It’s been a couple years since the The Super Mario Bros. Movie and now we finally have its sequel, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, which takes the scope and stakes to the galactic level.
The original Super Mario Bros. Movie set the isekai story for the Mario brothers on the alien yet familiar Mushroom planet. The first movie was a huge celebration of four decades of Super Mario games, and its sequel is simply more of that on all fronts.
It may seem like the story in the Super Mario Galaxy Movie is a bit thin compared to is predecessor, but I think it gives just enough to keep fans and newcomers going. The Mario brothers established themselves as heroes and eventually discover Yoshi. Not just any Yoshi, THE Yoshi (voiced by Donald Glover).
Mario and Luigi (voiced by returning stars Chris Pratt and Charlie Day) saved the Mushroom Kingdom and its entire world, so a new threat comes… from spaaace! The new threat is none other than Bowser Jr. (voiced by Benny Safdie), who’s searching for his dad and for some revenge, too.
The references to the games are abound in nearly every frame of the film and it feels like a party for the Mario franchise. The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is actually a mash up of the Super Mario Galaxy games and some slices of Super Mario Odyssey, with Bowser Jr. sporting his Super Mario Sunshine paintbrush powers.
Overall the Super Mario Galaxy Movie is fantastic visually, it’s a treat for the eyes and feels like demo material at times. Characters are well animated, environments are gorgeous and bright, and the action looks right out of the video games. The cast all play their parts well and since there’s no Donkey Kong there’s no Seth Rogan.
There are frequent jokes and bits that both I and my first son found hilarious – we were both laughing consistently throughout. There were even a few jokes that were clever enough to get a good laugh out of this adult, so it’s not all just for kids.
For the purposes of this review we saw a screening of Super Mario Galaxy Movie in theaters with RealD 3D, and it was fantastic. The 3D effects ranged from what felt like tacked on visuals to fully immersive stars dazzling every inch visually.
The only real SPOILER I’ll mention in this review is that Princess Rosalina (voiced by Brie Larson) is revealed to be Princess Peach’s (voiced by Anya Taylor-Joy) older sister. This is a retcon from the games where they’re not related.
I don’t think this is a big deal, though it will be interesting if this is considered canon moving forward. Another interesting change, while not saying too much, is that Mario has a budding romance with Peach that maybe – finally – could develop into something. Regardless, it’s cute and wholesome.
Bowser (voiced again by Jack Black) has been mostly neutered into an adorable house pet (with anger issues), though this leads into the main theme of the film: family. Bowser’s time as a prisoner makes him realize he’s been a neglectful dad, and he begs the Mario’s to give him another chance.
A princess gets kidnapped, the other princess goes out to help her, and the Mario brothers try to catch up and help. At one point Bowser escapes, though he is kept on a tight morality leash and has become friends with his former foes – unlike Dr. Robotnik in the Sonic the Hedgehog films.
Rosalina being made into Peach’s sister makes sense with how the film universe is being set up (and probably could have worked in the games, too) but Bowser felt odd at times as the reluctant villain. It begs the question how future movies will include a villain, since it was usually Bowser.
The energy and chemistry between Mario, Luigi, and their new friend Yoshi, is addicting and feels as natural as it did when you first met Yoshi in the games. These three are joined by their unlikely ally Bowser to stop Bowser Jr.’s schemes.
The movie has loads of power-ups that fans will remember from the games that cover lots of abilities. The movie even has a play on the planetary physics in a way like in the actual Super Mario Galaxy games. I would have liked to see more nods to Super Mario Odyssey though, or maybe even a brief nod to Super Mario Sunshine.
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie also expanded the film into what I dare to call the Nintendo Cinematic Universe, bringing cameos both subtle and massive.
At one point fans are treated to tiny, adorable, Pikmin – space creatures from the game series of the same name that Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto also made. The over the top cameo, though, is Fox McCloud from the Star Fox series, who Miyamoto suggested they throw in just for fun.
It might feel like Fox’s cameo is too on the nose but it’s fun, fits in with the main story, and sets the groundwork for Nintendo exploring other IPs from their wheelhouse. Nintendo has managed to establish an expanded film universe before Sega did, even though they aspired to years ago.
I won’t ruin the other cameos but they’re obvious for Nintendo fans and yet still fit in with the overflowing game related imagery and themes. One of my favorite scenes was the jump between 2D, pixel art from the original games to the 3D action in the movie. It was a full-throttle homage to the games we all love.
In the end I feel like The Super Mario Galaxy Movie was a very fun film that fans of all ages can and should enjoy. I don’t get the hate from other critics – it may not have as much punch (literally when talking about Donkey Kong) as the original film, it’s still a blast. Why can’t a video game just be about the video games?
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie was reviewed by Niche Gamer in theaters. You can find additional information about Niche Gamer’s review/ethics policy here.
