The movie adaptation of the most popular video game franchise in the world, The Super Mario Bros. Movie, had to be a blockbuster leaving behind hits like Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and even Avengers: Endgame. And guess what, Hollywood was expecting nothing less. After building hype for months, the movie was finally released in April leaving the audience spellbound.
The Super Mario Bros Movie 2023 was one of the most ambitious projects of Universal Studios and Illumination Entertainment in years and is an attempt to feed the nostalgia of generations who loved the game. While this was not the first video game to movie adaptation, it surely was something that people were anticipating.
Before discussing any further about the movie, let’s talk about the Nintendo game history.
The Nintendo Game History
Nintendo, a Japanese multinational video game company, has been around since 1889, but it didn’t start making video games until the late 1970s. One of Nintendo’s earliest and most iconic video game characters is Mario, who first appeared in Donkey Kong in 1981. Since then, Nintendo has released many popular video game franchises, including The Legend of Zelda, Metroid, and Pokémon. Nintendo has also produced many consoles over the years, starting with the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) in 1983, followed by the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), Nintendo 64, GameCube, Wii, Wii U, and most recently, the Nintendo Switch.
Mario is one of Nintendo’s most iconic and successful franchises. Mario was first launched in the 1981 arcade game Donkey Kong, created by Nintendo’s legendary designer Shigeru Miyamoto. Since then, Mario has appeared in numerous video games, including the famous Super Mario Bros. series, which has sold over 310 million copies worldwide as of 2021. Mario has also been featured in various spin-offs, such as Mario Kart, Mario Party, and Super Smash Bros. The success of the Mario franchise has played a significant role in Nintendo’s success as a video game company.
Let’s dive into the plot of the movie.
What is in The Super Mario Bros Movie 2023?
Spoilers Alert!!! Read this section at your own risk.
The story follows two Italian American brothers, Mario and Luigi, who start a plumbing business in Brooklyn. They are sucked into a Warp Pipe while attempting to fix a manhole leak, and Mario lands in the Mushroom Kingdom while Luigi lands in the Dark Lands. Bowser, the evil Koopa king who rules the Dark Lands, seeks to marry Princess Peach, ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom and threatens to destroy her kingdom using a Super Star if she refuses. He also imprisons Luigi to blackmail Mario.
In the Jungle Kingdom, King Cranky Kong agrees to help if Mario defeats his son, Donkey Kong, in a fight. Mario meets Toad, who takes him to Princess Peach, who plans to ally with the primate Kongs to repel Bowser. Mario emerges victorious using a Cat Suit, and they all use karts to return to the Mushroom Kingdom. However, Bowser’s army ambushes them on Rainbow Road, causing Mario and Donkey Kong to plummet into the ocean and be eaten by a Maw-Ray while Peach and Toad are captured.
Bowser proposes to Peach at their wedding, but Mario and Donkey Kong arrive and free the prisoners, including Luigi. They use a Tanooki Suit and Super Star to defeat Bowser and his Koopas. Bowser is shrunk with a Mini Mushroom and imprisoned, and Mario and Luigi are celebrated as heroes in Brooklyn. They later lived together in the Mushroom Kingdom.
The story is a fictional adaptation of the video game franchise Super Mario Bros. It highlights the importance of friendship and loyalty, as seen in the bond between Mario and Luigi, and the power of teamwork in overcoming challenges. The story also includes themes of bravery, heroism, and the triumph of good over evil.
The movie has an amazing star-studded line-up for its voice cast:
Voice Cast
Box Office Collection
The Super Mario Bros. Movie has been killing it at the box office lately, raking in a whopping $710.1 million worldwide as of April 18, 2023. That’s right, it’s the highest-grossing film of the year! And get this, it broke the record for the highest-earning movie based on a video game in just one week.
When the movie first hit theaters in the US and Canada, experts predicted it would make around $125 million in its first five days. But it quickly surpassed those expectations, bringing in $204.6 million instead. The film even outperformed Sonic the Hedgehog 2, which held the previous record for the top opening weekend for a video game adaptation.
But the success didn’t stop there. The Super Mario Bros. Movie also broke records as the top-grossing opening for an animated movie in 10 different places and the most significant video game adaptation opening ever in 44 markets outside the US and Canada. It even beat out Frozen II’s record for global opening weekend earnings. And in its second weekend, the film made $102.5 million in 71 markets, with only a 22% drop in profits. So, quit waiting if you have yet to see it? It’s-a gonna be a great time, trust me! Go to the theater and join the millions of fans loving this epic video game movie adaptation.
The Bottom Line
Although it’s uncertain whether video game movies will achieve the same level of popularity as superhero movies, recent adaptations such as The Super Mario Bros. Movie, The Last of Us, and Sonic the Hedgehog indicate that there’s a grown-up audience with a fondness for the games they enjoyed in their younger years. Unlike superhero franchises, video game intellectual property (IP) is not primarily owned by only two media conglomerates (Disney’s Marvel and Warner Bros. Discovery’s DC). The Super Mario Bros Movie paved the way for more video game-to-movie adaptations, provided the makers do a good job. It is exciting to see if more of such adaptations will go on the big screen or if this trend will fade away and our superheroes will forever stay! What are you rooting for?
