*SPOILER WARNING*
“The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” (TSMGM) is a sequel to “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” (2023) that follows two Brooklyn plumbers and beloved video game characters, Mario (Chris Pratt) and Luigi (Charlie Day) through their adventures in saving the galaxy. The movie is named after the 2007 video game “Super Mario Galaxy.”
It introduces new characters that appear in the games but not in the first film: Yoshi (Donald Glover), Rosalina (Brie Larson) and Bowser Jr. (Benny Safdie). The post-credit scene from the first movie teased Yoshi being in the sequel with a green-spotted egg. The film also introduces Fox McCloud (Glen Powell) from the “Star Fox” video game series. Animation company Illumination chose to add Fox from a different game series to expand the cinematic universe, according to Forbes. In the movie, Fox explains that he ended up in Super Mario’s universe due to his spacecraft’s malfunction.
Both Glover and Powell pitched themselves to Illumination and expressed their passion in voicing their respective characters. Both stood out to Illumination’s chief executive officer, Chris Meledandri, and they were cast in the movie.
Despite not being explicitly teased in the first film, Rosalina plays a big part in the sequel’s story. Mario, Luigi and Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy) must save Rosalina from Bowser Jr. She has a strong opening scene, which is also the first scene in the movie, but is then sidelined and imprisoned for the rest of the film, solely used as a drive for the other characters.
Fans of the game have pointed out major differences between the themes of the game and the movie. The game explores elements of loss with quiet, emotional undertones. The film, however, does not go into any of those themes. As a Mario movie, it’s good and works as a sequel, but not a perfect game adaptation. Fans who went into the movie thinking that it would resemble the game better than it did might have different views than fans who went in without knowing or caring about the source material.
The movie introduces new information that was not in the games, like Rosalina and Peach being sisters who were separated when they were young. Theories of the two being related have been circulating for years, but nothing was official. In the first film, there were mentions of where Peach came from and how she got to the Mushroom Kingdom, but it was not anything concrete. In this movie, though, she feels less lost and knows more of her history.
The first film followed Mario and Luigi saving Peach from Bowser (Jack Black), and he returns as a major villain in the sequel alongside his son. Naturally, in Super Mario fashion, Peach, Yoshi and the brothers defeat and imprison Bowser and Bowser Jr., saving Rosalina. They all help rebuild Peach’s castle after being damaged, and the movie ends with everyone safe and sound.
Like the first movie, this one also references elements from the video games, such as the side-scrolling perspective and the completion of levels using power-ups, along with the standard Nintendo Mario music. These easter eggs are subtle but noticeable to fans.
The movie is packed with action, whimsical and visually pleasing, especially when they’re in space traveling through the galaxy.
Though TSMGM debuted with less than 50% on the Rotten Tomatoes “Tomatometer” through critics’ reviews, it is “Verified Hot” with 90% on the “Popcornmeter” from audience reviews.
The post-credit scene teased a possible, but not confirmed, third film with a cameo from Daisy.
