This was such a cute movie! It captures all the charm of the Mario world and characters, while also telling a heartwarming tale! Is it the greatest animated movie ever? Certainly not, but it’s one kids and adults will appreciate if all ages for a long while.
Rating: 4/5 - 85% - Would Recommend
My childhood favorite was the Mario games, and I must say this was a very good adaptation. There are many references from the games. I was only missing dino from the team.
I was smiling the entire movie. The level of detail and care that went into this film is incredible. Tributes from the first game to the last mario game. Yes, it's a children's movie, yes, the screenplay is not a masterpiece and yes, you will like it more if you are fan of the games. But it's a fun ride from start to finish.
Which features of the Mario franchise do we want? Definitely #1 must have the plot of the live action Mario Brothers movie, that these are two human plumbers in New York who get sucked into the Mushroom Kingdom. That's the most beloved part of Mario lore. It never ever appears in any of the games, but must be central to the story.
Okay, also they need to recruit Mario to defeat Bowser. Why? He can run and jump and use power-ups. Now, Princess Peach is already in the Mushroom Kingdom and is royalty and can use power-ups, and, since she was a child, has been smarter and better than Mario and Luigi at running and jumping and everything. She'll continually make fun of how small and incapable Mario is. If the roles were reversed and he made fun of her, it'd be a travesty, more than problematic, but since she's making fun of him, it's hilarious! Why didn't she defeat Bowser years ago since she's so amazing? Because it's called the Mario Brothers movie, silly!
Right, and let's see... Donkey Kong and the other Kongs. Of all the Mario games, Donkey Kong is only in exactly one. Also, the creator of Mario has stated publicly that he doesn't like Donkey Kong Country games or lore, so they're definitely gonna be core to the story. See, the humans have to try to recruit all the Kongs to their side. Kongs won't actually do anything useful, but we'll dedicate at least a quarter of the movie to this pointless side quest.
Remember the pod racing in Star Wars? Or Motorball in Alita? Remember how they made you feel invested in the action, like you were there? We're doing Mario Kart the opposite way. There will be so much going on, karts, characters, objects flying everywhere that you won't be able to keep track of or feel stakes about anything. We'll just throw one 3 second scene at the audience after another so even though none are compelling, the fans won't have time to care. You know, TikTok style.
As for Bowser, his character, motivation, everything will be pretty much perfect. If you know Bowser, this is the Bowser you want to see. And we'll spare no expense on animation and set dressing. This movie will look incredible. Colors, compositions, layouts, characters, props, everything will look better than you dreamed they could.
That's it! A movie so pretty and fast paced, nobody will notice it isn't very "Mario" or particularly good.
Gosh i thoroughly enjoyed this one, it was a fun ride all the way to the end. I love how they threw in mario kart and made it work. I mean I've played many mario games, im not a major fan but it was just so well done it made me felt like i haven't watched one good movie that made me feel this way for a longggg time. I would definitely watch it again.
The few things that i thought was bad was:
1. the fact that Mario's dad thought he was a joke all this time and when he became the hero then the dad was like 'he's my son'. Feels like he was just chiming in for the fame, that one didn't sit too well with me.
I'd definitely like to see some Luigi's haunted mansion being featured next time too. There's so many things they can do for the next movie, I'm excited!
Exciting and nostalgic from beginning to end. Noticing the references in the smallest details was amazing.
cheesed ear to ear the entire thing ( except for when i was crying… i am a movie crier)
4th favorite Akira slide Peach
https://boxd.it/473sW9
I enjoyed it! It’s not necessary to say this is a pure fun movie and the plot is not the main point to consider.
Full Review: www.jake-s-entertainment-reviews.com/movies-and-televison/shrek-2-200kjkk
Let me make it clear and say that "The Super Mario Bros Movie" is far from a perfect movie. Its not a movie meant to challenge you or leave you something deeper to think about by the time you stop watching the film. It's a film that is meant for audiences to have as much fun as possible while reminding fans of Super Mario why they fell in love with the video games in the first place. This is not a game changer for Illumination, but it is the most fun I’ve had with an Illumination film since Despicable Me 2. Given their track record before this movie came out surly is saying a lot cause most of their films beforehand haven’t been awful, they just have been disappointing. The story is still pretty basic, but the likable characters matched by their talented cast and beautiful animation with the occasional expertly orchestrated music track make this movie a dream come true for Mario fans just like myself. I frankly didn’t care that this film was just “Mario references the movie,” This is honestly what video game adaptations strive to be and Nintendo made a right enough call to give Illumination a shot to bring Super Mario to life.
