The Super Mario Bros Movie was not what I was expecting, from the beginning this movie was full of humour and originality. The world of Super Mario is so vast but they included countless details and references to the franchise. I thoroughly enjoyed noticing all the little characters, noises and locations which emulated the game. Originally, I was expecting a very child oriented movie, with a simplistic storyline and little conflict but I can honestly say I was thrilled with the narrative and really enjoyed the changes they made to incorporate Mario and Luigi into the world of Nintendo.
Yes, this is a children’s movie but Universal seamlessly incorporated adult humour and a more serious tone to the film which makes it easily watchable for adults, adults who actually played the games! This film was enjoyable from beginning to end, Bowser was a brilliant character and voice by an even better actor. His story arc was really fun and added genuine threat to the other characters. The overall storyline was strong, easy to follow and had excellent amounts of detail.
Although there was some hesitation around Mario and Luigi’s voices, I genuinely didn’t mind that they were American. It was fun to see the characters in the ‘real’ world marketing off of their Italian heritage, the incorporation of their plumbing business was intelligent and I thought it fitted in well.
Luigi was definitely second to Mario, as usual, but his character could have benefitted from more screen time. Toad too, he was an adorable addition but didn’t have much of an impact. I was also sad to see no Yoshi, only a little egg to represent him at one point.
Overall, this film was highly enjoyable and exceeded my exceptions. When I heard the hype I thought it was unnecessary but now, after watching, I can confirm it deserved the hype. The film as a whole had a strong storyline, strong character journeys and an impactful conclusion/ending. I really enjoyed the changes they made to Peaches character, she was a strong female alongside all the strong male characters and I liked that development from the games representation of her.
I have no doubt Universal are developing a second movie as we speak, with the addition of Super Mario Land in Universal studios the world is their oyster. Mario is such a universal icon, a character which should have had his own film a long time ago, luckily the film lived up to exceptions of the public and showcased a truly likeable and positive image of Mario and his friends. I hope this film encourages a new age of children who want to play Mario Kart and get back into Nintendo.
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