Video games may pose an existential threat to film’s cultural dominance.
But if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em.
The second Super Mario Bros. movie understands the shifting movie-going tastes. Down with mid-sized dramas. Up with IP-based mayhem dripping with Easter Eggs and candy-colored glee.
On that scale, “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” does what it needs to do, period. Nothing more by any stretch of the imagination.
It’s sweet, inoffensive, occasionally funny and always adorable.
The film opens with an attack on the palatial estate of Princess Rosalina (Brie Larson). It’s a brisk action sequence with surprising depth as she tries to shield her adopted kids, the Lumas, from both harm and the realization that Momma is in trouble.
The sequence sets the story in motion, but it reveals how charming the film can be when it lets the action breathe. Don’t get used to it.
Poor Rosalina is captured by the feisty son of Bowser (Jack Black), the first film’s villain. Now, it’s up to plucky plumbers Mario and Luigi (Chris Pratt, Charlie Day) and Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy) to save Rosalina.
It all sounds simple, but this “Movie” boasts a frenetic pace that feels like a collection of mini-movies for microscopic attention spans. The crush of new and returning characters is another distracting element, including the Han Solo-esque Fox McCloud (Glen Powell) and the cuter-than-cute Yoshi (Donald Glover).
The awwww factor here is strong, as is the moral certitude of our titular plumbers. Except it’s barely their movie in the first place. This is an ensemble piece, with the two princesses flexing their Girl Boss-itude.
It’s never long before the charming Lumas slip into the frame. These star-like creatures aren’t impressive on the surface, but they have a singular quality that’s undeniable.
They’re not Minions.
Black’s Bowser begrudgingly joins forces with Mario and Luigi early on, but given the actor’s intensity, that bond wobbles earlier than expected.
Newcomers to either video game lore or the Super Mario Bros. saga will be lost, and attempts to dissect some story elements will come up empty.
No matter. “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” is colorful and cute, a spry blast of IP wonder that will delight young audiences and make older crowds wish they had a controller in their hand. The film lovingly recreates classic Nintendo needle drops and game play moments.
Yes, a movie based on a video game must constantly remind us of the source material. As if the lines around the block didn’t tell us everything we already needed to know.
HiT or Miss: “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” will satisfy the franchise’s fan base, but they may not remember exactly why.