(Final Grade: B)
It's fine for what it is, but is it better than Despicable Me or Minions? No. The voice casting was forgettable, apart from Jack Black. The story was generic, but I guess it held up to Super Mario content. The soundtrack was great, and so was the animation. It was filled with feel-good, loud, and bouncy colours and sounds. The humour is always there with Illumination, although it feels repetative. I want to like it but I know I'll forget this tomorrow.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie - :heart:x6
This was an OK adaptation of the game. It was cute and fun.
How I rate:
1-3 :heart: = seriously! don't waste your time
4-6 :heart: = you may or may not enjoy this
7-8 :heart: = I expect you will like this too
9-10 :heart: = movies and TV shows I really love!
cute and fun family film
good animation with a basic story
achieves what it set out to be
The film is good and fun, with great animation. Even I, who never played Mario, had fun with the scenes. Certainly, fans of the game will catch the details and may have differing opinions. In my opinion, Princess Peach is the best character. I'm relieved they didn't portray a helpless princess that Mario needs to save. Instead, she is a strong character and fights hard, with no romance in her part of the story. The second best character, without a doubt, is Bowser, who really amused me at various times. I was a little frustrated with Luigi, as he had little focus and didn't have many opportunities to shine, although he did have a moment. I understand that it is necessary to present the world and the other characters, but he deserved more attention.
it was a cute feel good movie, people expect too much of things nowadays. it was enjoyable and silly and I hope they make a sequel.
So this is the Mario movie huh? It's finally here. As a kid, what I would have given to see such a thing.
You know what my kid-self never would have thought about though? Seeing Mario sitting at the dinner table having his judgmental family bully him.
If it isn't obvious to literally everyone, that doesn't feel very "Mario".
But this is the era we live in now. To say the least, this is not a good Mario movie. And it's not a good movie in the general sense either. Actually, it's one of the worst movies I have ever seen, Mario in it or not.
The fact that so many reviewers are OK with this movie is a clear signal to how non-caring everyone has become with movies like these. Even when it's about Mario, apparently.
Theme- 8.5/10
Rewatchibility- 8.5/10
Acting- 7.5/10
Kinematography- 10/10
Time- 9/10
Total - 43.5/5 = 8.7
Never played a lot of Mario, yet I recognized a lot of creatures and musical parts from the games. Nice and not too long movie to have a joyful time with.
Well, kudos for references to everything remotely related to Mario. A good plot might have been first on my agenda, but whatever...
Chris Pratt was a huge disappointment. Horrible casting.
I was expecting a mediocre movie and I was not disappointed. Borderline garbage.
Wow! They really nailed it. I didn't expect to enjoy it so much. My god does the animation and visuals look insane. The voice acting was great too, and the so many easter eggs and references to the games were fun to notice.
It's a good!
My experience of 'Mario' starts and ends with 'Mario Kart', which I haven't actually played since back in the day on my Nintendo DS and even then I had no understanding of the franchise itself; just treated it as a normal racing game. I was an Xbox kid growing up (thanks, ma!), so that be the reason. Anyway, that's a long way of saying I'm no Mario know-it-all.
Despite all that, I do remember most of the characters from the aforementioned video game and it was cool seeing them come to life in 'The Super Mario Bros. Movie'. Chris Pratt feels an odd cast for Mario but does do a solid job in fairness to him. Jack Black and Charlie Day are very good in their roles as Bowser and Luigi. Keegan-Michael Key, Seth Rogen and Anya Taylor-Joy are also positives as Toad, Donkey King and Princess Peach.
No doubt whatsoever that this will be the first film of a crap tonne from this franchise. Still, if they do as well as they did here then they'll be successful, I'm sure. I'd be up for exploring the world via film, tbf.
A good family friendly film. Bowser had good casting, and it was nice to see DK. Movie was kinda stale altogether but it wasn't bad by any means.
Beautiful movie with nostalgic soundtracks. Gave me chills and memories..
:heart::heart::heart::heart::heart::heart::heart::heart: - Don't listen to the critics with their outrageous bias and bad reviews. Any fan of the series who played the games would wholeheartedly enjoy this film
10:heart:- Masterpiece :100:
9:heart:- Excellent
8:heart: - Amazing :ok_hand:
7:heart:- Great :sun_with_face:
6:heart: - Good :thumbsup:
5:heart: - Average :head_bandage:
4:heart: - Bad but watchable :octagonal_sign:
3:heart: - Bad :sob:
2:rage:- Awful :face_vomiting:
1:face_with_symbols_over_mouth: - Bull Shit
finally watched this and it healed a part of my inner child .
