Before I get into the somehow hated cinematic masterpiece that is “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie,” know that this piece will contain many spoilers, so please read wisely if you plan on seeing this movie. There are a heck of a lot of surprises.
The movie itself is a sequel to “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” with a harsh Rotten Tomatoes rating of 59% in battle with the 95% audience rating. I saw it once on Halloween of ‘24, which was regrettably the first Halloween I wasn’t out trick-or-treating, but it was a fair exchange. This was about a year and a half ago, so my thoughts and opinions on the film may be fuzzy, but I thought it was comedic and had great hints towards the Super Mario Bros. games. The sequel, “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie,” one-ups that despite its current 41% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes.
As a foggy, generic plot explanation, Princess Rosalina is captured by Bowser Jr. to power his Boomsday machine with her cosmic powers. Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Toad and Yoshi–a new character introduced in this movie and voiced by Donald Glover (a.k.a Childish Gambino)–go to save Rosalina by traveling through the galaxy. Whoever did the casting must have been on something good because who would have thought to call up Glover about his Yoshi impression? And why is it so good? Where did he learn this particular talent and how can I get there?
Yoshi is not the only character introduced in this film. Obviously, there’s Rosalina, but there’s also characters like Wart, a gambling, bubble-spitting frog with a serious gambling addiction originating from “Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic” and later “Super Mario Bros. 2.” He literally resides in a cube of slot machines, card and roulette tables that defy gravity: a man of taste, I see. Does he know to call 1-800-GAMBLER for resources and support for those struggling with a gambling addiction? Maybe that doesn’t exist in the Super Mario Bros. universe.
Some characters are not in Super Mario Bros. games that were brought into this movie. There was the last-minute leaked appearance of Fox McCloud, which was an amazing yet random decision. I just wish that they hadn’t leaked his appearance because his character reveal would have been insane. He became the pilot for Mario, Luigi, Toad and Princess Peach to get to the evil planet that Bowser Jr. created and is holding Rosalina at. His voice actor, Glen Powell, actually did a really good job portraying this character. Plus, his backstory was really cool and told in an anime art style that was epic.
Some Pikmin had a cute cameo of arriving at the Gateway Galaxy (the airport of this movie and the many galaxies in this universe) in a tiny spaceship as well. Plus, R.O.B. (a toy accessory to the Nintendo Entertainment System back in the day) was a tour guide at the Gateway Galaxy as well, adding a humorous touch to giving directions.
And then there was another character brought to life when Luigi tries to use Bowser Jr.’s evil paintbrush against him: None other than Mr. Game and Watch himself, formed from Luigi’s lack of talent for drawing. This was probably the cause of the biggest reaction in the theater I went to, although that was short-lived as Mr. Game and Watch brutally lost the top half of his body. If these characters aren’t leading up to a Super Smash Bros. movie, I don’t know what will.
The only thing with this movie is that a lot of the worlds and power-ups are from more recent Super Mario Bros. Games, like “Super Mario Odyssey.” I haven’t played anything past “Super Mario 3D World,” and that was back when I had a Wii U as my main gaming source. I’ve seen some gameplay of “Super Mario Bros. Wonder” and “Mario Kart World,” but I haven’t played any of the games in a while. Even without that, I had no problems following along with the story and appreciating the worlds and character designs I saw throughout the film.
So with a good plot, a large introduction of characters, good comedy and fun worlds, my biggest question is why it’s getting so much hate. It was better than Disney’s “Hoppers,” which is also currently in theaters. Honestly, I gave this movie a 9/10 because of it in comparison to “Hoppers” along with all of the elements I have written about. Plus, with the Princess Daisy reveal in the post-credits, it’s clear there will be another movie. I can only hope it lives up to this one.
Hayley Doda can be contacted at
