Sorry this Mario vid took so long. It was ready before my John Wick 4 vid, but it kept getting blocked constantly. This version was the only one I got through by luck. Hopefully it stays up. I'll be sure to make an Anatomy of a Failure on Mario 2 because I am now a big Nintendo hater as a result all this. And yeah, check out my John Wick 4 video as well if you missed it. Thanks.
I'm glad that you touched on Luigi being separated from Mario in the beginning and why that benefits the film as a whole. A lot of fans of the Mario games that I talked too who say this film were saying that they wish Mario and Luigi didn't get separated since they work so well together in the movie. But if that didn't happen, Mario would have no good reason to stay in the Mushroom Kingdom and help Peach defeat Bowser. Making Luigi his goal increases both the internal and external stakes of the film, and gives Mario an investment in the plot that he otherwise wouldn't have.
While there was no other motivation that could have been as compelling to Mario as getting his brother back, it was still a very shallow and unexplored one. As far as we know, Mario was always going to stop Bowser. Mario is very reactive and positive to everything he meets in no way helping to show us why we should care. The only conflicts are physical with no weight behind them other than the video game context. He never believed once that he wouldn't be able to get his brother back. This is because of the lack of any internal conflict, contributing to a lack of character growth.
@@cstreak2855 I kinda agree but also I don't. I think it was very easy to care about Princess Peach, the Mushroom Kingdom, and the Toads. Her relationship with them was very well explored and gave it much more depth than I think the games have done for a long time. And I also loved Mario's relationship with Peach. It wasn't too focused on the romance between them. It was there, but it didn't feel forced or anything. I thought it was very well done. I also thought Mario's relationship with his brother was well-explored and I found myself caring. However, I do agree that the movie should have explored Mario's internal conflict more. It wasn't really explored enough. But I think primarily it was because the movie still wasn't willing to be negative enough. The best example to compare is the Sonic 2 movie. Where Sonic has to deal with his internal conflict of wanting to be a hero but being reckless in doing so. Sonic actually truly confronts his inner flaw and changes after Tails gets hurt. It's actually pretty emotional and I could clearly see how Sonic changed because of it. All this movie needed was a single moment of Mario truly expressing regret and sadness over his inner flaw of wanting to be taken seriously. Like, the moment with him and Donkey Kong while inside the Morel Eel was good, but it still needed some extra oomph with more actual negative emotion and then I think Mario's inner conflict would have been adequately explored.
It's a small thing, but I really like the character detail that Mario doesn't like mushrooms. It's a mini-version of the character flaw principle, since it means the primary power-up he relies on is something that brings him physical discomfort. He has to overcome his "flaw" to save the day at the end, in a way that doesn't necessarily put an impenetrable roadblock in his way, but does guarantee he's not sliding into first base on a red carpet. Really a clever move to turn such a basic plot macguffin into a mini-story arc.
There was also the adult film parody which Nintendo was so freak out by the existence of they bought the rights to it so it wouldn't be released officially
0:45 I didn't think the day would ever come when I would hear pure and simple bestemmia on Filmento's channel. Truly one of the best movie-themed youtuber of our time
I think this movie learned well from what the sonic movie did right. Those examples given, where the game already had a strong narrative, failed in part precisely because of that strong narrative. Mario had more freedom to pursue a compelling plot from the start, whereas something like Uncharted had very little flexibility by contrast...
@victorcancelas1435 it was a sort of fun kids movie. Compelling it was not! Puss in Boots 2, no one asked for it, that shit was compelling! Mario offered nothing besides, "Hey! It's the thing from the game" "Ooh ooh ooh! That's the Supah Star!" If that's what you like, that's what you like. I didn't think it was "Compelling" and I didn't have as much fun as everybody else did. To me, it was just okay! But I hope this means we'll get Luigi's Mansion in my lifetime.
I'm still impressed how well the Mario Movie performed with mainstream audiences. The movie itself has a sort of weird narrative, which is not that surprising considering Mario's main game don't have a traditional narrative, it's just going from point A to B, but for some reason it felt so natural. It also managed to make all of the characters likable, which is especially impressive with Mario since he doesn't have a lot of characters in the game and is mainly a silent protagonists. All put together with pretty impressive animation and great setpieces and action moments, plus some jokes. And the most crazy part is that doesn't feel like any previous Illumination film, save for the use of licensed songsn though honestly I only disliked the inclusion of Take on Me. Still, the way it resonated with the audience was amazing, I haven't been in a room so packed since No Way Home, and the fact that it was full of so many people of all ages, all excited seeing the visual and musical references, Mario is on another level compared to other IPs
People love Mario, it is a multigenerational IP - kids, parents and even grandparents all remember playing/watching someone play it. and they when they saw it’s like the games but translated onto the big screen, the word of mouth gets picked up and spread around like wildfire. It has an strong A CinemaScore, and the PostTrak scores were 94% recommended if I recall. It also helped that it had the entire month of April to itself; basically it speedran to 1 billion dollars in exactly a month. A perfect storm some would say!
I’m so glad this movie succeeded. While all the characters outside of Mario had the depth of a Saturday morning cartoon, it’s incredible fan service, dedication to the source material, and fun characters ensured it would be a hit with Mario fans and non gamers.
The Koopa troopers were surprisingly threatening. Especially the purple shell one. Bowser wins up until the end. He's silly and funny, but he wins through like 80-90% of the movie
The thing I liked the most about the Mario Movie is how they play the brothers' relationship. Luigi is never seen as a liability to Mario, and you can see the genuine care they have for each other. It's truly heartwarming to watch.
As someone who grew up on Mario, seeing it brought to the big screen faithfully was one of the best gifts I could have received. Loved this freaking movie.
I think what makes the Mario movie so good is that it takes a very simple plot, and does it WELL. It's simple, straightforward, good old fashioned fun. Admittedly, it doesn't give you much time to breathe between faster paced scenes, but then, it was made to keep younger audiences entertained and on the edge of their seat. But it's also got a lot of nostalgia that will have fans hopping in their seat and pointing at the scene like Leo. And let's not forgot Bowser's song. I still hear kids at the bus stop singing it.
A lot of people complained that the story of the Super Mario Bros Movie is very paper-thin and very barebones, and sure it's a valid and fair point. But this was Nintendo's second attempt at a movie in 33 years, so course they had to play things safe. Maybe the sequel will have a much greater and compelling plot, who knows.
I am glad it was a success... as a Mario fan, (born in 2003) and having played the old Wii super Mario bros and Mario kart, my brother and I became huge fans and we even collected a whole stuffed animal collection of Mario characters. At the same time, my dad who grew up in the 80s and early 90s, also knew of Mario, and played the old games, so even he got a kick out of the movie. I also Xantech it with a6 year old kid, who has played all the new games and also loves Mario. It was simply the perfect video game adaption to captivate literally 60 years of fans, and it delivered it perfectly. That's why it succeeded.
The musical references throughout was what really made me realize that the people who made this actually knew Mario. The way they worked them in without making it too obvious most of the time was great and my girlfriend often didn’t even notice until I pointed it out (granted, I am the music geek).
The way Brian Tyler managed to remix many of the iconic Mario and Donkey Kong tunes made me wish the Sonic movies were able to use more of its game tracks. I don't remember if either Sonic movies had some of the classic tunes, I think an excerpt from Green Hills was in the first one, but from what I know I think the rights for the Sonic music tracks are kind of all over the place, not to mention that SEGA isn't as involved in the production as Nintendo were with Universal
@@pablocasas5906 For the most part, the soundtrack for the Genesis Editions of _Sonic the Hedgehog_ and _Sonic the Hedgehog 2_ were composed by Masato Nakamura of Dreams Come True, so SEGA has to pay royalties just to use songs like Green Hill or Chemical Plant. A few songs in _Sonic the Hedgehog 3_ like the final versions of Carnival Night, Ice Cap, and Launch Base were composed by the late Michael Jackson. I sure hope by 2024, general audiences can warm up to the soundtracks of the 3D games like _Sonic Adventure_ and the newly-released _Sonic Frontiers._ (Especially with songs from _Sonic Frontiers_ such as I'm Here and Undefeatable gaining meme status.) Now that I'm thinking about it, _Sonic Prime_ does seem to feel as if it also uses the Hollywood cheat codes that _The Super Mario Bros. Movie_ also uses.
Fun Fact: The non-Mario songs were originally placeholders when the movie was being storyboarded. They just wanted songs which fit the energy of the scene. But Shigeru Miyamoto liked the songs so much that they decided to keep them. This actually frustrated composer Brian Tyler who actually finished composing the Mario songs that were supposed to be in the final version. He failed to convince Shigeru Miyamoto to use the Mario music, except for the 'star theme' in the final fight (which originally had Jump by Van Halen).
Illumination just made the greatest Mario movie on Earth. The whole movie is a love letter to the legacy of Nintendo and the Mario franchise, and I absolutely loved every single moment of it. Thank you Universal, Illumination, and Nintendo. Let’s-A Go!!! Wahoo!!!
I think if there was one thing I wish they added in the movie, they often mocked Mario for his size, yet we never see him counter argue with the Giant Mushroom.
