FILM REVIEW: The Super Mario Bros. Movie

Latest Nintendo saga has already generated more than $1 billion at the box office

"The Super Mario Bros. Movie," released in early April, has already generated more than $1 billion at the box office.

Illuminations Universal Studios

“The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” released in early April, has already generated more than $1 billion at the box office.

Grace Davis, Staff Writer
May 2, 2023

Insider Score: 4.5/5 stars

***

It’s December 2009, Christmas morning. 

The smell of pine needles, hot coffee and Christmas breakfast wafts through the air. Bing Crosby and Andy Williams take turns belting tunes of St. Nick and holiday cheer on the television. 

A family of five gathers under a pine tree stuffed to the brim with nostalgic ornaments of past vacations and special moments. The three children huddle close together as their mother places a wrapped box in front of them. “For the family,” it says on a bright red bow. 

The three of them immediately begin to tear the green paper in a frantic sort of frenzy. Suddenly the girl screams, “Finally, we’re normal!” Underneath the holiday paper lays a Nintendo Wii console, equipped with two controllers, nunchucks, and one game. 

Over the next few hours, the children would continue to unwrap “Super Mario Bros.,” “Mario Kart” and “Mario Party 8” as well as many others in their new loot. Over the next few years, the children would live out their childhood playing these games together. 

They would earn victories such as winning new characters, and experience heartbreak when levels were not saved due to a child’s forgetful nature. The family would bond through these times, creating stories that were told years after the console’s glory days. 

Fourteen years later, much has changed for the family – my family. However, our love for the Nintendo games has not. So it was no surprise that we were first in line to see the new Super Mario-inspired film.

On April 5, Illuminations, a branch of Universal Studios, released the 1 hour, 32-minute film, “The Super Mario Bros. Movie.” The film features the voices of Chris Pratt, Anya Taylor-Joy, Charlie Day, Jack Black, Seth Rogen and Keegan-Michael Key to play the iconic characters of Mario, Peach, Luigi, Bowser, Donkey Kong and Toad as they embark on a heroic adventure to save the mushroom kingdom. The film is beautifully animated, incorporating both 2D and 3D. 

It’s no surprise this film has brought out thousands of families to the theater. The gut punch of nostalgia allows viewers to reminisce over their time of playing, beating levels and racing karts. Although a bit rushed, the story remains true to the video games, with the end goal of the characters being about defeating Bowser. 

Perhaps the most iconic part of the film is the score itself. Composed by Brian Tyler, practically every moment of the film is accompanied by music from various game levels and character themes. And nobody can deny that Bowser’s song, “Peaches,” written and composed by Jack Black, was perhaps the funniest part of the film. It’s certainly possible to listen to the music and instantly fall in love with the film. 

Now, is the plot the most original? No. Are some of the lines cheesy? Yes. Is the ending a bit rushed? Yes. However, that does not matter! The fact is that this film is fun.It’s great for the whole family, it’s humorous and it brings generations together. There is no political agenda, and it brings viewers back to the mid-2000s when Hollywood did not use its films to express its opinions on political matters. 

I will always choose nostalgia. Simple as that. As a lifelong fan of the Nintendo franchise, I feel satisfied with this movie. And seeing as the film has dominated the box office for the fourth week in a row, having already earned global sales of $1 billion, it’s safe to say the rest of the world agrees with me.

As Mario would say, “Wahoo!”