The Super Mario Galaxy Movie might be the first film intentionally made so it can be divided into parts and uploaded to TikTok with the caption “prime mario aura farming [flame emoji]”. It certainly feels that way. If The Super Mario Bros Movie (2023) depersonalised the Nintendo games by casting a bored Chris Pratt as Mario the plumber and – mamma mia! – not asking him to even try the Italian accent, then The Super Mario Galaxy Movie doubles down on its own blandness.
There’s barely a plot here. Not a single memorable character. Not even another piano ditty for Jack Black to sing. It’s a series of large, vaguely connected explosions that Mario, his bro Luigi (Charlie Day), and his love interest Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy) can land in front of in a superhero pose. Is it OK to ask why these sweet and goofy video game avatars are being treated as self-seriously as Marvel’s Avengers?