Honestly, I don't mind this cheat code. Simple is good sometimes, and despite its flaws, the Mario movie is a solid 9/10 for me. I like what you said about Mario confronting his flaws over the course of his film, and that flaw is defeated not only when Mario stands up for himself, but when Luigi steps in of his own free will. It's a small thing, cheesy, sure, but it has heart behind it. If every movie adopted such a cheat code, we'd have a lot more movies with heart like the Mario movie.
Man, I love this movie so much! It's the Mario film many of us dreamed about watching ever since I was little. The plot may be simple, basic and unoriginal but that's mainly to play it safe and not have Mario's first time in decades in theaters to have the film be crowded with a lot of Mario characters being focused on and being apart of the story. Great analysis, Filmento!👍🏻
That's right, it's good to have the first official movie play it safe, because this movie introduces the main characters of the continuing story. The sequels should be more involved.
This movie is peak it takes the stuff from the games but adapts it in a way that makes it a movie like they have so many references for the fans who notice but still allowing movie critics to enjoy
I enjoyed the Mario movie a lot tbh but it has a lot of glaring issues. The hollywood cheat is it's Mario and the people behind it know that was their strength and to deviate from that would mean failure. Nintendo having full involvement helped it stay true to the franchise too (we all know Illumination would not have) but ultimately the story was kind of weak and character progression didn't happen. Some themes also feel very tacked on and there's a lot to question if you think about it. A very "turn brain off movie" but it was still a good experience I'd still recommend to people if they like Mario. I think if this wasn't a Mario movie though it'd be very generic and forgettable due to it's barebones plot. It has a lot of passion in presentation and voice acting (absolutely visually stunning movie and the VAs sound passionate and like they are having fun) but there's a lack of heart when it comes to the plot that previous video game movies do have since they are structured better.
They still needed to do something with Mario that made sure that everyone thought, "Yeah, this is a Mario movie!!!" while carrying through the entire film. Imo, that's where the cheat codes come in, making a story that brings as much Mario into the plot, while ensuring the audience's stay engaged until the end.
@@BluePieNinjaTV I get that but it's not the plot but the lack of developing it that's the problem. One prime example is the tacked on "family's approval" theme for example. The only reason the final battle happens in Brooklyn is so Mario and Luigi's family can see the fight and be proud of them but...why? Sure, they can be proud of them beating the baddie but Bowser did not terrorize Brooklyn to a point to be a threat to people and what does beating Bowser have to do with proving they can handle living their dreams of being a plumber over leaving their stable job? What does this do for the theme, their conflict? Nothing, they are not related. This works how they did it but it's super disconnected. For a theme that works with Mario and Luigi the best was the "we're stronger together" theme but...they never build on it in a way that has them earn that final moment against Bowser. At least, successfully imo We never see Luigi and Mario struggle alone being apart in the Mushroom Kingdom. We see Luigi get caught and have a quick flashback showing us their dynamic in a minute or two instead of showing us through present day. How much more interesting would it be if Luigi had maybe 10-15 more minutes of screentime running from the baddies and realizing without Mario there to save him he can't handle but then he hates that about himself. (which builds up to the part where he blocks Bowser's fire at the end to show Mario he can save him too). Luigi is severely underused in this movie and I have no clue why when the theme is "we're stronger together". I'm not saying he can;t be caught but him running away for a bit would've been cool. They pay homage to Luigi's Mansion with atmosphere, how cool would it have been if he found an abandoned place to hide and spent some time running from baddies until he eventually gets caught. show us Luigi's struggle without Mario and how without Mario so when they reunite it's amazing. Also, Mario talks about saving Luigi but his struggles to get there are less "Luigi's not here" and more "I have no clue what I'm doing". His struggles do not feel directly connected to "I need Luigi here". He never even questions himself in the Mushroom Kingdom. If he had a point where he could reflect that he's not always that cool, stronger older brother there to save his little bro it's be internal struggles he desperately needed to make the theme work. Make Mario outside his element matter to not just the journey but him as a character. Same with the theme of Mario "dragging Luigi down". Yes, Mario is at fault for why they end up where they are but we never see Mario struggle with that realization. We never see Mario even acknowledge it. Never "If I didn't insist we fix that flood he'd never have been caught." We don't even see him feel guilt about it so when they reunite it feel more hollow because you don't get a sense he learned anything. The plot is not the problem, the lack of thought, cohesiveness and development is the problem. The "heart" is missing because they did not present anything to convey it. Every thing in the movie feels taped together opposed to woven together to fit each other. I still love the movie but as a film (ignoring the Mario theme) it's severely flawed. The cheat code is it's Mario and it references Mario. It only works because it's Mario. If this was just an Illumination film people would be ripping it apart. To say the audience, even the targeted audiences, can not stay engaged for a little bit of talking is insane imo We have very successful animated movies targeted for kids that have what the Mario Bros movie is missing and still keep people engaged. That is Disney/Pixar's entire thing and their movies do just fine for kids and adults alike. Even the adaptions before Mario (Detective Pikachu, Sonic 1 and 2; all targeted for kids) still have moments the Mario movie lacks and they are still engaged. I think that is a very thin excuse. We can love the Mario movie as flawed as it is but to ignore the flaws will not do it justice.
I grew up with the series since MARIO BROS. (no Super). Didn't enjoy the movie cause it sucked as a movie. Easter eggs and references doesn't make for a good movie, unless it's woven into an engaging story like Chip and Dale, Sonic 2, Detective Pikachu, maybe the recent Scream, and others. And the voice acting was not amazing. Peach, DK, Luigi al used the actor's normal voices. There's also Cranky Kong. Mario is decent, and I guess the rest are fine. Anyways :/
@@windy3935 I did enjoy the movie and have an extensive history with the games, however, I agree and this movie as a movie is not good lol This is my point, it's flawed af but I don't think anything is wrong with enjoying it as such but it's when people are deciding to ignore those flaws or saying they are not there that's a little irksome. I agree, the movie is overly referenced which I didn't mind in some places in some ways but some references were too much (the Princess in the other castle one was too forced, I cringed). I have no experience with any of the voice actors work save for Jack Black and Pratt because Gaurdians of the Galaxy vol 1 (never seen what the other people are from to make them famous tbh) and I think they were good. If no one else Jack Black did a great job as Bowser and I liked that voice for Luigi and Keagan Micheal-Key for Toad worked well imo. Seth Rogan as this version of DK works fine too. I do still wish they gave Martinet the role as Mario (his promised cameo was weak af) but Pratt's performance was fine. Not great but not as bad as the first trailers. I see why people love the movie but I agree that judging it as a movie (and not a Mario/video game adaption movie) it's severely flawed. This is why Filmento's video surprised me. Of all the reviewers I thought he'd mention the issues but I still think his and all who enjoy it have valid views too. Still, this movie did not cheat code success, it is successful because it's one of the most recognizable IPs ever and Nintendo was smart enough to monitor the entire process. Besides that it is formulaic which is not bad but it doesn't even do the formulas it utilizing effectively imo. The plot is fine but the movie feels like a first draft, needed more time to be fleshed out better.
@@midnightjay They ended up here on accident and it's a cool fight. That really is not not a good complaint, let us move on. Also the whole Plumber schitck wad to find a better profession than the one they had before, it makes sense for them to beat up the bad guy in the very home that shunned and disrespected them. It serves the purpose. The rest is you making stuff up that makes zero sense. They did struggle alone in the world they found themselves in and while separated, had to see and deal with a lot of issues all the while being apart, their worst moment in life. Also Luigi is a coward and does not like fighting, I mean he didn't even fought against Francis, they just tried to keep distance from him. The rest is just nonsense that shows that you came with a very biased view on the movie and shows that you did not even watched the movie really, because all what you said here, has been shown here, like Mario and Luigi developing as characters and the rest.
I love the Sonic movies, but Mario really elevated the idea that video game movies don't have to suck. If we get Zelda, Star Fox, or Metroid next, you can bet your ass that I'll be watching. Edit: For the record, I love the Sonic Movies more than the Mario Movie. My point is that we're finally at the point where we could get good quality video-game movies.
I would say Sonic 2 is better than the Mario movie, at least of terms of narrative, but both Sonic movies sometimes feel like the typical CGI character interacting with humans like The Smurfs, Garfield or Alvin & the Chipmunks. Mario embraces it's videogame roots like no other video game movie did it before, I'm not counting TV shows those usually played out better, save for Halo. Particularly, while I liked Sonic 2 the wedding subplot was totally unnecessary in my opinion and only made want to see more scenes with Sonic, Tails and Knuckles. If Paramount decides to reboot the Sonic film after the third movie they should make an animated movie
@@pablocasas5906To be honest, I wasn't entirely bothered by that whole wedding subplot at first because before that moment when the movie ultimately transcend to a generic romantic comedy featuring the character of Rachel and her fiancée: Randell, the stuff in Hawaii were only two scenes that each lasted about a minute a piece while the majority was still on Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Robotnik. It was when that moment of Sonic and Tails being captured by the G.U.N. Unit, the focus shifted entirely on Maddie and especially her sister Rachel, and that was when the movie loses me, but to give it credit, despite my grievance with that scene altogether, once that whole Hawaii subplot was resolved, they never cut back to it and the focus re-shifted primarily on our main players (no pun intended) throughout the remaining runtime. I just only hope that we will never get to see Rachel and Randell again moving forward.
