Super Mario Bros.
Directed by Annabel Jankel, Rocky Morton
- adventure
- fantasy
- comedy
- family
The story
Mario and Luigi, plumbers from Brooklyn, find themselves in an alternate universe where evolved dinosaurs live in hi-tech squalor. They're the only hope to save our universe from invasion by the dino dictator, Koopa.
What it’s like
Gritty, saturated, and deliberately overdesigned: grimy Brooklyn streets under washed-out daylight give way to a sprawling alternate city of grey concrete, neon signage, and smoggy industrial glow, all rendered in a glossy 1990s studio look with crowded, busy frames and little breathing room. Sets feel built rather than found, with cluttered sci-fi corridors, dripping pipes, and a dark, sooty palette punctuated by bright primary-colored costumes. The score leans on bouncy, cartoonish synth and brassy cues that keep things jittery and playful. The mood is goofy, scrappy, and loud, with slapstick energy, sibling bickering, and a steady stream of gags that move briskly from one set piece to the next. Intensity is mild: some peril, threats from a grotesque dictator, a few small jolts, but no real gore and little lasting cruelty. It suits a silly weekend watch, a nostalgic rewatch with kids, or a late-night laugh for fans of kitschy, cult-leaning fantasy who enjoy a film that wears its eccentricity openly.
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