a phenomenal success, a sequel planned?

[Mis à jour le 11 avril 2023 à 11h21] The film Super Mario Bros. offers a colossal success. The animated feature made the best start in history for a Animation Filmwith $377.6 million in revenue worldwide since its release, ahead of Frozen 2, just that ! In France, the film brought together 1.3 million curious people who sought to discover the film featuring Mario, Luigi, Peach and Bowser.

Can this success suggest a sequel? In any case, Super Mario Bros, the movie has two post-credits scenes that can tease a sequel. The first, more humorous, shows us Bowser singing his love for Peach from his tiny golden cage in which he is locked. The second shows a Yoshi egg ready to hatch.

In any case, the material exists to offer a sequel to the film Super Mario Bros., since many characters from the franchise have not yet been introduced (Warrior, Waluigi, Yoshi, Daisy…), Peach’s origins remain mysterious, and several games can still be adapted for the big screen (Super Mario Odissey, Mario Sports, Super Mario Galaxy…). However, we will have to wait for confirmation from Nintendo, Illuminations or Universal to find out more.

Can we see the movie Mario without having played the games?

But can those who are not familiar with the world of Mario go to see the film at the cinema, especially with their children? Super Mario Bros. is aimed at fans of the franchise as well as neophytes. Those who have played the various games will appreciate the numerous references and will certainly take more pleasure in watching the film than those who know nothing about it. Nevertheless, spectators who are not familiar with the Mario universe will appreciate this very fun entertainment with hyper-slick animation, but may be sorry for the simplicity of the plot. There will certainly be something for everyone!

Synopsis – While trying to repair an underground pipeline in Brooklyn, plumbers Mario and Luigi find themselves immersed in a magical and colorful universe. The two brothers are separated, however, and Mario embarks on a quest to find Luigi. He will meet the mushroom Toad and Princess Peach, and finds himself by a contest of circumstances to face the terrifying Bowser.

On Rotten Tomatoes, an international review aggregator, Super Mario Bros the film is divided between specialized critics who give only 54% positive opinions, and the public who are satisfied at 97%. In France too, thes reviews of the Super Mario Bros movie seem divided into two categories: those who have been totally won over by Nintendo’s proposal, often media with an appetite for video games, and more traditional media who have more reservations.

Les Numériques hail “a (finally) successful adaptation”, while Première deplores “a big ad for Nintendo in the form of a retro cuddly toy”. Ecran Large Admits It’s “Ultimate Fan Service Movie”, IGN France considers it to be the “first really good video game film”, and Le Figaro hails a “show as dazzling as it is funny and jubilant”. Le Parisien is clearer: the film “should appeal to the many familiar fans of this universe. Less so the others.” The specialized media indeed deplores that the film is “no interest” “when you are not familiar or passionate about this type of game”.

Is the Super Mario Bros movie accessible to children? Absolutely. The adapted production of the cult video game is classified for all audiences in France, even if the feature film is aimed more at fans than at neophytes. In the United States, the film is considered accessible to the youngest with “parental guidance”, the accompaniment of an adult.

The animated feature film was entrusted by Nintendo to Illumination Entertainment, an animation studio subsidiary of Universal Pictures to which we owe in particular the Despicable Me saga, but also its spin-off The Minions. The Super Mario Bros film is directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic and features a Super Mario adventure, dubbed for the occasion in English by Chris Pratt (Jurassic World, Guardians of the Galaxy). Alongside him, many well-known actors are included in the credits, including Anya Taylor-Joy (Mad Max Fury Road, Split) as Princess Peach, Seth Rogen (Supergrave) as Donkey Kong and finally Jack Black (Rock Academy, Jumanji) as Bowser. In the French version, we can recognize the dubbing actors Pierre Tessier (Mario), Emmanuel Garijo (Toad), Donald Reignoux (Kamek), or even Christophe Lemoine (Bowser).

A Mario movie already exists

Great mario bros is not the first attempt to adapt Super Mario on the big screen. In 1993, a first live action adaptation had already been attempted by Annabel Jankel and Rocky Morton. We discovered Bob Hoskins and John Leguizamo in the roles of Mario and Luigi. The feature film did not break even and, above all, was burned at the stake of the worst adaptations of video games into films. We understand better why Nintendo will have taken thirty years to bring out its plumber from the small screens of its consoles to the big screen!