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James Mottram

2.5/5 stars
Nintendo’s iconic Italian plumber Mario and his brother Luigi make it to the big screen in this sporadically funny CG-animated action-adventure.
An impressive Hollywood A-list voice cast and a script filled with nods to the video game series adds to the appeal, although by about the hour mark, you might well feel this is just one long chase movie.
The razor-sharp wit of, say, The Lego Movie is largely absent here, with a story that seems more geared towards pleasing youngsters than their accompanying adults.


At least the film, directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic, is a vast improvement on 1993’s notoriously bad live-action Super Mario Bros, which starred Bob Hoskins as the titular Mario.
Here, Chris Pratt voices Mario, joined by Charlie Day as Luigi. They’re introduced in amusing fashion – a TV commercial, in which these Brooklyn-based brothers adopt fake Italian accents to promote their new plumbing business.

It feels like a sly wink to the criticism Pratt received when the trailer landed, with many complaining about the lack of authenticity in his voice work.
After Mario and Luigi are separated following a detour into an alternate universe, the sliver of a plot sees them butt heads with the turtle-like villain Bowser (Jack Black), “the most evil, wretched creature alive”.
He is plotting to rule the world and – if she’ll have him – marry Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy), the leader of the Mushroom Kingdom. Desperate to rescue his brother, Mario has to join forces with Peach to fend off Bowser.

The film’s best moments come when it emulates various Mario game iterations. Early on, the siblings are rushing to a plumbing job, leaping over obstacles on a building site much like a classic platform-style video game.
Later, Mario Kart features, and there’s even a nod to that other Nintendo classic, Donkey Kong – the character voiced by Seth Rogen – with iron girders and barrels included.
There’s clearly a love for the games here, right down to the familiar chimes of old-school sound effects and lessons in how to power up.

For all the inspired moments – like Bowser’s piano interlude as he repeatedly croons Peach’s name – there’s a lot that feels lazy too. The soundtrack is peppered with obvious ’80s hits – Take on Me, Holding Out for a Hero and so on.
There’s also a distinct lack of real jeopardy. And by the end, the seizure-inducing array of primary-colour visuals just gets tiresome. This is a film for kids – and Mario obsessives – but nobody else.
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Nintendo’s famous game gets another big-screen outing, with Chris Pratt, Jack Black, Seth Rogen and Anya Taylor Joy voicing the main characters
The film has plenty of nods to the game, but lacks the sharp humour of The Lego Movie, and is definitely more suited to children than their parents


Nintendo’s Super Mario Bros. Movie, voiced by Jack Black, Chris Pratt, Seth Rogen and Anya Taylor-Joy, sees the Italian plumbers return to the big screen for an uninspired outing that’s only occasionally funny.


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Anya Taylor-Joy

An assessment or critique of a service, product or creative endeavour.  Film reviews, restaurant reviews, reviews of art exhibitions. (Eg. Crazy Rich Asians: an important film, yes, but a good one?)


Review

Review | The Super Mario Bros Movie review: Nintendo games’ plumbers make uninspired big-screen return

Nintendo’s famous game gets another big-screen outing, with Chris Pratt, Jack Black, Seth Rogen and Anya Taylor Joy voicing the main characters The film has plenty of nods to the game, but lacks the sharp humour of The Lego Movie, and is definitely more suited to children than their parents

Nintendo’s famous game gets another big-screen outing, with Chris Pratt, Jack Black, Seth Rogen and Anya Taylor Joy voicing the main characters

The film has plenty of nods to the game, but lacks the sharp humour of The Lego Movie, and is definitely more suited to children than their parents