The Super Mario Bros Movie Review: Chris Pratt’s Animated Film is Bogged Down By a Paper-Thin Plot Over-Laden With Nintendo Nostalgia (LatestLY Exclusive)

The Super Mario Bros Movie Review: Mario's movie history has been somewhat of a disaster. After a flop in the 90s, the prospect of another Mario film seemed like a nightmare, and when the Chris Pratt-starrer was announced, many of us collectively said "Ninten-don't," but they went ahead and Nintendid, and here we are two years later with a film that left me conflicted at the end. On the one hand, The Super Mario Bros Movie is an aesthetically pleasing journey that is sure to please long-term fans, but on the other, its story is exceedingly shallow. The Super Mario Bros Movie Review: Chris Pratt's Animated Film Receives Mixed Response From Critics, Animation Receives Praise While Story Gets Called 'Flat'.

The Super Mario Bros Movie is directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic, and is based on one of Nintendo’s flagship gaming franchises. It focuses on Mario (Chris Pratt) teaming up with Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy) to save Mushroom Kingdom from Bowser’s (Jack Black) wrath, while also trying to save his brother Luigi (Charlie Day) in the process.

Getting the story right for Mario is a tricky task. In the games, he and Luigi journey to Mushroom Kingdom in order to save Princess Peach from Bowser. The classic damsel-in-distress story became synonymous with the games. In The Super Mario Bros Movie though, the roles are reversed as this time around its Luigi who needs saving and Princess Peach has a very direct involvement in the plot - which is appreciated, but the movie doesn’t know what to do with it.

The story's main flaw is that it nearly feels like it's hanging by a thread. There is nothing to discover and no depth at all. It feels more like a sequence of vignettes that you're witnessing. You keep bouncing from one area to another without ever presenting any major threats or urgency that might compel you to become more involved. We've seen with animated films in the past, such as Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, that you can build a plot aimed towards children while yet having emotional depth, but The Super Mario Bros Movie never truly does.

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As a viewer, you sit there feeling like the movie is throwing nostalgia at you to keep you amused because it doesn't have much to offer. The Super Mario Bros Movie contains a plethora of references that are guaranteed to please die-hard fans, but you can't help but feel that the impact is cheap and comes at the expense of a plot.

It also sets up a lot of stuff that feel thrown in. It was like watching a Mario film through the eyes of Marvel Studios. If you've seen the trailers, you'll know Donkey Kong is in the movie, and his participation just didn't make sense to me. He has appeared in other Mario games and vice-versa, but it just felt like a way to kickstart another cinematic universe.