10 Reasons to Be Optimistic About the Upcoming Animated Mario Movie
While it has its fans, the original Super Mario Bros. movie is generally considered a terrible game adaptation and a terrible movie. And now that...
Published 4 years ago in Ftw
But even though we don’t know much about the upcoming animated movie, there are several reasons to be very optimistic about it.
1
Universal Studios Involvement
In addition to Nintendo, Universal Studios is helping to fund the new movie. And that’s because Universal has decided to go all-in on Mario!
If you don’t already know, Universal Studios will be adding an entire “Super Nintendo World” to their locations in Florida and California. And the Super Nintendo World area of Universal Japan is already open.
Should the new movie be as terrible as the original, Universal stands to lose millions and millions of dollars in potential revenue. With that kind of financial incentive, we know the new movie is likely to be good (or, at the very least, decent).2
Nintendo President Seal of Approval
It’s an open secret that the original Super Mario Bros. film was a production disaster. It was never intended to be anything more than a loose translation of the source material, and every script rewrite made it feel less and less like the Mushroom Kingdom we know and love.
One of the reasons to be hopeful about the upcoming film is that the Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa likes what he sees. He claimed the movie was “moving along smoothly” near the beginning of 2020.
Between Furukawa and Miyamoto’s input, it looks like the new movie should be good.3
Nintendo’s Big Push
Another reason to be optimistic about the new movie is fairly simple. Nintendo is putting all of their weight behind it!
Back in 2020, Nintendo released a corporate memo that detailed how this movie is an important part of their “visual content expansion.” In other words, Nintendo is making a big push to grow their brand, and this extends from Nintendo smartphone games to the upcoming attractions at Universal Studios.4
Nintendo Will Retain All Rights
Sometimes, it’s the little things that are the most reassuring. And when it comes to the new Mario movie, we found it reassuring when Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa clarified that Nintendo would retain all rights to the movie.
Read between the lines and it seems like Nintendo wants to create an ongoing franchise, with these movies leading the charge into expanding the company’s brand awareness among the public. With so much riding on this movie for Nintendo, we don’t think they are likely to release another terrible Mario movie.5
High-Priority Movie for Illumination
It may be little more than some soft PR, but Illumination’s Chris Meledandri has revealed that the new movie will be a priority for Illumination. And that is reassuring on a few levels.
First, it’s good to hear that Illumination is making Mario the focus. That means we don’t have to worry about that film going on the back burner in order to create another forgettable Minions movie.
Second, Meledandri must be aware that Illumination needs another big hit. With the popularity of Minions and Despicable Me declining, a Mario movie is their best chance to create a successful new franchise for the coming decade.6
Miyamoto Is Producing
If you ask someone what was wrong with the original movie, there are many possible answers they might give you. But it mostly boils down to the fact that the movie was almost nothing like the games.
However, the new movie’s creators are collaborating with Mario creator and gaming legend Shigeru Miyamoto, and he is also a producer on this movie. This alone is enough to give us hope for a more accurate adaptation!7
It Will Be Animated
Many of the designs from the original Mario Bros. movie are terrible. And the live-action version of a Goomba is very likely to become your new sleep paralysis demon if you fall asleep watching that terrible film.
One reason the designs were so bad, though, is that creators were struggling with adapting the cartoony world of Mario into a gritty “real-world” environment. The fact that this movie will be animated via CGI means that Mario, his friends, and the entirety of the Mushroom Kingdom should look just like they do in the games.8
Long Development Time
Currently, the new Mario movie is projected to come out in 2022. But plans to create this movie actually date back to 2014!
While certain movies get stuck in development hell, we actually think the long development time of this movie is a good sign. It means Nintendo has had plenty of time to get the story and animation “just right.”
Compare this to the original movie, which was relatively rushed, had constant rewrites, and nearly turned the main actors into alcoholics!9
Minions Guru Chris Meledandri
While the fact that the new movie is animated is great, there is a world of difference between great animation and bland animation. Fortunately, the new film has a “secret weapon” to make sure the animation is top-notch.
In addition to Miyamoto, the movie’s other co-producer is Chris Meledandri. While that name may not ring a bell, he is the founder of the company that brought you the Minions movie.
Now, Minions as a franchise have been run into the ground thanks to a decade of awful memes that grandma can’t stop sharing. But the actual movies feature detailed animation and expressive characters, meaning we can count on Chris Meledandri to really bring Mario to life.10
Lessons Learned From the First Movie
One weird move Hollywood often makes is repeating the mistakes of the past. For example, rebooting a terrible franchise and adding all the worst parts of it back into the new movie.
With the next Mario movie, the creators involved are aware of the previous mistakes. In fact, co-producer Chris Meledandri said in a Variety interview that “that this was not done well the first time.”
Even better, he is excited about doing a new movie because he thinks it’s better to reboot failed franchises than successful ones. If only more people in Hollywood agreed!
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