I don't get why people said this movie didn't really have a plot. It was quite focused and followed a sequence. That said, I admit the plot was choice was cheesy and clichéd. It is very predictable, but it was still a fun ride. It was like replaying a game you like for the fifth time. You already know how it goes, but the journey is fun nonetheless. The music was fun, the platforming was fun, and the characters were fun.
As a huge nintendo fan, I enjoyed the movie for all the references to the Mario Bros universe, but it had a simple story. Could have been better, but I liked it. With the announcement of the Legend of Zelda movie my hype went to the max.
Something delightfully meta about a Mario movie where the lesson is "don't take yourself so seriously" "no you guys, videos games are super serious, we're real art," *sobs" Italian plumber go brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
I know this movie did great, but I still feel like it was underrated. The action alone was some of the best I've seen in a very long time. Not to mention the humor and likability of the characters.
Aight I dont know if anybody noticed that, but in the second 0:44 the italian speech put as a parody has a really dark meaning. It litterally means "Holy Mary is a cunt, thieving piglike God, Holy Mary is a cunt". I'm sure this was not intentional by Filmento, but yeah... it's kinda harsh even for italians.
I really admire your perspicacity of movies man! especially how they are written and all that. Hollywood should hire people like you to write and make movies.
Those movies would suck ass. If he was half as good at making movies as he thinks he is at critiquing them, then he would already be working in that line of work. TH-cam is where all the posers and phonies go for internet clout because they couldn’t cut it at the real thing.
God I am so happy to see you cover this movie. It's not everyone's cup of tea, but it is for a lot of people. Because it's Mario, in a movie which feels so much like the games, it's just charming.
I already expected the movie to be better than what I thought it would be based on what others had said, but even I was blown away by how much I enjoyed it from beginning to end. I was entertained, I cared about the characters, and I had fun the whole time. Filmento can describe why it works, but I just love that it did
The Mario movies success begins with one critical moment, when Miyamoto san said "No." No, to giving it the standard Hollywood treatment for a video game adaptation. The studio wanted to add a bunch of story elements not in the game to make it "more appealing" to non-gamers, to make Peach the main character as a typical mary sue girl boss and relegate Mario to a blundering side character. The first part of the above is the key to why nearly all other video game movies fail. You see they do this even when it's not needed, like with Uncharted and Assassin's Creed. The studio mucks around with the source material because of their very obsolete mindset that "video game stories only appeal to gamers and not to general audiences."
I like that in the movie whenever Mario takes off his cap it shows him being vulnerable. This is similar to how in Super Mario 64, if Mario losses his cap from strong wind he takes double damage without his cap.
The success of the movie has to do with not taking itself seriously and choosing an opening date where it was without competition for a month. I am sure if it was released today with all these movies that are right now , it would have made decent money but not near what it did
I’ll be completely honest the luigi holding up a manhole moment did strike me when I watched it, though the rest of the movie wasn’t special maybe I’m just a sucker for that sort of situation. Everyone loves an underdog right?
The thing that I find very important to note about the movie is, it isn't just trying to redo the original stories, it isn't trying to force new viewers to just know the characters already, the movie is very carefully making you understand the characters values and what they are and stand for. Mario is someone who is shown very fast cares for his brother, yet over the course of the movie it is quickly shown that, it is not just his brother he cares for, but everyone he sees close to him he would protect aswell. Making him rescuing Peach in future movies seem more believeable. Bowser was shown as a more gentle villain at first. He would still destroy everything in his way, but his goal was to get Peach's affection by gifting her what he thinks she wants, he had a twisted way of doing things but he would not force Peach at the start. That only came later, which then also explains when in future movies Bowser begins to kidnap her. The movie is building up these characters to be their own thing, yet still end up turning them to their game counterparts with their movie personality. You do not lose the character but just gain a ballenced mix of the two
SPOILER WARNING Stay faithful to source material and fanbace = profit. Also Illumination shouldn’t get all the credit. They were going to do the “make main male character a buffoon to make Peach look good” and were going to cram pop songs everywhere. Nintendo shut down the defamation of Mario and brought back the legacy Mario music. Example: Illumination wanted to play Van Halen “Jump” but Nintendo made Super Star Orchestral for the part where Mario and Luigi use the super star. Basically they didn’t forsake the identity of the ip and the fans ate it up.
The reason why this movie is so good is for a few reasons. One, it's about the love between brothers. Two, it's established storytelling. Three, its score is LEGENDARY and what Sonic 3 should learn from. Crush 40 or bust. Four, it's an IP that is wholesome and known by everyone. Also, Five, it's the least Illumination-trope movie ever made as it has actual action, stakes, and characters you can truly root for.
The reason Super Mario bros. Movie successful is because they know their fans and don't leave the OG fans (some been there since Famicom) behind Compared to TLM Live action that changing this and that and when the OG Fans are disagreeing with their dicisions, they're simply labelled those fans "racist" or "narrow-mind" Don't disrespect the OG fans like that
What made the Super Mario Bros. move great was that those of us in our 30s and 40s could genuinely enjoy it and it was safe to take our kids to. Don't ignore the power of the traditionally family friendly movie. Most of the world wants them, and yet they are so very rare.
From a marketing standpoint, I completely understand why Mario and Luigi are separated. It's so Nintendo and Illumination can test how audiences react to Luigi carrying screen time on his own. A lot of it is in the psychology: in February 2022, Charlie Day expressed interest in Luigi's Mansion after watching his son play the game. Fast forward to March 2023 and Day is completely in favour of a Luigi movie. Add the videos, tweets, posts and articles about how a Luigi spin-off is teased and there you go. Miyamoto and Meledandri are reading every complaint about Luigi's screen time and quoting the Hulk: "I see this as an absolute win". To them, it means one thing. Not only do people want Mario and Luigi to go on an actual adventure in the inevitable sequel. They also want Luigi to have his own movie.
Great video. I haven't seen Mario yet, but I'm looking forward to it. Even though I haven't seen it, I'm pretty sure this was the movie I would've wanted back in '93. Lol, that 1993 movie... nothing against John Leguizamo and Bob Hoskins, both great actors, not their fault... but it was like the creators of that movie were on a mission to disappoint and confuse as many kids as they possibly could.
I know this is not the best place to ask this, but I'll ask it anyway. I was wondering if you could do a 1v1 comparison between Wonderwoman 1984 and the new Flash movie. They both have similar themes in where you have to learn to overcome your traumas and that'll make you a stronger person, but it works a whole lot better in the Flash movie than it does on Wonderwoman, at least to me
Having ambition is all it takes to make a videogame adaptation work That's why most of the recent adaptations, like "Sonic The Hedgehog", "The Last of Us " and "Arcane" worked Because the people behind it understood the games, and understood filmmaking In the past, the studios hired anyone to do anything, without a care in the world, like the 1993s live-action This one was made by the guys behind "Teen Titans Go! To The Movies" And they knew what they were doing
It all boils down to understanding the source material. The reason why movies like Uncharted and Assassin's Creed failed is because the producers of those films were ashamed of the source material, and wanted to do their own version of it. The Sonic movies proved you do you own spin to a game movie while still paying homage to the source material, making old and new fans happy. The Last of Us HBO series proves games that are heavy in narrative can still translate well into the TV format without being pointless because of the absence of gameplay. All you have to do care.
