The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023)

The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023)

 

5/10

 

Starring the voices of

Chris Pratt

Anya Taylor-Joy

Charlie Day

Jack Black

 

Directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic

 

This movie is not engaging. The story is bland, the emotion is missing, and I applaud myself for staying awake while watching it. This new animation hasn’t received high ratings from critics, and I completely agree with their view.

The standard of cinema seems so low that audience ratings for movies like this are high. I’ve seen this movie rated on par with The Incredibles and The Incredibles 2, and it makes me wonder what people even find interesting. While the animation is colorful, it’s nowhere near the level of Toy Story. I was so disappointed, constantly expecting something more to happen. Each time I checked the runtime, I grew more disheartened. Knowing how much time was left and seeing nothing worthwhile unfold was frustrating.

This movie feels tailor-made to be a box-office hit, but even that is a sad achievement. The Mario games by Nintendo, dating back to the 80s, have been a franchise beacon for how gaming worlds should be built. The games are among the most recognizable and profitable in history. The addition of Donkey Kong and Yoshi has made every gaming journey into this world memorable. Unfortunately, this animation, much like the live-action movie from the 90s, fails to live up to that legacy.

Even the inclusion of Donkey Kong’s world couldn’t save this movie from being what it is—a setup for future Mario movies without any effort to make this one truly memorable. If you haven’t played the games or watched gameplay, you might find yourself completely lost while watching this movie.

Here’s the plot:

The story follows brothers Mario and Luigi, who quit their jobs to start their own plumbing business. Things aren’t going well, so when Mario notices a sewage issue in the city, he decides to investigate, hoping that solving the problem will give their business the boost it needs. Luigi joins him on the mission.

While investigating, the brothers are sucked into the Mushroom World. They get separated, with Luigi ending up in Bowser’s homeworld and castle, while Mario finds himself in Princess Peach’s domain. Bowser, bent on conquering the world, has stolen the Star Power-up to achieve his goal. He has one condition to stop his plans: Princess Peach must meet his demand.

Meanwhile, Mario meets Toad and Peach, who introduce him to how this new world works. Together, Mario and Peach must save her world—and, in turn, Luigi—from Bowser’s clutches.

In the end, we’re forced to sit through this movie, which feels more like a springboard for future franchise instalments than a memorable standalone film.