Nearly thirty years ago, Nintendo made their first attempt at bringing their most iconic character to the movies with Super Mario Bros., an unusual, gritty, and vaguely surrealistic take on the plumbing brothers Mario and Luigi as they made the journey from New York City to the Mushroom Kingdom. While the film is nowhere near as terrible as its reputation has led us to believe, the failure of that film caused Nintendo to be far more guarded about their properties, holding an iron grip on the rights to these video game characters for decades. Until now. If 1993’s Super Mario Bros. was a strange envisioning of what this video game world would look like, The Super Mario Bros. Movie is the exact opposite: a colorful adventure brimming with references, a joyous celebration of this franchise’s history and the history of early Nintendo, and one of the best kids films in recent years.
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The Super Mario Bros. Movie introduces us to Mario (voiced by Chris Pratt) and Luigi (Charlie Day), two brothers in Brooklyn who are attempting to start their own plumbing business. Despite their family and others not having faith in the brothers, they’re optimistic in their venture, knowing that if they have each other, everything will be okay. After a plumbing incident threatens to leave Brooklyn covered in water, the brothers hit the sewers to try and fix the leak and make a name for themselves. But instead, Mario and Luigi end up in the Mushroom Kingdom, separated from each other during a dangerous time for the strange land.

Bowser (Jack Black) has gained a Super Star, which makes him invincible, and with this new power, he plans on heading to the Mushroom Kingdom with the plan of proposing to Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy), so the two can rule the kingdoms together. With the help of a bold Toad (Keegan-Michael Key), Mario meets Peach, who is readying to fight back against Bowser, as Mario attempts to find his brother, who has become caught in Bowser’s grasp.

Image via Universal Pictures

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From the very beginning, The Super Mario Bros. Movie is bursting with love for this series that many of us have grown up with. The Super Mario Bros. Movie is made by filmmakers who have excelled at this type of animated films that become almost like open playgrounds, as co-director Aaron Horvath (alongside Michael Jelenic) also co-directed 2018’s Teen Titans Go! To the Movies, while writer Matt Vogel also wrote The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part. Obviously, The Super Mario Bros. Movie is in many ways a feature-length advertisement for Nintendo as a brand. However, Jelenic, Horvath, and Vogel make this feel more like a labor of love, as they’ve been given the keys to the (Mushroom) kingdom, and are allowed to go all-in with what any fan would want to see in a film like this. In many ways, The Super Mario Bros. Movie reminds of Wreck-It Ralph and the glee that came from seeing these characters on screen.

It’s also impressive how much The Super Mario Bros. Movie is able to fit into this narrative, from making the 1984 video game Wrecking Crew part of Mario’s story, referencing nearly every Mario game since the character’s creation, and even bringing the entire Donkey Kong crew into the mix (including the brilliant choice of having Seth Rogen as the voice of Donkey Kong) without feeling shoehorned in. It’s hard to imagine a film attempting to put as much into The Super Mario Bros. Movie as this film does, without making it feel overwhelmingly stuffed, while also doing the narrative justice in a way that doesn’t just feel like a reference-fest. Vogel is asked to juggle an insane amount of elements here, and yet, he’s able to make all these parts come together in a satisfying way.

Also bringing this world to life is a strong voice cast that are perfect fits for these classic characters. Sorry to disappoint, but Pratt is a good choice for Mario, finding just the right amount of inflection for the character and without sounding like little more than a collection of the character’s famous lines. Charlie Day is also an excellent choice for Mario’s nervous brother, Luigi, yet the character, unfortunately, doesn’t have enough to do—especially once he’s captured by Bowser early on. The same goes for Keegan-Michael Key’s Toad, who is along for the adventure, but rarely adds much to the proceedings. Seth Rogen is also brilliant as Donkey Kong, as he’s basically just presented as “what if Donkey Kong sounded exactly like Seth Rogen, including his laugh?” But the real standout here is Jack Black as Bowser. His penchant for the grandiose makes him the perfect choice for the character. He can be big and intimidating, but he can also sing love songs dedicated to Peach without it seeming out of character. To be fair, there’s not a lot of nuance to these characters, but Black’s performance makes Bowser more than just a villain to be toppled.

As you might be able to tell, I’m a huge fan of Mario and these characters, and some of my earliest memories are of playing these games. Like many people over the last few decades, I have grown up with Mario and Nintendo, and for fans, this feels like the film that they wished the 1993 film would’ve been. It’s great to see Illumination knock this out of the park, because it truly seems like without this film working, it might be another 30 years before Nintendo even attempted another movie. The Super Mario Bros. Movie is a jubilant celebration of Mario’s legacy and shows just how much there is to explore in these video game worlds. For 100-minutes straight, I had a smile on my face throughout The Super Mario Bros. Movie.

But what about the viewers who didn’t grow up with Mario, who aren’t going into this animated adventure already primed to love this world? The Super Mario Bros. Movie might be a little light on plot and character development for the uninitiated, but it makes up for it with bright, fun worlds, surprisingly solid jokes, and a charm that rivals Illumination’s previous films. But considering the source material, it is sort of wonderful how much plot and character The Super Mario Bros. Movie is able to deliver on, and while this experience might not be ideal for those who aren’t already familiar with this character, the humor and the vibrant worlds should be enough to make this an enjoyable experience.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie isn’t perfect, but as a kid who grew up watching The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! and Super Mario Bros., hoping that they’d one day get this character right in a different medium, this is sort of a dream come true of a film. The Super Mario Bros. Movie captures the spirit of the games, the deep history, and the incredible possibilities that these games have presented for decades, all in one of the most fun animated films in years, with a team behind it that you can feel loves these characters and this world.

Rating: B+

The Super Mario Bros. Movie comes to theaters on April 5.