#luigi was the best part of the movie and he did not get enough screentime >:|

[stuck-in-the-ghost-zone]

update i saw the mario movie !! it was cute actually

[cloverthirteen]

unsorted (and spoilery) mario movie thoughts under the cut since I saw it today

first to get it out of the way: critics apparently complained about the plot being too simple and straightforward, none of the characters changed that much, too much stuff being thrown at you and too many references...it's a mario movie. this is basically what the plots of the games are. if anything these things helped the movie by making feel more like the games!

for my personal issues: first half of the film goes at an absolute breakneck pace and luigi doesn't get to do nearly enough. mario and luigi also spend way too much time apart :(

otherwise, though, THIS MOVIE IS AMAZING. it was clearly made by fans and caters directly to fans, the amount of easter eggs and references is enormous.

THE MUSIC. nearly all of it is BEAUTIFUL orchestral versions of songs from the series and it's everywhere and in the most unexpected places. underground theme in the sewers, bowser's castle theme as his fortress is approaching, super mario 3 athletic theme (I think?) when mario gets the tanooki suit, mario kart menu music in the kart garage, LUIGI'S MANSION MELODY WHEN LUIGI FIRST ENTERS BOWSER'S KINGDOM? I am kissing all of the orchestra members and composers DIRECTLY on the mouth for their work. and if we're talking about music...

DK RAP BABY!!!!! the crowd loves that guy! they even name-drop diddy kong during the scene!

there are also a few pop songs in the movie, though take on me during the introduction to the jungle kingdom is the only one that felt really out of place

the bros' path to their first job being a recreation of world 1-1 complete with a castle-like building at the end...that scene was totally there to show off but it's very neat

MARIO AND LUIGI ARE BEST BROS...mario gets to protect luigi from insults and luigi gets to say that any princess with good taste would be into mario...their relationship is the BEST and I'm so sad we didn't get to see them directly interacting more...

somehow I wasn't expecting bowser's plan being to marry peach since it was left out of the trailers...but it's hilarious seeing bowser plan it all out and they even got bowser's and peach's wedding outfits from odyssey, so it was perfect

I was a bit worried that they would lean too hard on peach being a do-anything Girlboss™ but while she's tough she's clearly got her kind side too! protecting her people is her biggest concern and it's even exploited by bowser!

bowser gets to sing a love song for peach with bisexual lighting and everything. you can tell jack black was having the time of his life

speaking of the voice cast, they all did really well! I didn't have many doubts as a whole but even chris pratt was great as mario. didn't think I'd ever write that sentence but it's true

kamek was such a proud dad to bowser despite his limited screentime. love it

I'm not sure why spike was part of the initial advertised voice cast because he's barely in the movie lol

out of all the powerups I expected to return, I was not expecting the mini mushroom and ice flower, but they were incorporated very well!

other things I didn't really expect: mario and dk having a rivalry that builds into a friendship was cute. also they straight up get swallowed by the mario 64 eel

princess peach backstory?????? at least in the movie canon she isn't from the mushroom kingdom and just arrived via warp pipe from...somewhere as a baby. also using the baby versions of peach and the bros for flashbacks is incredibly cheesy but also cute in its own way

there were surprisingly few cringeworthy or self aware jokes and no awkward overly long gags, which must be some kind of first for illumination based on what I remember

the animation was spectacular as expected. rainbow road looks fucking gorgeous and the character animation was fun to watch

no really romantic moments between mario and peach unfortunately, though we did get a lot of very nice interactions between the two overall so I hope they build on their relationship in a potential sequel

so yeah...it's good and very fun. go see it if you haven't already!!