The Super Mario Galaxy Movie was released on April 1, continuing the story from the wildly critically and economically successful first movie “The Super Mario Bros. Movie.” Building on this success, the new movie continues the story. The movie is fun, especially if you’re a fan of the Mario brand; however, it ultimately falls short of being truly great.
To begin, the movie has several strengths. The visuals in this movie are absolutely stunning. Since this movie takes place in outer space, it features exciting visuals with a wide variety of colors across different creative planets and action scenes. The movie’s pacing is quick, with Mario and his friends traveling through different galaxies rapidly. The visuals and pacing combined ensure viewers’ attention doesn’t drift for even a second.
Another strong part of the movie is its recognizable characters, including returning characters Mario and Bowser, along with new additions Rosalina and Bowser Jr. These new characters help make the movie distinct from the previous one and keep it feeling fresh for the audience. The voice actors for these new characters do a fine job of bringing them to life and make them feel like real people.
However, the movie is not without flaws. One major issue holding this movie back is that, while the visuals are amazing, the story can feel a little disjointed at times, which can confuse the audience. Some scenes move too quickly, and crucial moments are not properly explained. Instead of telling a cohesive, meaningful story, the movie focuses on cool action scenes that add a little substance.
Another issue is the pacing. While it keeps the viewers’ attention, it ultimately detracts from the overall story. This is because there are so many characters and events packed into a short 1 hour, 38-minute runtime. This leads to an overcrowded story in which characters don’t get the development they deserve. While the movie is never boring, it can be overwhelming at times.
Despite these flaws, “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” has grossed $628 million worldwide in its opening weekend and has become one of the biggest releases of the year so far. This shows audiences eager to watch these characters and suggests the potential for a third movie.
“The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” is an entertaining film with beautiful visuals and personalities, but it mainly struggles with its story and pacing. If you enjoy the Mario brand, it is worth watching; if you are not a fan, you won’t miss much by skipping it. Overall, it delivers a fun, entertaining movie, but it misses opportunities to create stronger connections with the audience and to tell a more engaging story.
