Review of The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) by Metabones — 08 Apr 2023

The Super Mario Bros. Movie doesn't just boast gorgeous and vibrant animation, it features the most fun a kid can probably have in the last several months. For long-time fans of Mario video games (like myself), even more fun might be had for a rock-solid, fun, and fan-service experience that is a bombastic callback to anything Mario.

Critics of the film have described the plot as "thin" which I think is an unfair characterization. It doesn't showcase, universal and deeply thematic narrative threads like Pixar sometimes does, but there's fair characterization and strong overall story structure to make everything completely coherent and sensical (for the story's world of course).

I think the voice talent did a great job embodying the characters they play and the world's they designed are vibrant and great representations of the world you've come to see and enjoy. From a technical standpoint, the film is completely solid and Illumination has done a wonderful technical job with the aesthetics, animation, and editing.

I did find the some moments in the final act to be slightly rushed but it didn't hinder the overall impact of the ending. All in all, I found myself smiling throughout having a good time. Even better, my little daughter who has played Mario Kart and watched me play Super Mario Odyssey had an even better time.

I would say this film deserves the financial success and warm audience reception it's receiving since follow-up films and even a Nintendo universe is more than welcome in my eyes.