Thunderstruck
| "Thunderstruck" | |
|---|---|
| The second chorus in "Thunderstruck" | |
 Single cover | |
| Composed by: Angus Young, Malcolm Young | |
| Vocals | Brian Johnson |
| Genres | Hard rock, heavy metal |
| Key | E major |
| BPM | 134 |
| Time signature | Common time |
| Appears in | "Thunderstruck" (single) (1990, overall) The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023, Super Mario franchise) |
"Thunderstruck" is a song by Australian hard rock band AC/DC, released on September 10, 1990, as the lead single from their twelfth studio album, The Razors Edge. 46 seconds of the song are used in The Super Mario Bros. Movie when Mario, Peach, and Toad are choosing parts for their vehicles and start driving them. As with the other licensed songs in the movie, "Thunderstruck" is not included on the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack.
Composition[edit]
"Thunderstruck" is a hard rock[1] and heavy metal[2] song. Written in the key of E major, the song is set in a time signature of common time with a tempo of 134 beats per minute.[3] The guitar riff in the second verse features a straight B5 power chord progression, while the bridge "I was shaking at the knees" features a chord progression of E5-A5-B5-A5-E5. AC/DC's founding members, Angus and Malcolm Young, play the lead guitar and the rhythm guitar, respectively, while the latter also performs the backing vocals.
Lyrics[edit]
Thunder
Thunder
Thunder
Thunder
You've been thunderstruck
Thunderstruck
Yeah, yeah, yeah
Thunderstruck
Oooooooh, thunderstruck, yeah
Thunderstruck
Yeah, yeah, yeah
Thunderstruck
Personnel[edit]
- Brian Johnson – lead vocals
- Angus Young – lead guitar
- Malcolm Young – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
- Cliff Williams – bass guitar, backing vocals
- Chris Slade – drums, percussion
The Super Mario Bros. Movie[edit]
In The Super Mario Bros. Movie, the song plays as Mario, Peach, and Toad choose their vehicle parts. Mechanical arms then paint and assemble the vehicles. During the brief section, only Mario's kart (resembling a Standard Kart with its Mario Kart 8 design) and Peach's Bike (resembling the Mach Bike) are seen. As Mario and Peach drive slowly towards the screen, Toad suddenly appears in a huge ATV while wearing sunglasses. Then, the trio drives back to the central part of the Kart workshop, parking next to Donkey Kong. After "Thunderstruck" stops playing, Mario, Peach, Toad, Donkey Kong, Cranky Kong, and several members of the Kong army drive towards the secret passage.
In The Super Mario Bros. Movie, the song was shortened to 46 seconds. The sample starts with a brief excerpt of the intro, then skips straight to the second chorus, while the middle part of the same chorus is repeated near the end.
Critical reception[edit]
While considered one of AC/DC's best songs,[4] "Thunderstruck" was poorly received for its inclusion in The Super Mario Bros. Movie instead of an original or Mario song. Luke Y. Thompson of Yahoo! Entertainment was unimpressed, poking fun at the song as coming from "Hollywood's Obvious Choices 101 folder".[5] Eric Eisenberg of CinemaBlend used the scene where "Thunderstruck" plays as an example of his criticism regarding the lack of story progression,[6] while Angus Truskett of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's triple j states that the movie features "the most bafflingly lazy and uninspired use of licensed music in a movie, possibly ever".[7]
Despite this, some critics did enjoy the song's inclusion, such as Seth Hay of Cat with Monocle, who called it a standout despite feeling its inclusion was not necessary,[8] while Jonathan R. Lack of Fade to Lack thought it fit the energy of the scene.[9] Kim Taylor-Foster of Dexerto stated that the movie "makes smart use of songs".[10]
References[edit]
- ^ Benjamin Smith (February 2, 2014). Celebrate The Super Bowl With Hard Rock's Top 10 Jock Jams!. VH1. Retrieved January 30, 2026. (Archived April 11, 2023, 13:01:41 UTC via Wayback Machine.)
- ^ Shalva Ginsparg (August 7, 2014). Cyber Attack at Iranian Nuclear Facility Blasts AC/DC’s ‘Thunderstruck’. Washington Examiner. Retrieved January 29, 2026. (Archived August 27, 2024 via Wayback Machine.)
- ^ Key & BPM for Thunderstruck by AC/DC. Tunebat. Retrieved January 15, 2026.
- ^ Michael Hann (July 30, 2020). AC/DC – their 40 greatest songs, ranked!. The Guardian. Retrieved January 16, 2026.
- ^ "Less impressive: the pop songs drawn from Hollywood’s Obvious Choices 101 folder, like “Thunderstruck,” (...)" – Luke Y. Thompson (April 4, 2023). The Super Mario Bros. Movie Review: Lets-a Not Go. Yahoo! Entertainment. Retrieved January 16, 2026.
- ^ "(...) the protagonists become allies with the Kong army via a round of Super Smash Bros., and then AC/DC’s “Thunderstruck” blares as the characters design a collection of personalized vehicles a la Mario Kart." – Eric Eisenberg (April 4, 2023). The Super Mario Bros. Movie Review: Not So Much A Film As It Is A Checklist Of Video Game References. CinemaBlend. Retrieved January 17, 2026.
- ^ Angus Truskett (April 6, 2023). The Super Mario Bros. Movie is a reminder the video game icon deserves better. triple j. Retrieved January 17, 2026.
- ^ "There are vocal tracks incorporated into the film that are obviously not from the original series. Beastie Boys's “No Sleep Till Brooklyn” and AC/DC’s “Thunderstruck” are a couple that stand out." – Seth Hay (April 5, 2023). The Super Mario Bros. Movie (Review). Cat with Monocle. Retrieved January 17, 2026.
- ^ "But as is standard with most American theatrical animation (...), there are a bunch of pop songs unnecessarily shoved in (...), and while some work better than others – playing AC/DC’s “Thunderstruck” while everyone builds their Mario Karts at least matches the energy of the scene, (...)" – Jonathan R. Lack (April 6, 2023). Review: The Super Mario Bros. Movie is a joyous love-letter to gaming's favorite plumber. Retrieved January 17, 2026.
- ^ Kim Taylor-Foster (April 7, 2023). The Super Mario Bros Movie review: Gameplay is king. Dexerto. Retrieved January 17, 2026.