I honestly did not want to watch it but when I did read Nintendo stepped in to stop bullshit I was full in. 3 times with the kids and they loved it. Great work Nintendo. Thanks for saving the movie. I did my duty to tell Hollywood to make good movies and not the crap they forced on us. Voting with my wallet
_Why is the Mario movie good?_ It’s not. It’s competent, with some aspect deserving of recognition, like the animation. In a way, it’s one of the better movies in Illumination’s catalogue. But Illumination is quite literally the standard for mediocrity in Western animation, so that’s not saying much. I’m quite sure the Mario fanbase enjoys it, and that’s great. But I watched the movie as a non-Mario fan, and while yes, the movie was functional despite my lack of knowledge of the IP, it was also barebones, predictable and, in true Illumination fashion, unremarkable. So I gotta give it to Filmento, cause they described the movie perfectly: it cheats. It does enough for the plot to function, but tries nothing else to stand out, the golden formula of Illumination. The only thing that makes Super Mario Bros different from forgettable garbage like Sing and Secret Life of Pets is the Mario name. The plot itself, while competent, is very barebones. One thing I noticed that really bothered me was the lack of reactive scenes, aka scenes where the characters just sit down and talk, without advancing the plot. These are the scenes that make the characters feel human, that makes us care about them, and many times, they can be even better than the plot-advancing scenes that come before or after them. Everyone showered the scene of Puss having a panic attack in The Last Wish with praise for how good it was, and that’s a reactive scene where no part of the plot is advanced, two characters are just talking, but it’s arguably the most impactful scene of the whole film. The Mario movie severely lacks these kinds of scenes. I can think of two scenes where the plot isn’t moving forward and the characters are talking to each other about what to do or how they feel. First is after the dinner scene, when Mario goes to his room and Luigi comes after him and the two just talk. It was enough for me, who doesn’t know anything about Mario, believe they really care about each other. The other scene I can think about is when the team is going to the Kong kingdom or whatever, and in the middle of the journey, Mario and Peach just stop and get to know each other. That was also pretty nice. But aside from those two scenes, the movie is only concerned with moving the plot along rather than create meaningful character relationships. I would say it’s kinda like a video game, but that’d be unfair to many games that actually have reactive scenes. There’s a moment that almost insulted me toward the end, when Mario and Donkey Kong, two characters shown to have something of a rivalry, are stuck inside the big water monster thing. As they’re trying to escape, Donkey Kong says he doesn’t want to die with his father thinking he’s a looser, to which Mario says his father also thinks he’s a looser. I thought, great, now’s the time for them to talk and see they have something in common and then work together to get out of the monster. That’s actually a pretty powerful scene, good job Mario movie. But then they just start mocking each other again, and their argument just sorta happens to get them free. That actually got me angry, though afterwards I remembered, this is an Illumination movie, of course they’d take the easy way out, it’s on me for expecting them to try something meaningful. That scene also speaks to the movie’s character problems. They’re all shallow at best and talking props at worst. When the small mushroom guy thingy said he was going to come along with Mario and Peach “to protect her”, I was half expecting him to say “and also the script says I have to go too”. Filmento pointed out that Mario has an inner flaw and grows over the course of the movie, but I beg to disagree. Him being reckless and trying to prove himself may have gotten Luigi in trouble, but I’m honestly not sure if the movie knows this. There’s not a single moment when Mario thinks about how he’s the reason his brother is in danger. If the movie did play out with Luigi getting into trouble on his own and Mario just going after him, literally nothing needs to change. Mario also doesn’t grow or develop in any way, and even the notion is him having a meaningful character flaw is pretty generous. The only other point in the movie where him being rash is when he accepts the challenge to fight the monkey king’s son, but even then, everyone just sort of glossed over it and you can argue that he’s more worried with saving Luigi rather than proving himself. In the end, nothing Mario accomplishes is a result of any growth or personal struggle, it all comes down to the fucking power-up boxes. Oh yeah, I hate the power-up boxes or whatever their name is. They work perfectly well as gameplay elements I’m sure, but as plot devices, they are literally in-universe Deus ex machinas. Mario can’t defeat Donkey Kong? No need to think of a way to beat him, just have a power-up! He doesn’t even have to struggle to GET the power-up, he just gets punched near one and Peach points it out to him. Seriously, fuck these power-up boxes! I really don’t like rewriting works (even for a movie I don’t like I refuse to use the word “fix”), but I did think about two small things that could potentially benefit the movie: 1) Have Mario actually drive the van to the client’s house at the start of the movie. Have the road be full of obstacles and Mario pulls some crazy maneuvers to get past them. Establish that he’s a good driver before the Mario Kart portion of the movie when he’s doing crazy shit like it’s nothing, so he defeats the bad guys using a skill we already knew he had. 2) If we really need the power-ups in the movie, then set them up before they’re used to solve major problems. That’s just basic Chekhov’s Gun. The Star thing and the thing that makes you bigger are the only ones that are set up beforehand. The cat and tanuki power-ups just show up and solve problems. All that needs to be done is have it so there are multiple power-up boxes in the circuit Mario makes when he’s training, and two of them are the cat and tanuki ones. You don’t even have to show what they do if you still want it to be a surprise, but this way the non-Mario audience at least knows they exist. I’m happy that Mario fans are pleased with this movie, but I also feel the need to point out that it’s not that good of a movie for general audiences. I mean, kids will probably find it really fun, but for most adults and teenagers, it will probably be that kind of movie you only watch once and think, eh, that was fun I guess.
Super Mario Bros. Movie's success (alongside with Sonic The Hedgehog Movie and Detective Pikachu) is the moment when the "video game adaptation curse" is finally broken.
As a big fan of Pokémon and an epic gamer I was so happy when detective pikachu was actually pretty cool. Especially the actual Pokémon and what they did with them, mf greninja goons were dope and I’m a gren hater.
But we gotta be honest, the only reason why the Mario movie succeeded is simply because it’s Mario. They played it safe and relied heavily on the fact that fans already know who Mario is and what his world is like. The sonic movie was a success because it’s story actually written in a manner that allows anyone to understand the film without having to already know who sonic is
@@drsipp407there is literally nothing to know about Mario. He’s an Italian plumber. The end. And yet the movie also adds a bit of depth to him and gives him an actual arc. Not going to praise this as a masterpiece but it’s a fun movie about the wahoo mamma Mia guy.
Sorry this Mario vid took so long. It was ready before my John Wick 4 vid, but it kept getting blocked constantly. This version was the only one I got through by luck. Hopefully it stays up. I'll be sure to make an Anatomy of a Failure on Mario 2 because I am now a big Nintendo hater as a result all this.
And yeah, check out my John Wick 4 video as well if you missed it. Thanks.
𝘍𝘪𝘭𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘙𝘰𝘤𝘬𝘴 ❤🔥
Please make a video on How to show insane power-ups like 𝘎𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘢 from 𝘋𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘰𝘯 𝘉𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘚𝘶𝘱𝘦𝘳: 𝘉𝘳𝘰𝘭𝘺 💚
Hi Filmento, will you make The Last Of Us 2 video?
@@serious.humor_a0zYou mean Gogeta.
Guess Nintendo still doesn't like free promotion
Everyone hates and loves Nintendo
I'm glad that you touched on Luigi being separated from Mario in the beginning and why that benefits the film as a whole. A lot of fans of the Mario games that I talked too who say this film were saying that they wish Mario and Luigi didn't get separated since they work so well together in the movie. But if that didn't happen, Mario would have no good reason to stay in the Mushroom Kingdom and help Peach defeat Bowser. Making Luigi his goal increases both the internal and external stakes of the film, and gives Mario an investment in the plot that he otherwise wouldn't have.
While there was no other motivation that could have been as compelling to Mario as getting his brother back, it was still a very shallow and unexplored one. As far as we know, Mario was always going to stop Bowser. Mario is very reactive and positive to everything he meets in no way helping to show us why we should care. The only conflicts are physical with no weight behind them other than the video game context. He never believed once that he wouldn't be able to get his brother back. This is because of the lack of any internal conflict, contributing to a lack of character growth.
@@cstreak2855 I kinda agree but also I don't.
I think it was very easy to care about Princess Peach, the Mushroom Kingdom, and the Toads. Her relationship with them was very well explored and gave it much more depth than I think the games have done for a long time. And I also loved Mario's relationship with Peach. It wasn't too focused on the romance between them. It was there, but it didn't feel forced or anything. I thought it was very well done. I also thought Mario's relationship with his brother was well-explored and I found myself caring.
However, I do agree that the movie should have explored Mario's internal conflict more. It wasn't really explored enough. But I think primarily it was because the movie still wasn't willing to be negative enough. The best example to compare is the Sonic 2 movie. Where Sonic has to deal with his internal conflict of wanting to be a hero but being reckless in doing so. Sonic actually truly confronts his inner flaw and changes after Tails gets hurt. It's actually pretty emotional and I could clearly see how Sonic changed because of it.
All this movie needed was a single moment of Mario truly expressing regret and sadness over his inner flaw of wanting to be taken seriously. Like, the moment with him and Donkey Kong while inside the Morel Eel was good, but it still needed some extra oomph with more actual negative emotion and then I think Mario's inner conflict would have been adequately explored.
It’s a 50/50 but your right
Yup n its been done on mario games n it works great
I believe it's most important feature is that it sets up Luigi's development
It's a small thing, but I really like the character detail that Mario doesn't like mushrooms. It's a mini-version of the character flaw principle, since it means the primary power-up he relies on is something that brings him physical discomfort. He has to overcome his "flaw" to save the day at the end, in a way that doesn't necessarily put an impenetrable roadblock in his way, but does guarantee he's not sliding into first base on a red carpet. Really a clever move to turn such a basic plot macguffin into a mini-story arc.
It also apparently explains Mario's shortness compared to Luigi. Quite funny.
Apparently, Mario's dislikes for mushrooms was suggested by Shigeru Miyamoto himself as he thought it would be funny
It's also funny that both Mario and Sonic hate mushrooms in their movies
It doesn’t really count if it doesn’t impact the plot
If Mario liked mushrooms the story wouldn’t have changed at all
Good lord, the lengths people will go to to praise literally nothing.
So essentially, Mario started the video game movie curse back in 1993 , and then ended it 30 years later.
That's poetic.
He wasn't the one who ended it, that was either Pikachu or sonic
@@ballisticboo7808they were the first to not be terrible
And I did love both
But this one in terms of sales as well
Did the best
He helped end it.
There was also the adult film parody which Nintendo was so freak out by the existence of they bought the rights to it so it wouldn't be released officially
Nah. If we counting cartoons, Pokémon made like 3000% profit back in '99.
Mario and Sonic, the two videogames that SHOULDNT work as movies, did.
Madness.
Sonic is one of the games that should...The franchise has a bunch of good storys wich work for movies
@@ZeroJumpAnd just as many bad ones as well.
@@HB-fq9nn Yes but realy means nothing. Comic book Movies csn he realy good and they had sone terrible comics
@@HB-fq9nnMario stories are super simple tho, aside from Paper Mario
@@maazabbasi9174 omg god could you imagine a paper Mario movie with a scrapbook arts and crafts aesthetic 😩
0:45 I didn't think the day would ever come when I would hear pure and simple bestemmia on Filmento's channel. Truly one of the best movie-themed youtuber of our time
I had to listen to it three times. The first one, it surprised me. The second time, I needed to confirm my suspicion. The third, to appreciate.