The animation is correct, there is action, there is humor, but... well, for those who don't know the Nintendo universe, it will be a bit too little.
As a person that grew up in the time when this was released and then lived my life when people were playing it, the references were really cool! The animation was AMAZING! The bone movement is top notch. The issue i have is with casting and script. The writers did a great job, Story was okay. Ending felt alright. Overall it hit a lot of check boxes. 8/10 for me. If you grew up in the NES Era, you might like this.
Finally watched since it got on Netflix recently.
It was serviceably entertaining and fast paced (maybe too fast paced?) And all the fan service was nice.
Some of it was a bit too cheesy for my liking (Though I guess it it was made to be a family movie) and some of the liberties for the personalities and backstories was a little off putting
But overall it was a good enough movie adaptation of a video game. I just preferred detective Pikachu and both Sonic movies.
A half star more because I begrudgingly concede it gets the job done with kids- the cousin I watched it with enjoyed it well enough- but beyond that it’s so vapid and shallow. Does it look ‘good’? Technically, sure. But the house style of Illumination is artistic competence and technological shininess. There’s no room for artistry and passion in it, not helped by Nintendo’s own Mario style being pretty edgeless these days. The same extends to the story and characters. Mario wins one fight, thanks to a power up that does the fighting for him, and now he’s the hero over Peach, who’s hyper competent to subvert old cliches and serve new ones but nonetheless Mario must save the day instead. Pratt basically plays Emmett again but at least in the Lego Movie there was some reason it had to be him, or at least they thought it had to be. Here the only reason is he’s Mario, and without that Martinet charm.
Day is fine, better than Pratt. Jack Black and KMR make the rest of the cast look bad with the energy they bring, especially with KMR’s decades of experience. They’re the best part, with Bowser getting to be both amusing and intimidating, the piano scene being a standout.
The rest of the music outside of Peaches are obnoxious needle drops or, like the rest of the movie, full of references to the source material that never allows this movie to exist on its own. The blue mushroom! The cat one! Karts! It’s exhausting. It’s nothing outside of tingling the part of your brain that knows the game. But kids like it, I guess, so. One and a half stars.
You're tired. You're stressed. You're feeling anxious and nervous about your life and the choices you've made. You're uncertain of your future. You take a day to relax and see a colorful fun movie. You hear the GameCube start up music for the first time in years hidden as a cellphone ring tone and you say ""hey I remember that""ù. You're a kid again, being treated to a portal to a simpler time. No high stakes decisions, no future planning, no financial worry, just the innocent simplicity of a video game. That time of your life is gone. You realize you're surrounded by kids unknowingly enjoying that same happy simplicity. You weep. You celebrate. You mourn. You live. You let the movie remind you of all the things you've left behind, but that you remember.
Mamma Mia.
The casting confused me (like why Chris Pratt for Mario? it didn't sound right) but otherwise good movie with frequent references to the games but you don't need to understand the references to enjoy the movie
Watched 7 times...nuff said
This was good, they did right by the fans. Might be a possibility of the NCU. Also the blue star, was a highlight.
Great moment but some part are below average. Dk dub and the star power up music come in mind. Overall still good entertainment
That was surprisingly good! And the soundtrack is great!
It's fine. The story is as thin as it is in the Mario games but there are some decent easter eggs for fans of the games.
I never really got into the Super Mario games but I still found the movie to be super fun!
Kids really loved this film. Worth a watch with your young ones for sure.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie was so bad, contrived and uninteresting that I almost stopped watching 30 minutes in, but I persevered. This is an extremely action-packed movie for kids, and that's about all it is. It is little substance that might interest actual adults. The plot is thin as paper, the casting is awful - Charlie Day and Chris Pratt as Italian plumbers ... really?? - and there's no heart or reason to care about any of these characters. As for the casting, comedian Sebastian Maniscalco is the most Italian person in the main cast, and he's relegated to playing a minor character named Spike. As someone who grew up playing Mario Bros in the 80s, it was cool to see the characters on the screen and to hear some of the 80s music. The computer graphics were tight, but by most other metric by which we measure movies, this was a dud and a waste of time unless you're watching it with your kids or unless you're 8-years-old.
All my three kids used to play Super Mario Bros games and two of them played them a lot when they were younger so this movie was kind of a must-see movie for us.
For myself , this felt very much like a movie made for Super Mario Bros fans and less for the general audience.
The characters, the completely illogical platform jumping everywhere and the rather childish story are certain to appeal to younger people still playing the game or those that grew up with the Mario Bros games.
