Super Mario Odyssey will be quite the challenge. The world is full of so much detail, from the textures on the mushrooms, to the clouds in the sky and then populating it are denizens of each respective kingdom. The hero characters are of course standouts, but that is not to say that the the rest look bad, but you can tell more attention was paid to Mario and the crew. Seeing the hairs in the brothers’ moustaches, or on top of Peach’s head is a good sign of some talented artists behind the scenes, but for me it was the eyes. For years animated movies have done Disney eyes and even Illumination have been guilty of it, but here they look so much better. There are some shots where they focus on the faces and seeing the eyes stand out as they do, just helps add a layer of depth that most animated films miss. Beyond that, there are wonderful smoke effects, of course the fire from Bowser has plenty of times to shine as well. One scene I need to call out is Luigi and his escape from the Dry Bones, Luigi’s Mansion fans will enjoy it, but beyond that it is legit terrifying, the final moments especially. Everything in it, from lighting to pacing is just so well done, the result is that you feel for the situation Luigi has found himself in.
If you are talking a Mario project in any capacity, music is going to be a key part of the experience and here the soundtrack is incredible. The movie does make use of a few licensed songs, which don’t feel too out of place, though hearing the Bestie Boys took me a moment. The score though features some truly incredible tracks and there are dozens of iconic themes included, plus so many more that you might not even realise you remember. The ending credits alone opens with the iconic Mario Level 1-1 melody and then moves to Level 1-2 underground and that might have been enough, by composer Brian Tyler has mixed in some other parts as well. During the Level 1-2 part, music from Captain Toad Treasure Tracker is included and while you might think both aspects are so far apart it would never work, it does.
Of course, talking about the audio there is no way we can’t talk about the cast that brings the characters to life and let me just say Jack Black is the star of the show here. Chris Pratt and Charlie Day do great jobs at the titular brothers and while many folks were critical of Pratt’s casting, I wasn’t one of them, I was curious to be sure, but I knew that the team behind the movie had an idea of what they were doing. Anya Taylor-Joy brings Princess Peach to life in a way that no other game has ever done, not even Super Princess Peach on the Nintendo DS. While there is a quiet presence with her voice, when the time calls for it, her royal voice raises things, but doesn’t change the character. Keegan-Michael Key’s Toad was always going to be the outlier for me going in, how much would a high-pitched voice annoy me and it turns out, it didn’t. The voice isn’t as high pitched as you might think and Key adds in quite a number of layers when the situation calls for it, which helps balance things out. As I said before though, the star is Black’s Bowser, who balances a line between evil giant turtle and diplomatic leader, sometimes at the drop of a hat. The rest of the supporting cast all do fantastic work, Kamek’s actor Kevin Michael Richardson does a spectacular job as a highlight. Basically what I am saying is all the voice work is incredible.
The Super Mario Bros Movie could have easily been a kid’s movie or a movie for fans, but it manages to balance things out pretty consistently for both. Kids will of course love the bright colours and funny jokes, but adults will find a few jokes to make them laugh as well. Nostalgia doesn’t just get a nod here or there, it’s imbued into the entire aspect of everything you see and while some callouts are quite easy to see, some are a little harder, let me know if you spotted the Hanafuda card. The story isn’t quite as ground-breaking as one might like, but given its exploring the origins of a number of characters, it makes sense not to be too chaotic right now. Combine all that with a great cast and an incredible score, which helps elevate the stunning visuals and you have a movie that could easily be the best animated movie of the year.
The Score
9.5
Review access provided by Universal Pictures
The Pros
+The movie looks and sounds incredible, taking many familiar elements and making something greater
+There are so many nods to the almost 40 years of Mario, that you won’t see them all in one viewing
The Cons
-Luigi is not really given enough moments on his own, which feels like a missed opportunity
-The story doesn’t break new ground here, it is fairly by the numbers
