Review: ‘Super Mario Bros.’ was worth the wait
The following review contains mild spoilers for “The Super Mario Bros. Movie”.
“Video games are meant to be just one thing: Fun. Fun for everyone.”
This quote comes from Satoru Iwata, the late and lauded fourth president of Nintendo. When approaching “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” it is critical to keep this mentality in mind.
“The Super Mario Bros. Movie” had two tasks to tackle as a movie: First, it had to represent its characters and world accurately. In 1993, Hollywood Pictures released “Super Mario Bros.” directed by Rocky Morton and Annabel Jankel. It was immediately panned for its uncanny portrayal of the Mario universe and darker tone, and dissuaded Nintendo from licensing out its intellectual property to the big screen for 30 years. If Nintendo was going to bring their superstar plumber back to the movies, it needed to be done with care and love.
Second, like Iwata said about video games, and not like Morton and Jankel’s interpretation, it needed to be fun. “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” is just that — a fun-filled romp through the Mushroom Kingdom, full of love for the series and the company that brought it to life.
The movie stars two Italian American brothers from Brooklyn, Mario (Chris Pratt) and Luigi (Charlie Day). After a mishap during their first plumbing gig, Mario and Luigi set out to stop a flood and get accidentally sucked into a green warp pipe. From there, the duo is separated, with Mario being sent off to the Mushroom Kingdom while Luigi faces the lava-filled “Dark Lands.” To save his brother from the evil Koopa king Bowser (Jack Black), Mario sets off on an adventure alongside Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy) and Toad (Keegan-Michael Key) while attempting to stop the destruction of the Mushroom Kingdom.
It is a simple story, but most “Mario” games are like that, and it is easily approachable by audiences of all ages. The story’s biggest problem is pacing — some scenes fly by and progress can feel unearned. This somewhat made sense for the beginning, as dwelling too long in Brooklyn wouldn’t really add much to the plot. It gave the brothers a cute backstory; however, a little more character development would have gone a long way, and Mario feels only a bit less shallow than his game counterpart. He’s an everyman, and even a bit more time growing him could have made the adventure more exciting and certain moments more meaningful.
What is absolutely exciting is the voice cast. To address the much, much discussed elephant in the room — Chris Pratt is completely serviceable as Mario. He’s fine, they explain it with a joke in the first few minutes, and I can understand how 90 minutes of Charles Martinet (Mario’s original voice actor, who speaks with an iconic and fun Italian accent) may be a bit much.
Pratt is not remarkable in the role, but it works and is not as bad as the original trailers made it out to be. Day’s Luigi and Key’s Toad fit their roles perfectly, but due to the former’s kidnapped status and the latter’s sidekick role, they never get the fullest chance to shine.
More time with Luigi would have been appreciated, but in his place we have a great take on Princess Peach by Taylor-Joy. Peach in the movie feels like a middle ground between her in recent games like “Super Mario Odyssey” and Princess Daisy’s appearances in spin-offs like “Super Mario Strikers.” She has more energy, sass and character than the “damsel in distress” figure of previous mainline games, but she stays cool and collected and is arguably badass. It takes some getting used to, but Taylor-Joy’s Peach feels like a natural evolution of the iconic character known around the world since 1985.
The standout performances, however, have to be Black as Bowser and Seth Rogen as Donkey Kong. The former is menacing, and the voice put on by Black fits the character perfectly. However, both performances are equally hilarious. Bowser is characterized as not just a monstrous villain, but a musical hopeless romantic; and Donkey Kong isn’t just a powerful ape, but also a showboater. Black and Rogen’s performances had the audience constantly laughing and smiling.
Nintendo fans will smile a lot during this movie. Unlike the 1993 film, Nintendo was directly involved with Illumination on the creation of the “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” with Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto serving as co-producer.
The care of Nintendo and the team’s love of games are clear throughout the film — it is a visually gorgeous interpretation of the Mario universe, with lush environments and details packed all over. A pizzeria is adorned with “Punch-Out!!” theming, the mayor of New York City is shown to be Pauline — the mayor of “New Donk City” in “Super Mario Odyssey” — and a certain creature from “Super Mario 64” makes an appearance. These references never are critical to understanding the plot, nor do they feel shoehorned in. Instead, they serve as natural parts of the world and story, and anyone who has played a “Mario” game will find something they can recognize on screen.
Or, they may hear it in Brian Tyler’s well-done score, with assistance from series composer Koji Kondo. “Mario” music is incorporated gracefully into the soundtrack, with melodies from across the series’ vast history — including mainline games, spin-offs and even a TV show. There are a few licensed tracks thrown in, which do feel out of place, but they occasionally work. However, the vibes of the movie overall are just fun and happy, even in its darker moments.
That’s all the movie needed to be — a fun, happy representation of a beloved franchise done right. Even if you’re not a fan of “Mario,” the writing alone is entertaining and the film has a lot of charm. Go in with fitting expectations and you’ll find something to love.