For me though the movie was ranging from okayish to, sometimes, cringe worthy. Especially the scenes with Bowser starting to sing. Ouch, my ears are still hurting.
The best parts of the movie was when they entered the ape kingdom. That was quite fun and so was the car chase on the rainbow road.
The rest of the movie was, for me personally, rather forgettable. Not bad just not that good. That said, it is not really a bad movie either. The rotten rating on Woke Tomatoes is entirely undeserved.
Peaches, peaches, peaches, peaches, peaches.. I LOVE YOUUUUUUUU
One of the best animation movie of 2023
The plot really feels like an afterthought to glue the video game references. It's a treat for fans of the franchise, but newcomers will feel lost.
Despite that, it's still an enjoyable movie, for people who know Mario.
Fun movie lots of humor for both adults and kids alike
It was a fun movie with lots of joy to look forward to though I get the poor reception with the writing but the characters were mostly on point. That said, I'd only watch it in Latin American Spanish or just not English on streaming. Mario actually sounds like Mario is why I waited for it to hit streaming.
Let's make it as safe as possible.... that must have been the approach. I found myself on the phone again, because the film unfortunately has nothing that creates excitement or interest. Sure, for Nintendo fans a must, for me who wanted to see a movie unfortunately just a safe bet without anything special or salient but its well produced. I would rather watch The Room again tbh
7.5/10
I honestly went into this with cautious expectations, also because I am not a Mario fan - I don’t think the games are awful, but they never hooked me either. But surprisingly this ended up being pretty enjoyable.
To address the flaws, the plot is a bit weird. And I can forgive most of it because it’s generally a goofy movie centered in a world which is full of video-game-like antics and mechanics, but sometimes it gets a bit too weird. For example the ending, where the whole town all of sudden starts to congratulate Mario even though the whole town is ruined and they probably didn’t even get enough time to process why a giant turtle rock has crashed half of the city. And that may sound nitpicky but it threw me out of the immersion a little bit. The movie also needs some time to get going, and I think I started to enjoy myself more when Peach appeared and we got some fun character dynamics.
The character cast in general is mostly pretty charming. Peach kicked ass, Donkey Kong is fun, and Mario also grew on me over the course of the movie. Others like Luigi are kinda bland but they serve their role in the plot pretty well. The comedy also was fun enough, it didn’t make me laugh but I enjoyed the antics and it kept me invested in the narrative. Highlights probably would be Bowser’s song (I did NOT expect him doing that) or the gloomy blue star. The scene after the “end” was funny.
So yeah, overall, this movie is good. It made me like the characters, it was pretty fun throughout, and the polish overall was good as well. Nothing special, but luckily not boring either, and I can see why Mario fans can enjoy this movie even more than I do.
The movie has everything I love in the Super Mario games!! I was so happy when I saw Cat Mario!!!
As someone who grew up playing SMB, I didn’t expect to find this movie perfect, but it is!
I grew up playing Super 64 Mario so it hit a lot of nostalgic points for me. I thought it was also very visually pleasing. The graphics are everything you want in a Super Mario movie. That said I do tend to agree with a lot of people that the story was very cliche and really nothing stood out. I guess I kind of was hoping for a bit more based on all the good things I heard when it first came out but overall it was still a nice shot of nostalgia paired with a cliche but somewhat adventurous story. Also that white star may have stolen the show. Very funny
I was so excited for this movie but heavens to Betsy was it boring. I gave it 1 additional star for nostalgia; 1 additional star for voice talent (Jack Black, Keegan-Michael Key, and Charlie Day). Otherwise this movie was more than terrible.
I liked Jack Black, disliked Chris Pratt, the rest was 'memberberries. I am sure if I was ten years old I would have enjoyed it more.
Extremely mid with poor voice casting but at least Bowser was hilarious.
The visuals, the voice acting, and the music were all reasonably good, but the movie falls way short with the story. As soon as the characters face any challenge, they immediately overcome it. there is never a chance for any character development, as the movie doesn't bother to take any time to allow for it. To be fair, it is a children's movie, so having expectations for an amazing story is a little unrealistic. If you love Nintendo and/or Mario, you'll probably love this movie. However, if you're watching this movie for any reason except the references, you'll probably be disappointed.
This was the worst thing I watched in years.. Making a movie look like a videogame doesn't make it a good movie. The script was poorer than Elon Musk's plans for a budget space travel. the animation and design are unremarkable. This movie may appeal to those who think that the super Mario games are the greatest ever created. For everyone else my advice is to pass.
