Yep you've read the title. For the first time in 30 years, the Mario franchise returns to the big screen with their upcoming animated film produced by Illumination. The film is stacked with a star studded cast. Chris Pratt stars as the titular character Mario whereas the likes of Luigi, Peach, and Toad will be portrayed by Charlie Day, Anna Taylor Joy, and Keegan Michael Key respectively. The film's main villain Bowser will be played by none other than Jack Black.
Where do I begin? So I've been a lifelong fan of the Mario games tracing back to the days of the Super Nintendo playing Super Mario All Stars. It exposed me to some of the earlier Mario Bros games from the NES days, all remastered into a 16 bit console. Lucky for me, I happen to own the 1994 reissue version that includes Super Mario World that had been released three years prior. Best of both worlds I tell ya.
It is very bizarre to think how long it's been since we had a non video game adaptation of the franchise. We had the Super Mario Bros Super Show in the 80s starring the late Captain Lou Albano followed by a string of other TV iterations including the Adventures of Super Mario Bros 3 and Super Mario World. It wasn't until 1993 when a live action version of the Mario Bros would be released to theaters. Unfortunately, the film received negative reviews with its depiction straying too far from the source material. For instance, why is the Mushroom Kingdom a post-apocalyptic version of New York City (basically the main setting as seen in the movie)? Secondly, the design of the existing villains did not resemble their game's counterparts such as the Goombas and King Koopa/Bowser (played by the late Dennis Hopper). Despite being a commercial failure, I did have a soft spot for the film's campiness (I enjoyed the chemistry of the late Bob Hoskins and John Leuguizamo as Mario and Luigi respectively).
As a result of the film underperforming in the box office, not only was there not a sequel. It was there that Nintendo decided to cut their losses and steer away from making future television or film adaptations of their properties…
Until Detective Pikachu in 2019 came out that the perception of video games into film adaptation could in fact work (Unless we count Mortal Kombat in 1995).
Some folks seem to have very mixed feelings based on the trailer alone. To start off with the positives, I am really fond of the animation design as far as how colorful and vibrant it's presented that demonstrates what the tone of the film will be. At a time when it feels like every kid property leans towards a dark and gritty approach, I appreciate the fact they're embracing the lighthearted campiness that the game series evokes. Just by watching the snippets from the film feels like a spectacle with an ensemble cast of characters established in the Mario and Nintendo universe. When you have a film with that type of quality, you're likely bound to have a potential box office smash. Of all the voice actors casted, I’m really digging Jack Black’s Bowser impression.
Now as far as the negatives go, I am not feeling some of the voice actors. Chris Pratt's voice of Mario is still not sinking in with me. Charles Martinet really brought life to that character even with minimal dialogue he provided in the games. At the end of the day, you believed he was a happy-go lucky Italian plumber willing to protect his friends and the kingdom he resides in. Pratt's dialect feels very off when he shouts out "let's go" in that fight scene with Donkey Kong. Hopefully there are more scenes of his that best demonstrate his version of the titular character.
In addition, it appears from the trailer that the gang are journeying through the Mushroom Kingdom to stop Bowser from conquering their land. I'd figured it would stay close to the first game in which Peach and the Toads are kidnapped; Therefore, Mario and Luigi must go through a series of obstacles before reaching his castle to save them.
Okay, so it's not completely straying far from the premise.
With the inclusion of the Kong Family (Donkey & Cranky being the notable ones) combined with a hodgepodge of Nintendo characters during the Mario Kart scene, I'm very skeptical how they'll be presented in the film. Only time will tell until the day of its release.
Despite some of my peeves (or nitpicks for that matter), the movie has a lot of potential to be something special. Who knows with the success of the Mario film will pave the way for more Nintendo properties to be adapted down the road. They notice what Sega and Paramount have been doing with the Sonic franchise and now they're looking into creating a live action Streets of Rage film. It's a huge investment Illumination is making with the mindset that the Mario Bros Movie does indeed turn a profit. March 2023 is only months away and this flick will determine if the Nintendo Cinematic Universe becomes a reality. Fingers crossed.
JimmytheTVFanatic
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