This Mother’s Day weekend, I had the privilege of finally seeing The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) in theaters. The movie came out back in early April, which basically coincided with the busiest time at school, so my viewing had to be postponed until this past weekend. It’s an origin story for Mario and Luigi, explaining how they got from the human world to the…Mario(?) world.
I saw it at the Park Theatre on Cambie–a theater that I had never been to prior to this movie. Cambie is a REALLY long street, but the stretch a few blocks down from King Ed Station is so nice, and that’s where the Park finds itself. It’s got only one screen, but the theater is really roomy. I’m a fan of smaller theaters, so I was a fan of this one, naturally.
Before I give my personal opinion on the movie, I want to bring up the fact that other people did NOT like this movie, particularly critics. Before I actually watched it, I got the chance to observe the reviews and opinions of others on social media, and I often saw people criticizing it for being too commercial, lacking in plot, etc. I see where these people are coming from, but I have to disagree, because…it’s a movie about Mario. Video game guy. Of COURSE it’s commercial–Nintendo wants you to watch that movie and think to yourself, “man, I really want to play a mainline Mario bros. game now!”
And again, who cares if the plot isn’t complex and story-rich, the movie is an origin story for the Mario brothers, I don’t really think they could’ve made it any deeper than it already was. The Mario Brothers are from BROOKLYN–for me, that’s enough lore right there.
I personally ENJOYED the movie. It looked really cool, had some really neat references, some great funny moments, and was overall a silly and fun animated flick about a long-time beloved video game character. It checked all my boxes. My one and only “gripe”–and it’s hardly a gripe–is the voice cast. They had a celebrity cast voicing all the main characters, and for the most part they were fine, but I kind of wish they had picked voices who were more suited to the characters. Seth Rogen as Donkey Kong was funny, but still, Seth Rogen’s regular speaking voice coming out of Donkey Kong’s mouth was kinda weird.
If you’re a Nintendo fan in any capacity, or just wanna have a fun 90 minutes, I recommend giving it a watch. I’d give it 4 and a HALF stars out of 5. Do it for MARIO!