It makes good use of nostalgia and the constant references to video games, in some cases in an outstanding way such as the appearance of Donkey Kong, or the soundtrack by Brian Tyler that provides novelty and at the same time a constant referential texture. It's one of the most interesting proposals of this 2023 that seems like a time travel to the eighties, as if nostalgia were the only salvation for movie theaters. The film has as much depth as the games, that is none, so in its condition of pure and basic entertainment, it ends up finding its main virtue.
There patent Mario and Luigi voice, gone??? That's a huge part of their identity. Even tho I love Chris Pratt, this made the entire movie a horrible experience.
It's okay, just what you can expect from it.
That was fun to watch. They did not ruin it like Sonic.
[4.7/10] The Super Mario Bros. Movie may be the least adventurous film I’ve ever seen. It isn’t bad, per se. But it is utterly generic and painfully, mind-numbingly safe. It exists to arrange a bevy of familiar Mario elements into something vaguely resembling a story, spackle in some off-the-shelf heroics, and then hope to bathe the audience in enough fanservice that no one will realize this whole endeavor is creatively bankrupt.
Well, it worked. At the halfway mark, it’s the most financially successful film of 2023, and has set all manner of box office records. So damn us all, I guess.
It’s a shame because that sort of performance doesn’t just mean we’re destined to get sequels and spin-offs of this until the heat death of the universe. (See also: Mario’s Illumination stablemates, the Minions.) But it also means we’ll see a flood of more films like this one: unimaginative, deep as a thimble, and content to ply the viewer with little more than what they already know and like.
I want to be charitable here. Like the vast majority of red-blooded young men of the last forty years, I grew up on Mario in all his forms: from 8-bit sprites to HD juggernauts to colorful typing instructors. Generously, you could excuse The Super Mario Bros. movie as a film for very young children, full of color and light and spectacle to keep their attention, without anything meant to challenge them or go above their heads. As a shiny diversion that is all frosting and no cake, the movie is fine -- perfectly suitable to entertain a moppet for ninety minutes or so.
The problem is that kids’ movies, even ones fit for very young children, don’t have to be this devoid of genuine creativity. The classic eras of Disney, the high points of Pixar, and the best outings from Dreamworks all matched stunning artistic achievement with unassuming depth, creating profound works that were nonetheless accessible to younger audiences. The Super Mario Bros. movie has none of the same ambition; instead resigning itself to moving recognizable cartoon action figures around a series of familiar playsets for an hour and a half and then calling it a day.
The best and worst part of the movie is its sheer volume of pandering fanservice. Almost every recognizable element of the Mario universe -- the main characters, the allies, the baddies, the setting, the power-ups, the songs, the races, the platforming, the moves, the musical stings, the catchphrases -- is packed into the film’s runtime. There is next to nothing original here. Just an assemblage of recognizable pieces awkwardly strung together at a quick enough pace so the audience doesn’t have to go more than thirty seconds without being able to say, “Hey, I remember that thing!”
It is the polar opposite of the much-maligned live action Mario film from 1993. (Despite borrowing the earlier movie’s “Two Italian plumbers from Brooklyn get inadvertently transported to the world of the games” premise.) Whereas that film departed from the source material in ways that were both bold and utterly baffling, its modern day counterpart is a cinematic glass of warm milk served in the same glass fans have been drinking from since 1981. Instead of moving away from the look, feel, or components of the video games even in a little bit, The Super Mario Bros. Movie plays it embarrassingly safe, reassuring fans that everything they like and recognize from the various Nintendo Entertainment Systems is here and faithfully recreated, no matter how uninspired the ultimate rendering may be.
Some of that might be forgivable is the parts of the movie that are, well, a movie weren’t so excruciatingly generic. Mario himself is a standard-issue hero guy. Peach is a stock action girl. Donkey Kong is the usual semi-friendly rival. The shopworn “save the world” plot is buttressed by nothing but a heap of feeble fetch quests. The celebrity voice-casting is almost uniformly uninspired. Their performances range from tonally miscalibrated and god-awful. And every character is paper thin. There is no story beat too hackneyed, no joke too tepid, no needle drop too played out,, and no moment too shallow to warrant anything but immediate conclusion in this bland, big screen ricecake.
The movie is not without some charms. Jack Black elevates the material, as usual, bringing a Dr. Evil-esque mix of bluster and harmlessness in his role as Bowser. His dynamic with his poor underling is stock but amusing. The nihilistic Luma is the movie’s most peculiar inclusion, but also its funniest. The writers and animators do find some mildly clever excuses to shoehorn Mario’s platforming prowess from the games into the film. And visually, there’s a bit of panache in Mario and DK’s speedy pursuit, a confrontation with a giant-sized Bullet Bill, and the final superstar showdown between the Mario Bros. and Bowser.
