Super Mario Bros. (film): Difference between revisions

In stark contrast to the video games, the ''Super Mario Bros.'' film embodies a {{wp|Dystopia|dystopian}} science-fiction and {{wp|cyberpunk}} feeling and setting. This is in part due to the film's art designer, {{wp|David Snyder}}, having previously been designer for the science-fiction cyberpunk film ''{{wp|Blade Runner}}'' and both directors of the film having previously created the satirical dystopian science fiction series ''{{wp|Max Headroom (TV series)|Max Headroom}}''. With ''[[Super Mario World]]'' having been released in North America less than two years prior to the film, the film carries a strong dinosaur theme and plot inspired by [[Dinosaur Land]].<ref>"We knew the game and we knew one of its areas was Dino World, so we thought that it would be a great place to go into." Statement by director Rocky Morton in Australian "Dinosaur Magazine," Starlog Telecommunications, Inc.{{page needed}}</ref> The film was a financial failure, grossing $38.9 million worldwide against a budget of $42–48 million, and was widely lambasted by critics, who criticized the plot, inconsistent tone, and lack of faithfulness to the source material, but praised the special effects, artistic direction, and cast performances. Many actors involved with the production of the movie reported highly negative experiences with the filming; notably, [[Mario (film character)|Mario]]'s actor, [[Bob Hoskins]], regarded it as his worst and most regrettable work. Despite appearing on several lists of the {{wp|List of films considered the worst|worst films ever made}}, the film has gained a cult following and has been described as a {{wp|cult film|cult classic}}.

In a 1989 issue of ''Los Angeles Times'', it was reported that "DIC Enterprises will produce a full-length animated feature film based on the characters from Nintendo's 'Super Mario Bros.' game" to be released in 1990.<ref>[http://articles.latimes.com/1989-04-17/entertainment/ca-1885_1_nintendo-s-super-mario-bros-dic-enterprises-animated-series] (Accessed on June 27, 2018)</ref> Similarly, in a 1990 issue of ''TV Guide'' magazine listing some upcoming animated movies, this movie was among those listed (suggesting it was originally meant to be animated) and scheduled for release in summer of 1991.<ref>[http://www.platypuscomix.net/bored/tvguidesimpsons5.html] (Accessed on September 22, 2009)</ref> ''Super Mario Bros.'' was released on VHS later in 1993, and was later re-released on DVD in 2003. On August 15, 2010, the DVD version was re-released in memory of Dennis Hopper, who had died two months earlier.<ref>[http://www.destructoid.com/super-mario-bros-the-movie-gets-re-released-on-dvd-181462.phtml]</ref> United Kingdom film distributer Second Sight Films later re-released the movie on both DVD and Blu-ray formats, originally stated to be released on August 11, 2014<ref>[http://www.smbmovie.com/SMBArchive/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=1786]</ref> before being delayed to November 3 due to needing to work on new extras.<ref>[https://www.facebook.com/SecondSightFilms/photos/a.155124601288648.33512.154695504664891/459359157531856/?type=1&permPage=1]</ref> A SteelBook special edition of the Blu-ray release with even more special features was released on February 13, 2017, exclusively through UK retailer {{wp|Zavvi}}.<ref>Dewell, Ron (December 30, 2016). [http://www.technobuffalo.com/2016/12/30/super-mario-bros-movie-getting-a-slick-re-release-on-blu-ray-with-a-steelbook-case/ Super Mario Bros movie getting a slick re-release on Blu-ray with a steelbook case]. TechnoBuffalo. Retrieved December 30, 2016.</ref> Over twenty minutes of deleted scenes were discovered in 2019.<ref>SMB Movie (April 18, 2020). [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-4yy9oBKN4 Exploring the Super Mario Bros. (1993) Extended Rough Cut Special: Restoration Commentary!]. ''YouTube''. Retrieved August 13, 2021.</ref>

