The 541st film I have seen in theaters…

The evil King of the Koopas, Bowser, has gotten his hands on the Super Star, The key to unlimited power. Looking to marry Princess Peach of the Mushroom Kingdom, he sets course for conquest. Meanwhile, 2 plumbers from Brooklyn, Mario and Luigi, fall through a mysterious pipe and find themselves thrust into the action! They must fight their way through this strange world, forge alliances, and, of course, save the princess! Lets-a-go! Lol

Chris Pratt was perfectly fine as Mario. The hate was unwarranted. I am in the “90 solid minutes of Charles Martinet’s Mario would be insufferable” camp, and this movie proves it out. We do get a bit of the traditional Mario voice though.

Charlie Day as Luigi? Excellent. He has an extremely expressive voice as it is, and it meshed great with this Luigi. I’m pulling for the Luigi’s Mansion spin off.

Anya Talyor-Joy as Princess Peach was good. They veered away from the Damsel in distress and embraced the floaty Super Mario Bros. 2 version that can fight.

Seth Rogen as Donkey Kong: Hilarious. Simply hilarious. Great casting. I’d be down for a DK movie.

Keegan-Michael Key is Toad. Honestly, the most impressive of the voice acting. I’m not sure I would have known it was him. A fun role.

Jack Black as Bowser? Stole the damn movie. Highway robbery. He was pitch perfect as Bowser. Don’t even get me started on his musical number “Peaches”. Highlight of the film.

This is getting a lot of sass for being inferior to the 90’s version. They are saying that the plot is too thin and the CGI sub par. That is foolishness. I am actually a fan of the original movie, but I will admit that it was not a faithful adaptation of the games.  The Super Mario Bros series is not known for its intricate plotting. This film’s devotion to the source material and Nintendo lore are what makes it stellar. The easter eggs for us old school NES fans are perfect. They even included Spike from Wrecking Crew and the “Do the Mario” theme from the old Lou Albano show. As for the critiques of the animation? Nonsense. This looks and moves like the Super Mario games. This is the animation style I would expect from such a movie.

If you have ever loved Super Mario, this movie is for you. I hope it leads to many more Nintendo offerings. Check it out. 7/10