Aside from those uptempo moments there, The Super Mario Bros. movie is, at best, nothing to write home about from a visual standpoint. The film’s stylists want to retain the cartoony look of the original characters, but have them move and emote in realistic ways, which lends the film an odd uncanniness the whole way through. The character and world designs are almost exclusively gussied up versions of the ones from the games. And the attempt to blend real world textures with an exaggerated world comes off mismatched.
The writing is no better. If you squint, you can make out the faintest of arcs in Mario and DK impressing their dads, Luigi discovering his courage, and the titular siblings finding strength in working together. But the plot progression and character beats are as threadbare as anything else in the movie. By and large, the narrative here is a mere skeleton to hang Mario references onto, which I guess means it serves its purpose.
That’s the best you can say for The Super Mario Bros. Movie. It is a gentle, unchallenging, spectacle-and-nostalgia delivery mechanism more than it’s an actual film. In an era when fans have revolted when franchises dare to take chances, to depart from expectations, to offer genuine surprises and have the temerity to move things forward; this movie is composed of nothing but simple, easily-digestible pablum that asks absolutely nothing of its audience and barely asks anything more from its creators.
In that, it succeeded. Rather than give myself over to existential rhapsodies like the film’s Luma, I don’t want to gaze up at Lakitu and declare that the sky is falling. One need only look at the runaway success of Across the Spider-Verse to have hope that there’s still room for gorgeous, inventive, and above all ambitious animated films at the multiplex. But The Super Mario Bros. movie is still a sad reminder that, with the right name and iconography in tow, a movie doesn’t have to be creative, or even good, to enjoy beaucoup success at the cinema.
Undoubtedly one of the biggest hits of the year, and the clear answer to the question "What is the result of making a film adaptation of a work, without thinking about politics or quotas, just thinking about being faithful to the characters?".
Undoubtedly, the Mario and Luigi brothers' movie is made by fans for fans. And that is the secret of its success. No matter where you look in every minute of the movie, you'll see nods to the dozens of Mario games throughout his long existence. But even if you haven't played anything, or maybe just a couple of games, you will enjoy this movie.
Why? It's fun, tremendously fun and well made. And it focuses on that without adding a single minute of unnecessary footage. Leaving aside the controversies with the voice actors - which we don't share - the work of Chris Pratt, Anya Taylor-Joy, Jack Black and the rest of the cast is impeccable, not to mention the music: homage after homage.
A perfect movie for nostalgia... and for those who are still immersed in it.
I've come close to playing the entire Mario catalog in my time, one thing I was not expecting them to carry over from the source material was a puzzlingly bad storyline.
Others seemed to like it, but the references were nauseating to me - unashamedly shoehorned into every nook and cranny. I felt like it was trying (and failing) to toy with a ham-fisted nostalgia that completely missed the point of what makes Mario appealing.
And for a movie that tried so hard to inject elements of the games into every frame, there were far too many instances where there game logic was not followed. The two most prominent being:
1 - Mario breaking blocks by punching to the side or punching downwards - as opposed to breaking them from underneath or doing a ground pound.
2 - Princess Peach acted like Daisy, not Princess Peach.
I mean, people will no doubt love this movie. But think to yourself. Would you legitimately watch a sequel?
I just can't pretend it's any good.
jack black carried this movie, better than expected.
This movie might make sense for fans that just a hit of nostalgia and don't care about storyline - most of the transitions are just awful.
Really good graphics but, otherwise, this felt like a 1h30-long Nintendo adspot… There is a kind of coherent storyline, but some transitions during the movie don’t really make sense.
Honestly, better than expected. I loved looking for the little hints to all the different games they added. Well done!
Likely enough to keep the kids entertained, but with zero narrative depth and minimal effective humor, the only thing this film offers to adults is Nintendo fan service. Admittedly, that fan service might be enough for some, but with my own connection to Nintendo being limited to a single Gameboy Advance from 20 years ago, I probably am not the target audience. Luckily, the movie doesn't outstay it's welcome. I suspect the creators were very aware of the film's superficial storytelling, because the aggressive pacing takes us from one colorful set piece to the next giving the audience no time to think about how little there is going on underneath the hood. So, while the movie is never painful, it can't help but feel like a missed opportunity when compared to something like The Lego Movie or, more recently, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, which both managed to entertain the kiddos while also offering stories and characters that older folks could enjoy.
Beautiful movie, great voice actors and most importantly not woke bullshit. Highly recommend
This was a very entertaining movie, it had a very wholesome vibe to it all and it kept me nostalgic with how much of Nintendo was included within.