For the film's 30th anniversary, a 4K restoration was screened in selected locations in Japan from September 15 to October 5, 2023.<ref>(August 8, 2023). [https://www.oricon.co.jp/news/2290128/full/ 30年前の実写映画『マリオ』9月に再上映 当時50億円で製作…吹き替えキャストに富田耕生・辻谷耕史ら]. ''Oricon News''. Retrieved August 13, 2023. ([https://web.archive.org/web/20230808003036/https://www.oricon.co.jp/news/2290128/full/ Archived] August 8, 2023, 00:30:36 UTC via Wayback Machine.)</ref><ref>@mario_1993_4K (October 5, 2023). [https://twitter.com/mario_1993_4K/status/1709780264996774334 🎬新宿ピカデリーでの上映 本日10.5(木)20:50の回がLASTです⭐️ スーパーマリオ  魔界帝国の女神 製作30周年 4Kレストア版 #実写マリオ #魔界帝国の女神]. ''Twitter''. Retrieved October 13, 2023. ([https://web.archive.org/web/20231013151035/https://twitter.com/mario_1993_4K/status/1709780264996774334 Archived] October 13, 2023, 15:10:35 UTC via Wayback Machine.)</ref> Additionally, a 30th anniversary release of the movie by Australian film distributer {{wp|Umbrella Entertainment}} was made available starting January 2024 on Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD formats, with both normal and "Trust the Fungus" Collector's Editions featuring new extra content.<ref>@UmbrellaEnt (October 12, 2023). [https://twitter.com/UmbrellaEnt/status/1712329094900400528 Here's SUPER MARIO BROS in its worldwide debut 4K with a NEWLY restored alternate workprint cut. We’ve taken it to the next level with the 'Trust the Fungus' Collector’s Edition which includes almost 500 pages of content and over 10 NEW extras! Pre-order: bit.ly/3LZKy4N]. ''Twitter''. Retrieved October 12, 2023. ([https://web.archive.org/web/20231012173341/https://twitter.com/UmbrellaEnt/status/1712329094900400528 Archived] October 12, 2023, 17:33:41 UTC via Wayback Machine.)</ref>

*{{wp|Lance Henriksen}} as [[King (film character)|The King]]

[[File:DinohattenTwo.jpg|thumb|The city of Dinohattan.]]

[[File:Devo Chamber.png|thumb|The Devo Chamber.]]

[[File:SMBMovieDesertFungus.png|thumb|Mario and Luigi are saved by the fungus.]]

[[File:YoshiTSMBM.jpg|thumb|Yoshi chained to the floor.]]

At Koopa's Tower, Daisy is looking out the window, but turns her attention to Yoshi when she sees him trying to bite his chain in two, and offers the dinosaur sympathy. Back in the desert, the Marios, along with Iggy and Spike, notice a garbage truck (the [[Sludge Gulper]]s), which is unloading the trash in the middle of the desert. They knock out the garbage men ([[Snifit]]s), hijack the truck, and drive back into the city.

Stepping onto Luigi's stompers, the brothers wave and flash a victory sign to the crowd as they jump over to Daisy, who embraces them. Meanwhile, in Devo 4, Daisy's father is restored to his former self.

In a post-credits scene, two Japanese businessmen comment to someone that they have a proposal to make a video game based on their many adventures, then ask for the game's name. The camera pans to reveal they are talking to Iggy and Spike, who suggest "''Iggy's World''" and "''The Indomitable Spike''," respectively, but then agree upon "''The Super Koopa Cousins''."

[[File:Bob Hoskins.jpg|thumb|Bob Hoskins, who played Mario in the film, expressed a distaste for his role.]]

