Small Words

In this version of the classic Nintendo game franchise, Mario and Luigi… are very small. The creators of the movie took Mario’s 1980 arcade proportions literally and made the brothers kid sized, which makes a lot of sense because the movie is for kids. The brothers embody young viewers’ own struggles, and Mario and Luigi’s child-like characterization helps viewers envision themselves as heroes in the making.    

Throughout the movie we witness Mario strive for parental approval while Luigi battles with being brave in the face of (excessive) adversity. In the end, each character finds the inner strength to be the ideal they always strived for.

There were a lot of sweet lessons for children in the movie, but I think most adults were there for the game references. My favorite nod to the original Mario Bros game (and the only reference that wasn’t over my head) was when a deep fissure opened in “rainbow road”. The scene reminded me of being really bad at the game as a kid and the respect I had for my brother for passing the rainbow road course. And beating every-game-ever before me….

But amidst the you-can-do-anything messaging, some parts were very dark! Bowser’s obsession with possessing Princess Peach drives the story. The writer’s lampshade about it too. In the scene where Bowser reveals his plan, even his loyal subjects are put off by his skirt-chasing. Yet the writers still choose to make marriage Bowser’s main motivation- just ahead of world domination. It appears, however, that Princess Peach is in little danger of being an unwilling bride. In one stirring scene, she encapsulates him in ice, and (don’t test her) she’ll absolutely do it again! The audience should be more worried about Luigi, who became the stand-in damsel in distress. He bears the brunt of Bowser’s ambitions. An uncomfortable scene shows, Bowser, who fears that Peach is infatuated with Mario, interrogates Luigi. Despite how cartoony and outlandish the whole situation is the scene is a little hard to watch.

Dungeonous torture scene aside, the thing that really stuck with me was the candle-flame character, Lumalee. The first result for “lumalee” on YouTube is a video called “Lumalee is unhinged”. I tend to think this is a pretty accurate title. He is the cutest character: adorable voice, darling laugh, yet his outlook is very concerning. He has accepted his lot as a prisoner in Bowser’s dungeons and believes that the only way out is death – and this makes him giggle. Lumalee’s character is sadistic, nihilistic, and kawaii. Very puzzling and kinda heavy for kindergarteners…

But since I’m not in kindergarten anymore, I give this movie 4.5 stars. Minus half a star for every character having huge, unsettling eyes.