It was fitting.
Ah be' l'abbiamo avvisato in due lol
I think this movie learned well from what the sonic movie did right. Those examples given, where the game already had a strong narrative, failed in part precisely because of that strong narrative. Mario had more freedom to pursue a compelling plot from the start, whereas something like Uncharted had very little flexibility by contrast...
Compelling...?
@@aaroncarroll2417 Yeah? You got a problem with that?
@victorcancelas1435 it was a sort of fun kids movie. Compelling it was not! Puss in Boots 2, no one asked for it, that shit was compelling! Mario offered nothing besides, "Hey! It's the thing from the game" "Ooh ooh ooh! That's the Supah Star!" If that's what you like, that's what you like. I didn't think it was "Compelling" and I didn't have as much fun as everybody else did. To me, it was just okay! But I hope this means we'll get Luigi's Mansion in my lifetime.
Or it was Nintendo running a tight ship.
@@aaroncarroll2417 Y’all get so triggered over a Mario movie being a Mario movie smh.
I'm still impressed how well the Mario Movie performed with mainstream audiences. The movie itself has a sort of weird narrative, which is not that surprising considering Mario's main game don't have a traditional narrative, it's just going from point A to B, but for some reason it felt so natural. It also managed to make all of the characters likable, which is especially impressive with Mario since he doesn't have a lot of characters in the game and is mainly a silent protagonists. All put together with pretty impressive animation and great setpieces and action moments, plus some jokes. And the most crazy part is that doesn't feel like any previous Illumination film, save for the use of licensed songsn though honestly I only disliked the inclusion of Take on Me.
Still, the way it resonated with the audience was amazing, I haven't been in a room so packed since No Way Home, and the fact that it was full of so many people of all ages, all excited seeing the visual and musical references, Mario is on another level compared to other IPs
People love Mario, it is a multigenerational IP - kids, parents and even grandparents all remember playing/watching someone play it. and they when they saw it’s like the games but translated onto the big screen, the word of mouth gets picked up and spread around like wildfire. It has an strong A CinemaScore, and the PostTrak scores were 94% recommended if I recall. It also helped that it had the entire month of April to itself; basically it speedran to 1 billion dollars in exactly a month. A perfect storm some would say!
Cause it's Mario
I think we all know that this film is very flawed, but we just can't help but love it.
It's pretty much all of us' guilty pleasure 🙏
Its plot was legitimately on par with the emoji movie, with the massive added benefit of weaponized "I kNoW wHaT tHaT iS!" to great effect
@@DadShark no??
@@DadShark Now that’s going too far.
Personally, I didn’t feel disrespected or talked down to by the Mario movie, which is a lot more than I can say for most shit coming out today.
@@DadSharkchill
I’m so glad this movie succeeded. While all the characters outside of Mario had the depth of a Saturday morning cartoon, it’s incredible fan service, dedication to the source material, and fun characters ensured it would be a hit with Mario fans and non gamers.
And also: a good villain that goes along with all of this and feels like a real threat!
Awesome video as always
Agreed
But also a good villain who's both a threatening figure and just funny as hell!😂
The Koopa troopers were surprisingly threatening. Especially the purple shell one. Bowser wins up until the end. He's silly and funny, but he wins through like 80-90% of the movie
@@clanwaddell5628 blue shell, not purple.
@@cadendicky1855 my bad, at work and taking a break. That was still an awesome scene.
I love how Mario's old boss eats one slice of pizza and leaves... :P
Mind you he ate that whole thing in one bite.
A review I saw (by YTer Arlo) essentially said "It has as much story as a Mario movie needs." He was spot on about that.
The thing I liked the most about the Mario Movie is how they play the brothers' relationship. Luigi is never seen as a liability to Mario, and you can see the genuine care they have for each other. It's truly heartwarming to watch.
Too bad we barely see it since they're separated in the beginning.
As someone who grew up on Mario, seeing it brought to the big screen faithfully was one of the best gifts I could have received. Loved this freaking movie.
I think what makes the Mario movie so good is that it takes a very simple plot, and does it WELL.
It's simple, straightforward, good old fashioned fun. Admittedly, it doesn't give you much time to breathe between faster paced scenes, but then, it was made to keep younger audiences entertained and on the edge of their seat.
But it's also got a lot of nostalgia that will have fans hopping in their seat and pointing at the scene like Leo.
And let's not forgot Bowser's song.
I still hear kids at the bus stop singing it.
It doesn't really do it that well
A lot of people complained that the story of the Super Mario Bros Movie is very paper-thin and very barebones, and sure it's a valid and fair point. But this was Nintendo's second attempt at a movie in 33 years, so course they had to play things safe.
Maybe the sequel will have a much greater and compelling plot, who knows.
I am glad it was a success... as a Mario fan, (born in 2003) and having played the old Wii super Mario bros and Mario kart, my brother and I became huge fans and we even collected a whole stuffed animal collection of Mario characters. At the same time, my dad who grew up in the 80s and early 90s, also knew of Mario, and played the old games, so even he got a kick out of the movie. I also Xantech it with a6 year old kid, who has played all the new games and also loves Mario. It was simply the perfect video game adaption to captivate literally 60 years of fans, and it delivered it perfectly. That's why it succeeded.
The Mario IP has scary levels of cross-generational appeal. Its cultural dominance is near unrivaled.
The musical references throughout was what really made me realize that the people who made this actually knew Mario. The way they worked them in without making it too obvious most of the time was great and my girlfriend often didn’t even notice until I pointed it out (granted, I am the music geek).
The way Brian Tyler managed to remix many of the iconic Mario and Donkey Kong tunes made me wish the Sonic movies were able to use more of its game tracks. I don't remember if either Sonic movies had some of the classic tunes, I think an excerpt from Green Hills was in the first one, but from what I know I think the rights for the Sonic music tracks are kind of all over the place, not to mention that SEGA isn't as involved in the production as Nintendo were with Universal
@@pablocasas5906
For the most part, the soundtrack for the Genesis Editions of _Sonic the Hedgehog_ and _Sonic the Hedgehog 2_ were composed by Masato Nakamura of Dreams Come True, so SEGA has to pay royalties just to use songs like Green Hill or Chemical Plant.
A few songs in _Sonic the Hedgehog 3_ like the final versions of Carnival Night, Ice Cap, and Launch Base were composed by the late Michael Jackson.
I sure hope by 2024, general audiences can warm up to the soundtracks of the 3D games like _Sonic Adventure_ and the newly-released _Sonic Frontiers._ (Especially with songs from _Sonic Frontiers_ such as I'm Here and Undefeatable gaining meme status.)
Now that I'm thinking about it, _Sonic Prime_ does seem to feel as if it also uses the Hollywood cheat codes that _The Super Mario Bros. Movie_ also uses.
Fun Fact: The non-Mario songs were originally placeholders when the movie was being storyboarded. They just wanted songs which fit the energy of the scene. But Shigeru Miyamoto liked the songs so much that they decided to keep them. This actually frustrated composer Brian Tyler who actually finished composing the Mario songs that were supposed to be in the final version. He failed to convince Shigeru Miyamoto to use the Mario music, except for the 'star theme' in the final fight (which originally had Jump by Van Halen).
@@billybob7135 there was also the part where Mario and DK are heading to the wedding and you have the classic Mario theme but remixed
Illumination just made the greatest Mario movie on Earth.
The whole movie is a love letter to the legacy of Nintendo and the Mario franchise, and I absolutely loved every single moment of it.
Thank you Universal, Illumination, and Nintendo. Let’s-A Go!!! Wahoo!!!
Well theres only is 3... one a anime no one knows and the other a terrible live action one
@@ZeroJump five, technically. I just don’t think Nintendo will officially release them.
@Elijah-bv2mydisagree with you 100%. It’s as good as puss and boots: the last wish
I think if there was one thing I wish they added in the movie, they often mocked Mario for his size, yet we never see him counter argue with the Giant Mushroom.
Honestly, I don't mind this cheat code. Simple is good sometimes, and despite its flaws, the Mario movie is a solid 9/10 for me. I like what you said about Mario confronting his flaws over the course of his film, and that flaw is defeated not only when Mario stands up for himself, but when Luigi steps in of his own free will. It's a small thing, cheesy, sure, but it has heart behind it. If every movie adopted such a cheat code, we'd have a lot more movies with heart like the Mario movie.
9:55
Adding "DONKEY KONG! DK!" In the Bring Me To Life by Evanescence song was a nice touch!👌🏻
Man, I love this movie so much! It's the Mario film many of us dreamed about watching ever since I was little. The plot may be simple, basic and unoriginal but that's mainly to play it safe and not have Mario's first time in decades in theaters to have the film be crowded with a lot of Mario characters being focused on and being apart of the story.
Great analysis, Filmento!👍🏻
That's right, it's good to have the first official movie play it safe, because this movie introduces the main characters of the continuing story. The sequels should be more involved.
Never in my wildest dreams would I think the DK Rap and Evanescence would slap like that. 🤣
You have no idea the kind of wonders that are out there. Look for "DK Rhapsody"
This movie is peak it takes the stuff from the games but adapts it in a way that makes it a movie like they have so many references for the fans who notice but still allowing movie critics to enjoy
Never thought I'd see a Filmento video with the words "Cheat" and "Perfection" in the title.