Film producer {{wp|Roland Joffé}} visited [[Nintendo]] of America’s headquarters in 1991, and pitched his concept for a ''Super Mario Bros.'' film to then-president {{wp|Minoru Arakawa}}, after the idea was originally decided upon during a script meeting at Lightmotive Studios. Nintendo had already received several offers for a ''Super Mario'' movie, but Arakawa was interested by Joffé’s pitch, and the producer later flew to Nintendo's headquarters in Kyoto to present his pitch directly to [[Hiroshi Yamauchi]].<ref name="Wired">[http://www.wired.com/gamelife/2012/04/generation-xbox-super-mario-movie Why the Super Mario Movie Sucked]</ref> Joffé pitched the film as a prequel to the game<ref name="Grantland">[http://grantland.com/features/the-strange-case-super-mario-bros-movie/ Hollywood Archaeology: The Super Mario Bros. Movie]</ref>, described by him in his pitch as "'a food chain game — it tells us we’re all just somebody else’s dinner.'"<ref name="Wired"/> Nintendo later agreed to sell Joffé and {{wp|Jake Eberts}} the rights to produce a ''Super Mario Bros.'' film for $2 million,<ref name="Wired"></ref> while Nintendo would retain merchandising rights.<ref name="Game Informer">[https://web.archive.org/web/20130603124313/https://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2013/05/28/mario-s-film-folly-the-true-story-behind-hollywood-s-biggest-gaming-blunder.aspx?PostPageIndex=2 Game Informer: Mario’s Film Folly: The True Story Behind Hollywood’s Biggest Gaming Blunder]</ref> Other than imposing a deadline on production,<ref name="Game Informer"/> Nintendo exerted little creative control over the project; Joffé would later speculate that Nintendo was mostly interested in seeing if a big-budget movie would have any impact on the ''Super Mario'' brand.<ref name="Wired"></ref>

{{wp|Dustin Hoffman}}, looking to impress his kids, was the first to offer to play the role of Mario, but was let down by Bill White, who handled Nintendo of America's promotions at the time, as Nintendo wanted {{wp|Danny DeVito}} to direct and play Mario.<ref name="Grantland"/> However, DeVito wanted to read the script before signing on,<ref name="times-news">[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=6CAaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ZiQEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6519,1876640&dq=super+mario+bros+film+production&hl=en Mario: The Movie]. ''Times-News'' (January 11, 1991). Retrieved January 1, 2018.</ref> and ultimately declined in order to focus on his movie ''{{wp|Hoffa}}''.<ref name="Grantland"/> {{wp|Tom Hanks}} later agreed to play lead role for $5 million, which the studio decided was too much, and instead chose [[Bob Hoskins]] to be Mario, believing he would be more profitable.<ref name="Grantland"/><ref name="Game Informer"/> {{wp|Arnold Schwarzenegger}} and {{wp|Michael Keaton}} were both offered to play King Koopa but turned the role down.<ref name="Game Informer"/>

A treatment for the script was done by {{wp|Barry Morrow}}, but was turned down as it was seen as too dramatic. The job was then handed to Jim Jennewein and Tom S. Parker, who wrote a light-hearted fantasy tale comparatively closer to the source material. However, after the departure of Greg Beeman, the script went through multiple rewrites and revisions, each adding increasingly "darker" content and science-fiction elements.<ref name="SMBArchive">[http://www.smbmovie.com/SMBArchive/preproduction/script.htm SMBArchive: Scipts]</ref> Both the new directing team and Roland Joffé wanted a more adult-oriented production, justifying this direction by stating that ''Super Mario Bros.'' appealed to many demographics besides children.<ref name="Wired"></ref> A satirical, ''{{wp|Mad Max}}''-inspired script impressed the directors<ref name="Nintendo Life">Meli, Jowi.[http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2014/11/interview_rocky_morton_on_the_chaos_of_directing_the_super_mario_bros_movie Interview: Rocky Morton On The Chaos Of Directing The Super Mario Bros. Movie], ''Nintendo Life''. November 3, 2014 (retrieved November 3, 2014)</ref> and actors Bob Hoskins, [[Dennis Hopper]], and [[Fiona Shaw]],<ref name="SMBArchive"></ref> but was revised after receiving concerns from the studio that the film was straying too far from the family-friendly license. {{wp|Ed Solomon}}, one of the writers for ''{{wp|Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure}}'', was brought in to make further revisions, and despite production being well underway the directors were forbidden from working with him.<ref name="Game Informer"/> Director Rocky Morton has since defended the film's more dark direction and departure from the games, stating his intention for the movie was that it would be the "real story", while the ''Super Mario Bros.'' game was an unfaithful retelling after the Japanese had heard the story.<ref name="Nintendo Life"/><ref name="scifinow"/>

A featurette of the development of the film was also made, called ''[[The Making of... Super Mario Bros.]]'' It describes in detail the production of the movie, with behind-the-scenes interviews with much of the key cast and production staff. A book about the film's production was released the same year titled ''From Microchips to Moviestars: The Making of Super Mario Bros.''

