Having seen the movie last night, I’ve decided to write this Mario movie spoiler-free review to help people who may be on the fence. The Super Mario Bros. Movie (henceforth referred to as the Mario Movie) has been hotly anticipated since it was announced. Now that it’s finally out, I know many people will have high expectations, I know I did. Perhaps that’s a bit unfair, but with a budget of $100 million, they certainly weren’t limited in scope.
I’m coming at this from the perspective of an adult watching it, but I see this as a good thing. Many of us will have grown up playing Mario, and I have no doubt that loads of adults will go to see the movie. Seeing as it’s a family movie, most critics will be approaching it as such. I get that, it makes sense, it’s not fair to rate a movie down for not appealing to those outside its target audience. Having said that, they must have known that loads of adults would watch it. It’s why I’ll be using this review to share my thoughts, but my rating should be taken with a pinch of salt. I’m rating its quality as a movie for all ages, not just for children.
Final note before I dive into it: This is just a short review. I’ve only seen this movie once and have no plans to see it again any time soon. I’m not equipped to write about it in heaps of detail. I’m simply here to share my thoughts and hopefully help people out.
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The Viewing Experience
This is very much a mixed bag. Some elements of the movie were absolutely fantastic, others really missed the mark. I’ll start with what worked well, and that’s the audio-visual elements. The graphics were phenomenal, and I was kicking my legs in excitement at seeing the Mushroom Kingdom imagined so beautifully on screen. The colours were vibrant and striking, and the details were just right. The artists did a wonderful job of capturing the essence of the video game characters and enhancing it for a cinematic experience.
The soundtrack was genius, too. All the tracks were remastered and tweaked versions of classic Mario tunes. It was done so naturally and cleverly, and it made such a difference. You could tell the producers had put a lot of effort into conveying the feeling of the games, and it really worked.
Unfortunately, not everything they attempted worked as well as the visuals and music did. The pacing was haphazard, and it definitely broke the immersion for me. Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad it wasn’t a long movie. 1 hour 44 minutes is a perfect length for an animated film, I didn’t want it to be longer. The problem is that instead of cutting out unnecessary scenes, they skipped over plot points entirely. So much of the action was rushed, and I spent half the time wondering how on Earth the characters had appeared in the new scene.
The dialogue was okay, nothing special. It was incredibly basic, the kind of cookie-cutter drama and humour you get in every movie these days. It was disappointing as I really wanted a story to get my teeth into. I did really enjoy the Lumalee character, though. He had some darkly funny lines that contrasted beautifully with his adorable appearance. Think the muffin from ASDFmovie.
Fans of the Franchise
Anyone can go and watch the Mario Movie without needing to play the games first. The producers were careful not to gatekeep casual viewers. However, there are a number of scenes in the movie that will bring additional joy to those who are already familiar with Mario.
Plenty of references are scattered throughout, and it’s really fun to spot them all. There were so many times where I’d turn to my husband and give him a knowing nod after the movie hinted at a gaming moment. I won’t give any spoilers, but you should definitely keep an eye out if you go and watch it. The references come in plot points, throwaway dialogue lines, visual details in scenes, and more.
Fans will also enjoy getting to see characters and locations that up until now have only been available on a small screen. I adore the animation style chosen for the Mario Movie and it works so well in bringing the games to life. It’s not just the graphics, though, and I really enjoyed the way that the lore was incorporated. The film did an excellent job of making aspects like powerups and moving platforms seem natural. It also posited a decent explanation as to how a humble plumber got tied up in all this.
Between the references, lore, and gorgeous visuals, these nods to the games really elevate the movie. I got a lot more enjoyment out of it due to my knowledge of the franchise than I would’ve otherwise. I think that non-gamer parents going with their kids are going to have a hard time finding much fun in this movie.
Is it Worth it for Adults?
This is a really tricky one to answer. I think it very much depends how you’d define ‘worth it’. For me, I don’t regret going, and I’m glad I watched the movie. But I also have a pretty low bar when it comes to cinema experiences and I’m perfectly happy to watch a sub-standard movie as long as it’s not awful. I like going to the cinema for the experience of it, and I can’t think of any movie that I regret seeing, even ones where I’d only rate the film about a 5 or a 6.
What you should be acutely aware of is that this is a kid’s movie. Not a family movie, a kid’s movie. I don’t mind that it’s targeted at children, I think the problem is that there’s not very much for adult viewers. Take successful family films like The Lego Movie or Sonic the Hedgehog. These were aimed at kids, but also provided humour and plots that would satisfy an older audience. The other day I finally watched Cars, and I noticed several risqué jokes that would go over the heads of children while keeping adults entertained. That’s the kind of thing that the Mario Movie was missing.
It’s still fun, and it’s certainly not boring. But if you want any depth of story then you’re going to be disappointed. Any enjoyment you derive as an adult will be from the audio-visual elements or the excitement of seeing references you recognise from playing the games. I think you’d be hard-pressed to find the plot entertaining as an adult.
Verdict
Usually I have a tough time deciding on exactly which rating to give something, especially as I fully commit to using decimals in my ratings. However, with this one, it’s pretty much as 7-ish as you can get. It’s fine. It’s not bad, it’s not great. This is one of those movies that you’ll watch once and then probably not get an urge to watch again for quite a while. But at the same time, if somebody else asked you to watch it with them, you wouldn’t veto it.
Also, one thing I still maintain is that Chris Pratt was a really odd choice for Mario. He didn’t necessarily even do a bad job, it just felt weird hearing him. The hilarious thing is that Chris had said in interviews that he was excited to show people the voice that he’d chosen for Mario. It’s just his normal voice. Even if I hadn’t known who the voice actors were, I’d have heard one line and gone “yeah, that’s Chris Pratt”. All the other voice actors chose really fun voices for the characters, though.
What did you think of this Mario Movie spoiler-free review? Are you planning to watch the movie yourself, or have you seen it already? Join the discussion over in our Facebook community, or tweet to me on Twitter!
The Super Mario Bros. Movie
Pros
- Gorgeous visuals throughout the movie
- Soundtrack is modern yet nostalgic
- Fun references for fans of the franchise
Cons
- Sub-par pacing, especially towards the end of the movie
- Plot is under-developed and there's no real attachment to the characters
- Chris Pratt
