The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023)
Let’s-a go!
I’ve been left to my own devices again this week, so I’ve opted to touch back on something more upbeat without being festive. Look, I gave everyone a month of holiday-themed movies the one year, you can’t expect me to dish out countless Christmas cheer movies every year, it’d be bad for my health! All that merriment goes straight to my guts and then they get vocal and it’s a bad time for everyone! So we’ll keep the colors and stick with something I’ve got a history with - tonight we get animated and check out how that newer take from 2023 holds up with The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
A couple of brothers seeking out the dream of being their own plumbing business aren’t exactly in a spot where their commercial really is what it makes them seem. Indeed, their first job doesn’t go all that great thanks to a spiteful dog, their parents don’t believe in them, and they really just want to be happy and make it all work. While eating dinner, they discover a massive leak on the TV and decide that it’s their moment to shine - and as anticipated it doesn’t go quite to plan, with the boys stumbling on some weird pipe that rips them into another world - splitting them up along the way. Our green-clad younger brother finds himself in the world of spooks, and the other in the kingdom of mushrooms, where he’ll seek the help of a princess to find and rescue his brother. The kingdom has it’s own problems though - as the evil Bowser is approaching their kingdom with intent to rule.
If I’m being a little honest, it’s actually not all that far off from that old live action movie they did that really didn’t pan out for anyone - at least on paper. Here though, they were a little less worried about what the adult audience would want to see and left it more towards keeping the feel of what it was making - an entertaining movie for kids of all ages, based on a bunch of video game characters and worlds. I’ll say, it worked out far better this time around - it’s far more colorful, constantly pulls in references and nods to the games and long history, and keeps the imagination a little more in check to what would be expected of the name Nintendo. The plot is easy to follow, given it’s basically just beat the bad guy and save the day - but it’s also got all the trappings of a more modern take on such a thing - like the Princess getting her chance to show how cool and capable she is instead of just being the object to rescue.
Some of it comes out in the characters, with even our evil Bowser getting a bit more to him. It’s not just him being evil and wanting to rule, but in fact also him being in love with the Princess and it not being reciprocated - which who knows why the big old spikey turtle thought ruling everything would be the way to impress the peaceful princess of mushrooms, but hey - he’s a turtle. Luigi still has his little traits of being scared, Mario getting to be brave and the viewer insert for whom some things get explained (visually or through dialogue). Almost every character has at least one moment or two where they become comedic relief - and plenty of little miniature mushroom sized bites of character growth can be found. That said, I feel like growth is maybe overselling it - like DK and Mario getting along by the end is kind of growth, but at the same time it doesn’t really feel like they learned anything as much as just get along, so call it like you will.
Side scrolling movie action
Actors do a pretty decent job here as well. I know everyone was complaining about Pratt and not doing the classic super-stereotyped version of Mario’s speech, but I didn’t really mind. In all honesty, I didn’t even really get pulled out that much thinking “oh, that’s Pratt.” I did however get a little bit of that with Bowser when you hear the obvious Jack Black deliveries and songs - albeit perhaps less crude than in some places we find the gem of a man. Same thing with Rogan and DK - whenever you hear that Rogan laugh you can’t help but immediately think Rogan. Still, I feel like as far as the movie is concerned everyone did a pretty good job of line delivery and adding some emotions to it here and there as called for - which is nice because the voice is really only one part of communication.
Another part the actors have no control over in an animated movie - and that’s the body language. It’s far more cartoony here, feeling much more like the actual games I can remember when it comes to how people move and how there can be that level of over-emoting and emphasis with the movements to sell things. It’s well done, as is all the animation. Yes, there is a lot on the screen at once and I’m sure it’s not all up to the same level in every scene, but little details like the giant mushrooms giving way to weight when someone is stepping on them - although a tiny little detail you hardly notice - goes a long way to selling a level of care and attention put into the movie. Same thing with the one Yoshi looking at the heroes in the foreground licking it’s lips as it watches them eat an apple. It also doesn’t get too detailed either - hair has enough detail that it feels like it’s hair and not just a costume extension on the character, but also isn’t so crazy rendered out that you hit anything uncanny valley about it.
Sound design was spot on as well. Yeah, some might complain about the voice actors not matching their game counterparts and the likes - which is fair enough I suppose, you grow up listening to a character deliver lines you kind of associate that voice with them. That said, the rest is all stellar. Sound effects line up, the musical scores takes beats from the originals while also sprucing it up with a little bit more orchestra to make it feel more grand and newer. They even reuse the rap from the Super Show (yes, I am that old) to some extent, so again with all the references and nods in this department too. I feel they did a really good job here, including those little easter eggs like Jump Man and call backs to stages and zones and characters in this - but it also doesn’t require you to know any of that as a movie, it’s just there as extra icing on the cake. A true bonus item, as opposed to being so focused on it that it’s to the movies detriment.
Every good pep talk deserves a sunrise.
I feel like most people would enjoy this movie. It’s fun, it’s colorful, it’s not overly long and doesn’t really require you to know anything about the plumber brothers long history at all. If you do know that stuff, you’ll end up getting extra spice in the mix to liven it up and jog that nostalgia. I could see some people complaining about a few things here or there, but most of those are targeted towards a person’s self-choices than it is anything the movie does and it’s just the world we live in with instant access to so much info that makes us all enjoy complaining so much that we often look to find things when it’s not needed - but hey, just like traveling to a different world through a big green sewer pipe there’s going to be ups and downs for sure. This time around, Mario is far more accessible than the old live action take, so if you watch it with someone who complains about this one for some reason, just serve as the ghost of Christmas past and show them that to garner the proper levels of appreciation!