The Super Mario Bros. Movie is full of nostalgia and family fun from the studio that brought us Despicable Me and Minions.
With help from Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy), Mario (Chris Pratt) prepares to square off against the all-powerful Bowser (Jack Black) to stop his plans from conquering the world.
Illumination Studio knows how to make cute movies and The Super Mario Bros. Movie is no exception. With adorable character designs, comedy that is balanced and not in your face, and a delightful world for all ages to play in. There are some touching moments spread throughout the film combined with silly antics and it seldom travels into “scary” territories which helps avoid frightening the little ones.
Where the movie thrives is the number of things that they were able to jam into one movie. This movie is filled with all sorts of references to the games. Whether it is in your face or not, the treasure hunt for locating every Easter Egg will soon be popping up on the internet.
There has been some debate on the quality of the voice acting in this movie, but for me, everyone does a fantastic job. Seth Rogen as Donkey Kong works well with the sort of dumb and loud wit that he shows in most of his characters. Keegan- Michael Key as Toad may not be the familiar high-pitched wails he is known for, but the new direction worked very well and had elements of quality that were funny and admirable.
Anya Taylor-Joy as Princess Peach had this royal quality with an edge that was fantastic and she really did a great job at making the role her own. Jack Black is by far the king of this film and as Bowser, he comes close to matching octaves, yet takes the direction that they went with well and blends the humorous idiot with the menace of the Koopa King. Chris Pratt, for me, was a perfect Mario. Pratt had the energy of Mario with the combined elements of emotion, vulnerability, and comedy.
From the trailers, this movie was definitely going to be jam-packed with a combination of things that viewers love seeing in the video game world and it absolutely did not disappoint. Mario’s animated movie has plenty of action that starts out with comedic bouts with pipes in the Minion style that is simplistic, but promising. The training montage sequence then gives a glimpse at what’s to come, and choreography that feels like a sped-up part of the game, alongside adding movie magic to the fight scenes. It accomplished much in its short runtime that should appeal to families and gamers.
They do hit a lot of lands in a short amount of time, and it works well as they are establishing a potential universe to play in the future and their design really feels like the levels they were based on in the games.
The animation in general is beautiful and Illumination Studios has a style that works very well for this movie and captures the elements of the game world. Smooth movements with an adaptable style are what works and have been animated by people who did their homework and were able to mirror the game styles to a high degree and deliver us characters we’ve seen and love. Alongside the design, music and some of the action makes this movie so much fun to watch in theaters.
Overall, The Super Mario Bros. Movie accomplishes a lot in the opening movie of a potential universe, especially for the targeted audience of fans and families alike. It’s a cute and fun film that is loaded with nostalgia and Easter Eggs in both visual and audio. When you combine the comedy, story, and action antics you get a movie version of the game that is exciting and not overbearing. Animation is a key part of this film and the world design to help immerse you in a perfect theater experience. However, some of the action sequences were done too quickly and the movie could have done more, but that is just me wanting a longer movie.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie is now playing in theaters.
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