Thirty years after Nintendo's miserable first jump to the silver screen, Shigeru Miyamoto's Mario made his triumphant return to cinemas in 2023's The Super Mario Bros. Movie. Brought to life by Despicable Me creators Illumination, it was a smash hit, pleasing die-hard Nintendo fans, and became the highest-grossing animated feature ever upon release. Even if it was lightweight with a bare bones narrative, it accomplished its crowd-pleasing ambitions, and I'd be lying if I said it wasn't a fun movie.
However, I knew then that it was a stepping stone to wilder stories within Mario's universe, even teasing the appearance of Yoshi in its post-credits clip. Three years later and with its creative crew back in full force, the promise of that wilder sequel is here, with The Super Mario Galaxy Movie. Unfortunately, wilder isn't better, as despite many a fan-pleasing beat for Nintendo lovers, it is once again the story that lets this pipe dream down.
