In 1993, ‘Super Mario Bros.’ movie was released, serving as an adaption of the iconic Nintendo gaming franchise. It starred Bob Hoskins as Mario (Who Framed Roger Rabbit, The Long Good Friday) and Dennis Hopper (Easy Rider, Speed) as King Koopa and was a disaster. It was as far away as an adaptation could get with terrible acting, strange character designs and odd tones. Since then, a movie adaptation has not been attempted, until animation studio Illumination (Despicable Me, Sing) announced one in 2018. 

‘The Super Mario Bros. Movie’ stars Chris Pratt (The Lego Movie, Guardians of the Galaxy) as Mario, who is tasked with stopping Bowser (Jack Black: School of Rock, Kung Fu Panda) from taking the power stars from across the world. 

The announcement of the film made me nervous, especially after seeing the first trailer of ‘Sonic the Hedgehog’ when that was revealed, and I was worried it would be terrible. And my nerves weren’t calmed when the voice cast was announced. None of the voices sounded like they would fit the character they had been picked for. But I am happy to say that I have been mostly proved wrong because the movie looks fantastic!

Illumination Studios’ films are gorgeous looking, and this trailer further proves how amazing their films look. From the opening shot of the trailer to the first glimpse of Mushroom Kingdom, it all looks perfect, colourful and vibrant. 

Most of the voices are also great. The biggest surprise is Jack Black, whose voice fits very comfortably with the role of Bowser; he clearly cares about the source material and has taken his time to figure out what style of voice Bowser should have, and it’s paid off. Keegan-Michael Key voices Toad, another unexpected choice, but it also fits perfectly. While the game version of Toad has a very growly voice, Key has chosen to give Toad a softer tone, but used the famous voice when he’s yelling or shouting, which works fantastically.

The only issue with the trailer, which seems to be an unfortunate mindset across social media, is that Chris Pratt’s voice for Mario is a strange decision. While it feels like the other cast have changed their voices to suit their characters, Chris Pratt has chosen to adopt a Rocket Raccoon-style for Mario, and it’s very jarring to hear. While Mario and Luigi did start the games by having a Brooklyn accent (until Charles Martinet took the role of Mario in 1991), fans have gotten used to how Mario and Luigi sound by now, so it is strange to hear a different voice. However, it can also be argued that, since this film is an origin story, it would make sense for Mario to have the Brooklyn accent since that’s how his voice sounded like at the start of the gaming franchise. But, as a long-time fan, it is weird to hear the casting choice for the lead character.

But, overall, I am both pleasantly surprised and impressed by the first trailer for ‘The Super Mario Bros. Movie’. The visuals are gorgeous and colourful, the designs of the main characters are completely accurate to the games and, aside from Mario, the voice cast is fantastic. I didn’t expect to be writing this, but I cannot wait for it.

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