The film is also a textbook example of the Hero's Journey.
God bless you, talking to us like we’re trying to get good at writing screenplays instead of just enjoying your videos.
The Hero’s Journey is simply undefeated
I enjoyed the Mario movie a lot tbh but it has a lot of glaring issues. The hollywood cheat is it's Mario and the people behind it know that was their strength and to deviate from that would mean failure. Nintendo having full involvement helped it stay true to the franchise too (we all know Illumination would not have) but ultimately the story was kind of weak and character progression didn't happen. Some themes also feel very tacked on and there's a lot to question if you think about it. A very "turn brain off movie" but it was still a good experience I'd still recommend to people if they like Mario. I think if this wasn't a Mario movie though it'd be very generic and forgettable due to it's barebones plot. It has a lot of passion in presentation and voice acting (absolutely visually stunning movie and the VAs sound passionate and like they are having fun) but there's a lack of heart when it comes to the plot that previous video game movies do have since they are structured better.
They still needed to do something with Mario that made sure that everyone thought, "Yeah, this is a Mario movie!!!" while carrying through the entire film. Imo, that's where the cheat codes come in, making a story that brings as much Mario into the plot, while ensuring the audience's stay engaged until the end.
@@BluePieNinjaTV I get that but it's not the plot but the lack of developing it that's the problem. One prime example is the tacked on "family's approval" theme for example. The only reason the final battle happens in Brooklyn is so Mario and Luigi's family can see the fight and be proud of them but...why? Sure, they can be proud of them beating the baddie but Bowser did not terrorize Brooklyn to a point to be a threat to people and what does beating Bowser have to do with proving they can handle living their dreams of being a plumber over leaving their stable job? What does this do for the theme, their conflict? Nothing, they are not related. This works how they did it but it's super disconnected.
For a theme that works with Mario and Luigi the best was the "we're stronger together" theme but...they never build on it in a way that has them earn that final moment against Bowser. At least, successfully imo We never see Luigi and Mario struggle alone being apart in the Mushroom Kingdom.
We see Luigi get caught and have a quick flashback showing us their dynamic in a minute or two instead of showing us through present day. How much more interesting would it be if Luigi had maybe 10-15 more minutes of screentime running from the baddies and realizing without Mario there to save him he can't handle but then he hates that about himself. (which builds up to the part where he blocks Bowser's fire at the end to show Mario he can save him too). Luigi is severely underused in this movie and I have no clue why when the theme is "we're stronger together". I'm not saying he can;t be caught but him running away for a bit would've been cool. They pay homage to Luigi's Mansion with atmosphere, how cool would it have been if he found an abandoned place to hide and spent some time running from baddies until he eventually gets caught. show us Luigi's struggle without Mario and how without Mario so when they reunite it's amazing.
Also, Mario talks about saving Luigi but his struggles to get there are less "Luigi's not here" and more "I have no clue what I'm doing". His struggles do not feel directly connected to "I need Luigi here". He never even questions himself in the Mushroom Kingdom. If he had a point where he could reflect that he's not always that cool, stronger older brother there to save his little bro it's be internal struggles he desperately needed to make the theme work. Make Mario outside his element matter to not just the journey but him as a character.
Same with the theme of Mario "dragging Luigi down". Yes, Mario is at fault for why they end up where they are but we never see Mario struggle with that realization. We never see Mario even acknowledge it. Never "If I didn't insist we fix that flood he'd never have been caught." We don't even see him feel guilt about it so when they reunite it feel more hollow because you don't get a sense he learned anything.
The plot is not the problem, the lack of thought, cohesiveness and development is the problem. The "heart" is missing because they did not present anything to convey it. Every thing in the movie feels taped together opposed to woven together to fit each other. I still love the movie but as a film (ignoring the Mario theme) it's severely flawed.
The cheat code is it's Mario and it references Mario. It only works because it's Mario. If this was just an Illumination film people would be ripping it apart.
To say the audience, even the targeted audiences, can not stay engaged for a little bit of talking is insane imo We have very successful animated movies targeted for kids that have what the Mario Bros movie is missing and still keep people engaged. That is Disney/Pixar's entire thing and their movies do just fine for kids and adults alike. Even the adaptions before Mario (Detective Pikachu, Sonic 1 and 2; all targeted for kids) still have moments the Mario movie lacks and they are still engaged. I think that is a very thin excuse. We can love the Mario movie as flawed as it is but to ignore the flaws will not do it justice.
I grew up with the series since MARIO BROS. (no Super). Didn't enjoy the movie cause it sucked as a movie. Easter eggs and references doesn't make for a good movie, unless it's woven into an engaging story like Chip and Dale, Sonic 2, Detective Pikachu, maybe the recent Scream, and others. And the voice acting was not amazing. Peach, DK, Luigi al used the actor's normal voices. There's also Cranky Kong. Mario is decent, and I guess the rest are fine. Anyways :/
@@windy3935 I did enjoy the movie and have an extensive history with the games, however, I agree and this movie as a movie is not good lol This is my point, it's flawed af but I don't think anything is wrong with enjoying it as such but it's when people are deciding to ignore those flaws or saying they are not there that's a little irksome. I agree, the movie is overly referenced which I didn't mind in some places in some ways but some references were too much (the Princess in the other castle one was too forced, I cringed).
I have no experience with any of the voice actors work save for Jack Black and Pratt because Gaurdians of the Galaxy vol 1 (never seen what the other people are from to make them famous tbh) and I think they were good. If no one else Jack Black did a great job as Bowser and I liked that voice for Luigi and Keagan Micheal-Key for Toad worked well imo. Seth Rogan as this version of DK works fine too. I do still wish they gave Martinet the role as Mario (his promised cameo was weak af) but Pratt's performance was fine. Not great but not as bad as the first trailers.
I see why people love the movie but I agree that judging it as a movie (and not a Mario/video game adaption movie) it's severely flawed. This is why Filmento's video surprised me. Of all the reviewers I thought he'd mention the issues but I still think his and all who enjoy it have valid views too. Still, this movie did not cheat code success, it is successful because it's one of the most recognizable IPs ever and Nintendo was smart enough to monitor the entire process. Besides that it is formulaic which is not bad but it doesn't even do the formulas it utilizing effectively imo. The plot is fine but the movie feels like a first draft, needed more time to be fleshed out better.
@@midnightjay They ended up here on accident and it's a cool fight. That really is not not a good complaint, let us move on. Also the whole Plumber schitck wad to find a better profession than the one they had before, it makes sense for them to beat up the bad guy in the very home that shunned and disrespected them. It serves the purpose.
The rest is you making stuff up that makes zero sense. They did struggle alone in the world they found themselves in and while separated, had to see and deal with a lot of issues all the while being apart, their worst moment in life. Also Luigi is a coward and does not like fighting, I mean he didn't even fought against Francis, they just tried to keep distance from him.
The rest is just nonsense that shows that you came with a very biased view on the movie and shows that you did not even watched the movie really, because all what you said here, has been shown here, like Mario and Luigi developing as characters and the rest.
'Cheating' is an apt term. It has quite some flaws, but it also works pretty well for what it is
I love the Sonic movies, but Mario really elevated the idea that video game movies don't have to suck. If we get Zelda, Star Fox, or Metroid next, you can bet your ass that I'll be watching.
Edit: For the record, I love the Sonic Movies more than the Mario Movie. My point is that we're finally at the point where we could get good quality video-game movies.
I would say Sonic 2 is better than the Mario movie, at least of terms of narrative, but both Sonic movies sometimes feel like the typical CGI character interacting with humans like The Smurfs, Garfield or Alvin & the Chipmunks. Mario embraces it's videogame roots like no other video game movie did it before, I'm not counting TV shows those usually played out better, save for Halo. Particularly, while I liked Sonic 2 the wedding subplot was totally unnecessary in my opinion and only made want to see more scenes with Sonic, Tails and Knuckles. If Paramount decides to reboot the Sonic film after the third movie they should make an animated movie
@@pablocasas5906To be honest, I wasn't entirely bothered by that whole wedding subplot at first because before that moment when the movie ultimately transcend to a generic romantic comedy featuring the character of Rachel and her fiancée: Randell, the stuff in Hawaii were only two scenes that each lasted about a minute a piece while the majority was still on Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Robotnik. It was when that moment of Sonic and Tails being captured by the G.U.N. Unit, the focus shifted entirely on Maddie and especially her sister Rachel, and that was when the movie loses me, but to give it credit, despite my grievance with that scene altogether, once that whole Hawaii subplot was resolved, they never cut back to it and the focus re-shifted primarily on our main players (no pun intended) throughout the remaining runtime. I just only hope that we will never get to see Rachel and Randell again moving forward.
I would DIE see a live-action Metroid movie adaptation. And it *has* to be rated PG-13, please Nintendo?
I don't get why people said this movie didn't really have a plot. It was quite focused and followed a sequence.
That said, I admit the plot was choice was cheesy and clichéd. It is very predictable, but it was still a fun ride. It was like replaying a game you like for the fifth time. You already know how it goes, but the journey is fun nonetheless. The music was fun, the platforming was fun, and the characters were fun.
I cant really enjoy the movie.. because too much plot armor for the main character
@@ZValkorion It's mario. This is the same dude who can lift a big creature twice his size by the tail and throw him. He deserves plot armor.