I still like the one from the 90s more!
I forgot what to say, I only think about peaches. PEACHESSSSS!
The foundations for a great movie are all there, but barely any of them are used in an interest or satisfying way. Peach is the character with the most potential in here, and she's completely wasted. It's painful to watch. Bowser could've been better too, although he was easily the best part of the movie.
Also, the pacing of this movie is almost unbearable. This story asked for way more than 83 minutes.
Nothing special imo. Liked the Sonic movies way more.
When the movie focuses solely on being a Mario film, it is quite enjoyable. However, when it adopts the generic style of an Illumination movie, relying on uninspired celebrity voice acting, cringeworthy music choices from the 1980s, and forced emotional moments (such as Mario's relationship with his father in Mario 64), it becomes quite disappointing. While I didn't despise it, I wouldn't enthusiastically recommend it either.
Mario movie was great! I watched it with my brothers and tried to piece together the references and I must say... It was pretty entertaining even without any explanation! I give it an 8. Even though I like the positivity amongst the brothers but the negativity in the family, some parts were easily predictable and well... I think this is an introduction before another teased mario movie! (Now here's to wonder what its going to be about, dont want to make 5 seasons of tom and jerry do we?)
Yes,Yes that is a cartoon.
Love it.
It's better than I thought it would be! I liked the changes of the Mario's lore, but I felt it approaches a lot of games and references for favor of fan service, because of that it looks rushed... Super Mario was part of my infancy and I think this influences a lot in my opinion about this movie.
This film was entertaining and boring at the same time. It is very cool to see the game's characters imagined in a film, and it has a nice soundtrack to carry it all along. A good balance of funny and emotional moments, but it also manages to drag on. I bet a younger audience will love this one, though.
If you are open-minded about older films that lack the best special effects, check out the 1993 super Mario Bros film.
Rated a Connor 10, normal 8.8
All I have to say is if you love mario then this is the movie for you to go see. It was excellent from start to finish. I hope they make a sequel.
In an appropriately timely role-swap, Mario and Princess Peach team up to save Luigi from the clutches of evil, with assists from Toad, Donkey Kong and a whole army of bit players. It’s all in the name of fan service, no two ways about it, and in that respect the long-awaited Mario movie is a smash hit. When it’s punching blocks, donning furry costumes and leaping great expanses, this is everything a Nintendo fanboy could ever ask for. The world bursts with color, life and excitement; a perfect mesh of the game’s shiny-happy cartoon aesthetic and Illumination’s similarly joyful, plucky brand of stylized CG. A match made in heaven that effectively captures and expands the spirit (and high-risk thrills) of the game’s world without making any creative sacrifices. Honestly, in this age of constant, needless reinvention, it’s comforting to see an adaptation stay so true to its roots.
As for the story? Well... that also remains true. There isn’t all that much hidden depth here; someone important has been kidnapped and the heroes race past all manner of Easter egg and window dressing on the road to rescue. Once the novelty dries out, when visual interest usually gives way to plot or character moments, the film struggles to find a hook. It’s about forty minutes of sugar buzz, extended to fill ninety minutes of screen time. Fun while it lasts, and probably more than enough to please younger audiences, but parents should be prepared to do a bit of watch-glancing on the home stretch.
Nostalgic delight for a kid that grew up in the 80s/90s. From an NES to now still playing on a switch this was Easter egg heaven. Not perfect by any means but captured the right tone/humour for me. 8.0.
Cute movie for both the kids and the adults Would watch again
Cute movie. Loved noticing all the references to different parts of the games. My girls loved that Peach was in it a lot. Overall we are excited to see what other movies they make.
Not even a huge fan of the game and I really enjoyed this movie
In this movie, Luigi is the helpless princess. Was really hoping that when he arrived in the Dark Lands we'd get a bit more of Luigi's Mansion, or barring that, that he'd at least grow a little stronger without his brother and maybe help get them out of the suspended cages.
Good nonetheless, and a 7.5 for me, who watched it with my five year old.
Outside of Bowser, I also wouldn't have necessarily known the voice actors behind the characters had I not come in already knowing.
The cute thing about this movie was, how so many of the game‘s gimmicks were included. The story was obviously just like a game and not overly thrilling but alright.
What I did not enjoy much was the voice actors. Maybe one should start using talented dedicated voice actors and not just the most well known screen actors in order to have names attached to the movie. Didn’t find they did the best jobs and sometimes the Nintendo characters felt more like the actor instead (e.g. their typical catchphrase-like expressions or sounds like laughs, etc.).
