‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’ Review: Stunning CGI Action Outshines Flimsy Plot

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The sequel to The Super Mario Bros. Movie is expected to be a huge hit in theaters, delivering exciting action with stunning visual effects. Illumination has really stepped up its game, creating colorful and detailed chase sequences, battles, and challenges. The movie beautifully recreates iconic video game worlds, appealing to both longtime Nintendo fans and a new generation of viewers. The addition of Fox McCloud (voiced by Glen Powell) from the Star Fox series is a particular highlight. While the story is a bit thin and doesn’t always make sense, the incredible visuals make it a worthwhile experience.

Princess Rosalina (Brie Larson), a strong and magical ruler, lives in space with her cute Luma companions (little stars). She’s preparing to tell them a bedtime story about famous plumbers when a threatening knock at the door warns of danger. Bowser Jr. (Benny Safdie), along with his advisor Kamek (Kevin Michael Richardson), launches an attack in a giant machine, thinking they can easily defeat her. They misjudge Rosalina’s power, but Bowser Jr. quickly identifies her vulnerability and uses it against her.

In the Sand Kingdom, Mario and Luigi are on a mission to fix the warp pipes. They’ve become skilled with their abilities and are ready to use their fire powers to investigate what’s causing the problem. Inside a dark pyramid, they meet a new dinosaur companion who has a long, sticky tongue and loves laying green eggs.

Mario and friends head back to the Mushroom Kingdom to celebrate Princess Peach’s (Anya Taylor-Joy) birthday. Peach is feeling down because everyone cheered when she was discovered, but she doesn’t know where she originally came from or when her actual birthday is. Luigi encourages Mario to dance with the princess, but their moment is cut short by an attack from Bowser Jr. He’s trying to rescue his shrunken father, Bowser (Jack Black), but Bowser might end up changing his plans.

Matthew Fogel, the screenwriter behind films like The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part and Minions: The Rise of Gru, is collaborating with directors Aaron Horvath

Michael Jelenic, one of the creators of Teen Titans Go!, is back with a big challenge: making The Super Mario Galaxy Movie even more spectacular. The film needs to include lots of elements from various Mario games – many different worlds, characters, and stories – all squeezed into a fast-paced 90-minute movie to appeal to a wide audience. As the start of what’s expected to be a major franchise with potential spin-offs, the movie prioritizes fun and excitement over a complex story. The filmmakers aimed to keep things moving quickly while still making sure everything connects and feels like a classic Mario adventure.

Honestly, if you’re hoping for a really deep, complex story with the Super Mario characters, you might be disappointed. It seems the director, Fogel, really focused on giving fans what they expect – lots of adorable Yoshi moments with Donald Glover, which is great! He did add some interesting bits with Bowser, showing how he gets back into being the villain, and the sweet relationship with his son, plus the connection between Peach and Rosalina. While the characters could have been explored in more detail, it felt like the priority was keeping things fun and visually exciting, rather than getting bogged down in heavy themes. It’s a spectacle, and that’s what he delivered!

The game keeps things fresh and exciting as you move through each world, which is impressive considering how many CGI animated games feel repetitive these days. The creators, Horvath and Jelenic, cleverly combine the freedom of open-world gameplay with the classic side-scrolling style of older Nintendo games. It’s a fun way to see how far gaming technology has come while still appreciating the simple enjoyment of retro games. One particularly memorable moment features Mario and Princess Peach running from obstacles in Bowser Jr.’s castle – it’s shown in stunning 3D, but looks like it came straight out of an original game, which will definitely appeal to longtime fans.

This movie doesn’t include Donkey Kong or any of the gorillas from the first film, but it does feature Birdo, Mouser, and Wart – characters from the often-overlooked but very enjoyable Super Mario Bros. 2 game. However, Bowser Jr. is the standout character, proving to be a genuinely powerful and intimidating villain. He’s much more assertive than his father, and his storyline takes an unexpectedly dark and unsettling turn. The final scene with him is particularly creepy and feels out of place compared to the rest of the movie, making it a somewhat unusual choice by the filmmakers.

Mario and Luigi, despite looking good in action, don’t quite stand out as compelling characters – they lack the spark of everyone else in the movie, and their conversations fall flat. The script could really benefit from a comedic touch – perhaps a writer like Patton Oswalt could help make it funnier. While Mario and Luigi need to be more captivating as the leads, I’m still excited to see what happens with the Star Fox storyline.

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2026-03-31 22:20