@@VisorByte and i didnt enjoy that... Sonic is far better
@zivenbr okay well im just saying it makes sense from a character perspective regardless of what you think
@@ZValkorion what you think doesnt matter
You mad bastard, Filmento
I’ve never heard Donkey Kong + Evanescence, and now I don’t think I’ll ever unhear those songs ever again
I don't know about you but that transition in 2:17 hits hard.
As a huge nintendo fan, I enjoyed the movie for all the references to the Mario Bros universe, but it had a simple story. Could have been better, but I liked it.
With the announcement of the Legend of Zelda movie my hype went to the max.
There has been no such announcement, quite the opposite, it has been officially denied to be planned at all.
It's a Mario movie, of course it would have a simple story. What did you expect?
They didn't announce any Zelda movie. It's not a good idea to believe every rumor.
There is nothing wrong with a simple story.
@@ELTABULLOthat’s probably just Nintendo being Nintendo but I wouldn’t doubt if this made them consider more movies, they got a huge library after all
That was an ingenious thumbnail idea. Tanooki Mario sweep
As an italian
I appreciate the funny italian exclamations under Mario and Luigi presentation lmao
Horrible
You just channeled my whole 2012 with that Paralyzer needle drop 😂 hats off to the person on your team who thought that one up😎
1:36
Amazing breakdown of the Mario movie story structure!!!
Something delightfully meta about a Mario movie where the lesson is "don't take yourself so seriously"
"no you guys, videos games are super serious, we're real art," *sobs"
Italian plumber go brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
The Mario world has diverse characters and colorful worldbuilding that it can be adapted into a show, movie, or comics
I'd kill for a luigi's mansion film after what they did with this film
I know this movie did great, but I still feel like it was underrated. The action alone was some of the best I've seen in a very long time. Not to mention the humor and likability of the characters.
15:26 - This should have happened in the recent Ant-Man film rather than it all being resolved in the "quantum realm".
“Mostly, it was just Ass”; that one always makes me laugh. 🤣
The fact they gave tribute to Iwata in the credits is absolutely mine blowing
The pure joy I felt watching this movie is unexplainable and I have literally never played a Mario game ever💯🐐
That DK/ Evanescence mash up was way better than it had any right to be. Is there a full version? XD
Aight I dont know if anybody noticed that, but in the second 0:44 the italian speech put as a parody has a really dark meaning. It litterally means "Holy Mary is a cunt, thieving piglike God, Holy Mary is a cunt".
I'm sure this was not intentional by Filmento, but yeah... it's kinda harsh even for italians.
I really admire your perspicacity of movies man! especially how they are written and all that. Hollywood should hire people like you to write and make movies.
Those movies would suck ass. If he was half as good at making movies as he thinks he is at critiquing them, then he would already be working in that line of work. TH-cam is where all the posers and phonies go for internet clout because they couldn’t cut it at the real thing.
Bar none the most badass video you've made so far. Your voiceover here is just incredible!
God I am so happy to see you cover this movie. It's not everyone's cup of tea, but it is for a lot of people. Because it's Mario, in a movie which feels so much like the games, it's just charming.
This is the most intelligent movie commentary channel of all.
I already expected the movie to be better than what I thought it would be based on what others had said, but even I was blown away by how much I enjoyed it from beginning to end. I was entertained, I cared about the characters, and I had fun the whole time.
Filmento can describe why it works, but I just love that it did
6:30 Just realized the hole in the wall is shaped like 8-bit Mario’s head
The Mario movies success begins with one critical moment, when Miyamoto san said "No." No, to giving it the standard Hollywood treatment for a video game adaptation. The studio wanted to add a bunch of story elements not in the game to make it "more appealing" to non-gamers, to make Peach the main character as a typical mary sue girl boss and relegate Mario to a blundering side character.
The first part of the above is the key to why nearly all other video game movies fail. You see they do this even when it's not needed, like with Uncharted and Assassin's Creed. The studio mucks around with the source material because of their very obsolete mindset that "video game stories only appeal to gamers and not to general audiences."
How do you know that the studio wanted that?
Mario was a side character to Peach in the movie, though. He just followed along as she did everything and explained everything…
@@Andreamom001 Yeah, no he wasn't. That is a gross misstatement of Peach's and Mario's roles in relation to each other in this movie.
I just LOVE the smell of misinformation 😋
@@chrisruiz8292 why do you need a source? What? You seriously think someone would lie on the internet?
Man I just love the memes in this videos from you.
So great
Surprised the movie did so well
I like that in the movie whenever Mario takes off his cap it shows him being vulnerable. This is similar to how in Super Mario 64, if Mario losses his cap from strong wind he takes double damage without his cap.
Was expecting this movie got film perfection in the title.
Your analysis of this movie is really amazing and help me realize a lot of great things about it. I'm glad your video showed up in my recommendations
The success of the movie has to do with not taking itself seriously and choosing an opening date where it was without competition for a month. I am sure if it was released today with all these movies that are right now , it would have made decent money but not near what it did
The editing on this tho ! Love the san adreas sound effects haha!!
Have you ever done the warcraft movie?
Honestly I think that movie crawled so that sonic and Mario could walk and run.
Solid video, my dude. Grew up listening to acdc nonstop. The big gun music made me laugh and awoke some memeories:)
The Super Mario's success is largely because Nintendo aided Illumination throughout the entire process unlike the other video game adaptations.
14:35 What a lost opportunity to reference the Red Wedding
I’ll be completely honest the luigi holding up a manhole moment did strike me when I watched it, though the rest of the movie wasn’t special maybe I’m just a sucker for that sort of situation. Everyone loves an underdog right?
The thing that I find very important to note about the movie is, it isn't just trying to redo the original stories, it isn't trying to force new viewers to just know the characters already, the movie is very carefully making you understand the characters values and what they are and stand for. Mario is someone who is shown very fast cares for his brother, yet over the course of the movie it is quickly shown that, it is not just his brother he cares for, but everyone he sees close to him he would protect aswell. Making him rescuing Peach in future movies seem more believeable. Bowser was shown as a more gentle villain at first. He would still destroy everything in his way, but his goal was to get Peach's affection by gifting her what he thinks she wants, he had a twisted way of doing things but he would not force Peach at the start. That only came later, which then also explains when in future movies Bowser begins to kidnap her. The movie is building up these characters to be their own thing, yet still end up turning them to their game counterparts with their movie personality. You do not lose the character but just gain a ballenced mix of the two
Did you just call Cranky Kong "King Kong"? 😂
I really appreciate your hard work throughout the years man, thanks.
1:20 I died laughing when even Filmento didn't miss an opportunity to put a caption on top of the poster, "Your destiny is your (butt)."
That DK Evanescence mashup absolutely floored me!!! 😂😂😂😂
SPOILER WARNING
Stay faithful to source material and fanbace = profit. Also Illumination shouldn’t get all the credit. They were going to do the “make main male character a buffoon to make Peach look good” and were going to cram pop songs everywhere. Nintendo shut down the defamation of Mario and brought back the legacy Mario music. Example: Illumination wanted to play Van Halen “Jump” but Nintendo made Super Star Orchestral for the part where Mario and Luigi use the super star. Basically they didn’t forsake the identity of the ip and the fans ate it up.
Could that be considered as a cheat code?? lmao
Unfortunately, several popular songs like Take On Me and Holding Out For A Hero were crammed in there along with the movie’s original score.
The reason why this movie is so good is for a few reasons. One, it's about the love between brothers. Two, it's established storytelling. Three, its score is LEGENDARY and what Sonic 3 should learn from. Crush 40 or bust. Four, it's an IP that is wholesome and known by everyone. Also, Five, it's the least Illumination-trope movie ever made as it has actual action, stakes, and characters you can truly root for.
You wanna win? Gotta do drugs. Get them power ups.
@@thedarkemissary No, it's like Popeye, you eat your vegetables and you succeed.
@@thedarkemissary Literally Mario was Popeye in his inception.
The reason Super Mario bros. Movie successful is because they know their fans and don't leave the OG fans (some been there since Famicom) behind
Compared to TLM Live action that changing this and that and when the OG Fans are disagreeing with their dicisions, they're simply labelled those fans "racist" or "narrow-mind"
Don't disrespect the OG fans like that
That's a reason. Definitely not the only one.
Great video! And loved the hint of Mat 7:6 uncertainty guilt pangs at the end lol :D
The Mario vs DK fight should have just been a live action fight with Pratt in a cat suit and Rogen in a ape costume
Wasn’t expecting you to talk about this movie, glad to see you did.
What made the Super Mario Bros. move great was that those of us in our 30s and 40s could genuinely enjoy it and it was safe to take our kids to. Don't ignore the power of the traditionally family friendly movie. Most of the world wants them, and yet they are so very rare.
Btw, the "king kong" is called Cranky Kong, the original DK from the arcade game.
But Filmento the ExPertZzzz told me this movie had no plot…
The climax was when Mario learned that it was not about Super Mario… it was about Super Bros.
Let’s A Go!
This was so fun !!! As a huge Super Mario Bros fan, I felt such inner joy seeing my favorite game come to life. Characters, World were awesome!!
