Movies…with a little bit of obscure culture and sports mixed in
The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) is meant for kids. Let’s get that out of the way right off the bat. If you think I am going to dissect an animated movie that was meant to make little kids scream and empty parents’ wallets, then you have another thing coming.
“A plumber named Mario travels through an underground labyrinth with his brother, Luigi, trying to save a captured princess.”
Directors: Aaron Horvath, Michael Jelenic, Pierre Leduc
Writer: Matthew Fogel
Staring: Chris Pratt, Anya Taylor-Joy, Charlie Day, Jack Black
Release Date: April 5, 2023
IMDB
The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) is meant for kids. Let’s get that out of the way right off the bat. If you think I am going to dissect an animated movie that was meant to make little kids scream and empty parents’ wallets, then you have another thing coming.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie is a good time. Take it for what it’s worth and embrace the silliness of the majority of the jokes and the damn near never ending sound effects. The voice acting is good and the animation is fun. The story is easy to follow and the ending is a happy ending kumbaya that appeases the masses.
The most important thing about The Super Mario Bros. Movie is that it is made with a lot of affection for the source material, but it is not overly laced with in-your-face LOOK AT ME references. The world is literally in the Mario world so to say its subtle is disingenuous, but the screenplay plays to both casuals, diehards, and newcomers.
There is the silliness of the dog creating havoc for Mario (Chris Pratt) and Luigi (Charlie Day) on their first solo plumbing job. That is silliness. This is playing down to the lowest level, but you have to establish a foundation for the laughs. As the world of the movie begins to unfold, the more direct references to the titular character’s games start to emerge. You have the laughs surrounding the mushrooms and constant slapstick comedy bouncing off the screen.
Speaking strictly for myself, I cackled the most when the Blue Shell joke was delivered. This is a personal preference for me. Some of my favorite memories are from my time in college when my friends and I would scream dastardly expletives every single time someone got fucked by a blue shell. The HSSSSSSSS haunts video gamers dreams, so seeing that come to life was hilarious to me.
The only time an RAs ever knocked on my residence in college came when I was a junior living with the members of the REEEEEEM. We were playing Mario Kart Double Dash and Mario Party 6 so intensely that we had complaints from neighbors. I remember the RA at the door prepared to scold us, but all we did was crack the door open and the RAs saw the carnage that was happening in the living room. Yes, we were old enough to go out, but we were too busy destroying friendships with Blue Shells. Ah, glorious times.
One last little tid-bit. There was a conscious decision to not make The Super Mario Bros. Movie a damsel-in-distress-in-need-of-rescue story. Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy) takes the fight to Bowser (Jack Black) and remains resilient the entire time. No need to take cues from the early Mario games where it was just Peach being kidnapped by Bowser. It is a deliberate step in a different direction that successfully takes the audience’s expectations in a different direction.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie shouldn’t be looked at through a microscope. It was made to appease and appeal to the masses, and that it accomplishes with ease. With over 500 million dollars at the box office and the promise of at least one sequel, this rendition of Nintendo’s most valuable IP is just the first checkpoint on its path to potential.
As of September 2023, The Super Mario Bros. Movie is streaming on Peacock.
STANKO RATING: B+
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