The Super Mario Bros. Movie comes with a built-in fan base of the popular video game going back to its inception in 1985. The first thing I can say about this animated adaptation is that those fans will be anything but disappointed and it’ll probably wash away any memories of the dismal live-action version (1993).
Everything from the visuals to the characters to the humor will be exactly as the fans imagined it and for me, while I don’t think it’s a completely successful film, it is a zippy, energetic film that knows what it’s supposed to deliver.
The movie follows the outline and formula of the game precisely as it introduces us to our two main heroes: Mario (Chris Pratt) and Luigi (Charlie Day), two Italian-American plumbers from New York. They own their own plumbing business and one day they head out to fix a leak that magically transports them down a pipe into a fantasy land.
They get separated and Mario finds himself in the land known as the Mushroom Kingdom, ruled over by Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy). When Mario meets the Princess, she tells him all about her land under threat by the villainous King Koopa (Jack Black). Koopa intends to marry the Princess and destroy her kingdom if she refuses. Meanwhile, Luigi finds himself in Koopa’s territory as the two brothers frantically try to reunite.
Many of the game’s characters and elements are faithfully reproduced as when Mario meets the character of Toad (Keegan-Michael Key) and there’s a training montage where Mario must undergo the Princess’ obstacle course that is designed exactly how some of the levels in the game look.
There are certainly plenty of Easter eggs in The Super Mario Bros. Movie such as the character Donkey Kong (Seth Rogen) and sequences that seem to leap straight out of the various games including Mario on a go-kart. Plus, there is a post-credit scene featuring another character who will no doubt play a huge role in the inevitable sequel.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie doesn’t make an entirely persuasive argument for its existence, but like Dungeons & Dragons, it knows how to please its hardcore fanbase by giving them exactly what they want and expect.
The movie does have a colorful look which is admittedly dazzling and faithful to its source material. Although some fans might argue it’s too faithful.
Pratt, Day, Taylor-Joy and the rest of the cast are clearly having a blast with their voiceover work, but the level of enjoyment I felt was diminished when compared to The Lego Movie which was much more clever and engaging when it shouldn’t have been. If anything, this movie is passable, but I’m probably going to be in the minority in wishing the filmmakers had concentrated more on a script that gave us insight into the characters and the world they live in and spent less time on chronic nostalgia overload.
Still, I am going to recommend this film because of its jolly energy, colorful visuals, and because the cast is having so much fun with their goofy, silly work.
Let’s just hope the sequel levels up.
Grade: B
(Rated PG for action and mild violence.)