A fun fan service love letter to fans of the games. It's kinda amazing that they could tie in aspects of all the games and do so in a fairly cool way. I was half expecting Dr, Mario to show up for some reason or other, but gotta save something for the inevitable sequel I guess
Also you can't have half of Tenacious D and not add a song or two from him, so it shines there as well "Peach" tune is an earworm
Oh and the super weird thing is this was the first or two times I've heard No Sleep To Brooklyn in two different films where Chris Pratt has an otherworldly adventure today alone....
Too for kids, for my taste. It doesn't have that Pixar ingredient that gives it an extra layer of depth besides the entertainment. And the third act just went on and on... (how can a 90 minutes movie feel too long?!)
The best was the voice acting.
I enjoyed this very much. Probably because I love playing the games. This was really done with a lot of thought. If you love the games, watch this movie!
Gorgeous animation, predictable plot, not cringe, which has already exceeded expectations. Jack Black is great. It’s a pity I laughed probably once, it’s really not that funny. At least there are no fart jokes, which is surprising in itself. Watch once for the sake of references.
I enjoyed the movie. It was ok but not amazing. I have been a fan of Nintendo and Mario brothers since the late 80's. They did a good job of throwing in a lot of relevant references. The animation style was great and it fit well. The writing was the weakest part of the movie. The entire movie feels like an introduction to the characters. There is no real meaningful plot. This is no "Lego Movie." but it's entertaining and worth a watch non the less.
It was a love letter to the games and the fans. what a GREAT movie!
Beautiful to look at and a handful of laughs. I just wish the movie had some sort of substance. Hopefully we get a story in the sequel.
Of course it could only be Jack Black <3
Loved this movie, nostalgia was great & bought back many childhood memories.
I was more into than my kids :joy:
Is it the best movie? No….
Did it entertain me? YES!!!!
I even recommend this movie.
Chris Pratt his voice did not bother me as much as I thought it would.
I also don’t understand why the critics are so negative.
Feels like they watched a other movie.
I enjoyed it, my kids enjoyed it.
Finely a move worth watching in the cinema with kids. I
I’m even hoping for a follow up!!!
"Let's-a go."
Let's be up front, the story is a bit bland and so by the numbers and it is very much aimed to entertain the kids and have the parents or grown ups be drowned in nostalgia and for me that works.
I grew up with the Mario games, all the Donkey Kong games. So I got soo much out of those references. From F-Zero to Kid Icarus to Duck Hunt, the DK Rap from Donkey Kong 64, Dixie and Kiddy Kong along side Diddy, All the little sound bites. We even got the damn Super Mario Brothers Super Show intro song! Which was epic! Bowser wearing his Mario Odyssey suits, Pauline being the major of New York City, Lumalee, the true star of the show! The tune Bowser plays on his piano, all of the Yoshis! Charles Martinet!!! Sliding down the flagpole at the end of a level. Some classic stages making appearances! I'm down for more nostalgia down the line in a sequel that probably will come our way someday.
Jack Black was by far the most fun in his role as Bowser followed by Keegan-Michael Key as Toad. All in all I didn't got annoyed by anyone so that was alright and made the nostalgia more fun.
So you can watch this with your kids and I bet they have fun or just drown yourself in your Mario/Donkey Kong fandom and enjoy all the nostalgia!
Review by JordyVIP 8BlockedParent2023-04-06T14:29:06Z— updated 2023-04-10T20:16:43Z
If last year's Top Gun Maverick gave everyone the slightest bit of hope in regards to films that click with the general audience and blow up at the box office, this is the kind of film that'll make any self-respecting film fan lose all hope. Here's the deal: kids will pretty much like this by default, adults who are looking for validation of their childhood obsession will like it, and people who show up to see an actual movie won't. It's pretty much the blandest, calculated, do-nothing film they could've made out of this material. The animation is devoid of style and looks like it was originally rendered for a Dreamworks project back in 2008, the voice acting is mostly ass, it triggers the nostalgia & reference button way too often, the story & characters are watered down to a point where they're almost non-existent, it's not funny and its boomer rock soundtrack choices make absolutely no sense. It's irredeemable trash, like every product that rolls of the Illumination Entertainment conveyor belt. Nevertheless, I'm willing to bet that due to the large fanbase of the IP, this will be one of those films where in the short term some of the discourse will insist that "some people/critics don't know how to have fun" or "it's made for the fans" (only for those same people to deny ever liking it in the long haul, of course). Here’s hoping Illumination doesn’t listen to those voices in the same way that DC did after the release of Suicide Squad. This is not a foundation to build a franchise on.
2.5/10