Whoo! Nice breakdown! You're not going to get me to like Ralph Breaks The Internet, though.
damn, now i really wanna watch this movie
in the first minutes of this video, the guy played my childhood song that I still listen ti this day
From a marketing standpoint, I completely understand why Mario and Luigi are separated. It's so Nintendo and Illumination can test how audiences react to Luigi carrying screen time on his own. A lot of it is in the psychology: in February 2022, Charlie Day expressed interest in Luigi's Mansion after watching his son play the game. Fast forward to March 2023 and Day is completely in favour of a Luigi movie. Add the videos, tweets, posts and articles about how a Luigi spin-off is teased and there you go.
Miyamoto and Meledandri are reading every complaint about Luigi's screen time and quoting the Hulk: "I see this as an absolute win". To them, it means one thing. Not only do people want Mario and Luigi to go on an actual adventure in the inevitable sequel. They also want Luigi to have his own movie.
Great video. I haven't seen Mario yet, but I'm looking forward to it. Even though I haven't seen it, I'm pretty sure this was the movie I would've wanted back in '93. Lol, that 1993 movie... nothing against John Leguizamo and Bob Hoskins, both great actors, not their fault... but it was like the creators of that movie were on a mission to disappoint and confuse as many kids as they possibly could.
your movie analyses are always so entertaining. thank you for your hard work!
I’d like to think that Mario and Luigi turning super saiyan at the end is a SMBZ reference.
So...Mario's character flaw is he is a manlet?
It's over, short bros.
Heightcel
I know this is not the best place to ask this, but I'll ask it anyway. I was wondering if you could do a 1v1 comparison between Wonderwoman 1984 and the new Flash movie. They both have similar themes in where you have to learn to overcome your traumas and that'll make you a stronger person, but it works a whole lot better in the Flash movie than it does on Wonderwoman, at least to me
Having ambition is all it takes to make a videogame adaptation work
That's why most of the recent adaptations, like "Sonic The Hedgehog", "The Last of Us " and "Arcane" worked
Because the people behind it understood the games, and understood filmmaking
In the past, the studios hired anyone to do anything, without a care in the world, like the 1993s live-action
This one was made by the guys behind "Teen Titans Go! To The Movies"
And they knew what they were doing
Doubt the last of us, but the others, yes
It all boils down to understanding the source material. The reason why movies like Uncharted and Assassin's Creed failed is because the producers of those films were ashamed of the source material, and wanted to do their own version of it.
The Sonic movies proved you do you own spin to a game movie while still paying homage to the source material, making old and new fans happy. The Last of Us HBO series proves games that are heavy in narrative can still translate well into the TV format without being pointless because of the absence of gameplay. All you have to do care.
@@bluestar5812
#IBlameAviArad
The movie feels like a project Phil Lord and Christopher Miller would work on, not the TTG directors
My favorite part were the smaller details Mario putting his arms out so go slightly smoother faster. The rainbow road shortcut
I honestly did not want to watch it but when I did read Nintendo stepped in to stop bullshit I was full in. 3 times with the kids and they loved it. Great work Nintendo. Thanks for saving the movie. I did my duty to tell Hollywood to make good movies and not the crap they forced on us. Voting with my wallet
I love your MW2 sounds.
_Why is the Mario movie good?_
It’s not. It’s competent, with some aspect deserving of recognition, like the animation. In a way, it’s one of the better movies in Illumination’s catalogue. But Illumination is quite literally the standard for mediocrity in Western animation, so that’s not saying much.
I’m quite sure the Mario fanbase enjoys it, and that’s great. But I watched the movie as a non-Mario fan, and while yes, the movie was functional despite my lack of knowledge of the IP, it was also barebones, predictable and, in true Illumination fashion, unremarkable. So I gotta give it to Filmento, cause they described the movie perfectly: it cheats. It does enough for the plot to function, but tries nothing else to stand out, the golden formula of Illumination. The only thing that makes Super Mario Bros different from forgettable garbage like Sing and Secret Life of Pets is the Mario name.
The plot itself, while competent, is very barebones. One thing I noticed that really bothered me was the lack of reactive scenes, aka scenes where the characters just sit down and talk, without advancing the plot. These are the scenes that make the characters feel human, that makes us care about them, and many times, they can be even better than the plot-advancing scenes that come before or after them. Everyone showered the scene of Puss having a panic attack in The Last Wish with praise for how good it was, and that’s a reactive scene where no part of the plot is advanced, two characters are just talking, but it’s arguably the most impactful scene of the whole film.
The Mario movie severely lacks these kinds of scenes. I can think of two scenes where the plot isn’t moving forward and the characters are talking to each other about what to do or how they feel. First is after the dinner scene, when Mario goes to his room and Luigi comes after him and the two just talk. It was enough for me, who doesn’t know anything about Mario, believe they really care about each other. The other scene I can think about is when the team is going to the Kong kingdom or whatever, and in the middle of the journey, Mario and Peach just stop and get to know each other. That was also pretty nice. But aside from those two scenes, the movie is only concerned with moving the plot along rather than create meaningful character relationships. I would say it’s kinda like a video game, but that’d be unfair to many games that actually have reactive scenes.
There’s a moment that almost insulted me toward the end, when Mario and Donkey Kong, two characters shown to have something of a rivalry, are stuck inside the big water monster thing. As they’re trying to escape, Donkey Kong says he doesn’t want to die with his father thinking he’s a looser, to which Mario says his father also thinks he’s a looser. I thought, great, now’s the time for them to talk and see they have something in common and then work together to get out of the monster. That’s actually a pretty powerful scene, good job Mario movie. But then they just start mocking each other again, and their argument just sorta happens to get them free. That actually got me angry, though afterwards I remembered, this is an Illumination movie, of course they’d take the easy way out, it’s on me for expecting them to try something meaningful.
That scene also speaks to the movie’s character problems. They’re all shallow at best and talking props at worst. When the small mushroom guy thingy said he was going to come along with Mario and Peach “to protect her”, I was half expecting him to say “and also the script says I have to go too”. Filmento pointed out that Mario has an inner flaw and grows over the course of the movie, but I beg to disagree. Him being reckless and trying to prove himself may have gotten Luigi in trouble, but I’m honestly not sure if the movie knows this. There’s not a single moment when Mario thinks about how he’s the reason his brother is in danger. If the movie did play out with Luigi getting into trouble on his own and Mario just going after him, literally nothing needs to change.
Mario also doesn’t grow or develop in any way, and even the notion is him having a meaningful character flaw is pretty generous. The only other point in the movie where him being rash is when he accepts the challenge to fight the monkey king’s son, but even then, everyone just sort of glossed over it and you can argue that he’s more worried with saving Luigi rather than proving himself. In the end, nothing Mario accomplishes is a result of any growth or personal struggle, it all comes down to the fucking power-up boxes. Oh yeah, I hate the power-up boxes or whatever their name is. They work perfectly well as gameplay elements I’m sure, but as plot devices, they are literally in-universe Deus ex machinas. Mario can’t defeat Donkey Kong? No need to think of a way to beat him, just have a power-up! He doesn’t even have to struggle to GET the power-up, he just gets punched near one and Peach points it out to him. Seriously, fuck these power-up boxes!
I really don’t like rewriting works (even for a movie I don’t like I refuse to use the word “fix”), but I did think about two small things that could potentially benefit the movie:
1) Have Mario actually drive the van to the client’s house at the start of the movie. Have the road be full of obstacles and Mario pulls some crazy maneuvers to get past them. Establish that he’s a good driver before the Mario Kart portion of the movie when he’s doing crazy shit like it’s nothing, so he defeats the bad guys using a skill we already knew he had.
2) If we really need the power-ups in the movie, then set them up before they’re used to solve major problems. That’s just basic Chekhov’s Gun. The Star thing and the thing that makes you bigger are the only ones that are set up beforehand. The cat and tanuki power-ups just show up and solve problems. All that needs to be done is have it so there are multiple power-up boxes in the circuit Mario makes when he’s training, and two of them are the cat and tanuki ones. You don’t even have to show what they do if you still want it to be a surprise, but this way the non-Mario audience at least knows they exist.
I’m happy that Mario fans are pleased with this movie, but I also feel the need to point out that it’s not that good of a movie for general audiences. I mean, kids will probably find it really fun, but for most adults and teenagers, it will probably be that kind of movie you only watch once and think, eh, that was fun I guess.
What
I disagree with a lot of things you said. Too predictable. As in both the movie itself and what you wanted the movie to have.
Super Mario Bros. Movie's success (alongside with Sonic The Hedgehog Movie and Detective Pikachu) is the moment when the "video game adaptation curse" is finally broken.
As a big fan of Pokémon and an epic gamer I was so happy when detective pikachu was actually pretty cool. Especially the actual Pokémon and what they did with them, mf greninja goons were dope and I’m a gren hater.
But we gotta be honest, the only reason why the Mario movie succeeded is simply because it’s Mario. They played it safe and relied heavily on the fact that fans already know who Mario is and what his world is like. The sonic movie was a success because it’s story actually written in a manner that allows anyone to understand the film without having to already know who sonic is
@@drsipp407there is literally nothing to know about Mario. He’s an Italian plumber. The end. And yet the movie also adds a bit of depth to him and gives him an actual arc. Not going to praise this as a masterpiece but it’s a fun movie about the wahoo mamma Mia guy.
@@Yethegoat10When i See Pokemon today i'm really sad...
Imagine if they did a Kirby film