{{main|List of Super Mario Bros. (film) deleted scenes}}

Bob Hoskins was particularly praised for his performance as Mario. Dennis Hopper's performance was praised as well, causing him to land villainous roles for more successful films such as ''{{wp|Speed (1994 film)|Speed}}'' the following year. John Leguizamo's and Samantha Mathis's performances helped kick them off into more successful productions. The film was also nominated for two {{wp|Saturn Awards}}, one being for Best Costume and the other for Best Make-up.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20070816030140/http://theenvelope.latimes.com:80/extras/lostmind/year/1993/1993sat.htm Past Winners Database]. ''The Los Angeles Times''. Archived on August 16, 2007. Retrieved January 1, 2018.</ref> The film was shortlisted for the category of Best Visual Effects at the {{wp|66th Academy Awards}}, but did not make the final nomination.<ref>Mavity, W. (January 22, 2017). [https://www.nextbestpicture.com/latest/a-history-of-visual-effects-shortlists-bake-offs A History Of Visual Effects Shortlists & Bake-Offs]. ''Next Best Picture''. Retrieved August 25, 2020.</ref>

In a 2007 interview with ''The Guardian'', Bob Hoskins stated that ''Super Mario Bros.'' was "the worst thing I ever did",<ref>[http://www.theguardian.com/film/2007/aug/03/2 The Guardian: The Method? Living it out? Cobblers!]</ref> and was especially critical of the directors, whom he thought of as arrogant.<ref>[http://www.angelfire.com/celeb/bobhoskins/interviews/sansebastian.html Transcript of an interview held at the San Sebastian Film Festival]</ref> In a later interview with ''The Guardian'', Hoskins answered with the film when asked, "What is the worst job you've done?", "What has been your biggest disappointment?", and, "If you could edit your past, what would you change?"<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2011/jun/18/bob-hoskins-interview-neverland Q&A: Bob Hoskins]. ''The Guardian'' (June 17, 2011). Retrieved January 1, 2018.</ref> [[Dennis Hopper]], when asked about his time on set, echoed Hoskins's statement, stating that he did not like working on ''Super Mario Bros.'' despite enjoying his time on ''{{wp|Waterworld}}'', a film notorious for its troubled production.<ref>[http://www.avclub.com/article/random-roles-dennis-hopper-2549 AV Club: Random Roles: Dennis Hopper]</ref> John Leguizamo also expressed a dislike of his role, writing in his 2006 autobiography ''Pimps, Hos, Playa Hatas, And All the Rest of My Hollywood Friends: My Life'', "Oh man [''Super Mario Bros.''] sucks. And I suck in it." Both Leguizamo and Hoskins have also mentioned that they were constantly drunk during filming to make the experience easier on themselves; this included a scene in which Leguizamo drove a vehicle.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ve26GpPDTgY The Super Mario Bros. Movie - Gaming Historian]</ref> However, Leguizamo would go on to reflect on the film more positively when recording a 20th anniversary message.<ref>[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5S0v_lrGlg John Leguizamo's Super Mario Bros. 20th Anniversary Message]</ref> The opinions of various background staff on the overall production were also more positive.<ref>[http://www.smbmovie.com/SMBArchive/specials/interviews/5_AndreaPowell_9-16-10.html Interview with Andrea Powell]</ref><ref>[http://www.smbmovie.com/SMBArchive/specials/interviews/4_MarkM_MikeH_8-31-10.html Interview with Mark Jeffrey Miller]</ref> Director Rocky Morton has also said that the movie's production was "a harrowing experience", but that he is proud that the film is still remembered and discussed among fans.<ref name="scifinow"/>

In a 2017 interview, [[Reggie Fils-Aimé]], discussing Nintendo's recent collaborations and partnerships, stated that the film "left a really bad taste in the mouth of our developers," commenting that Nintendo's lack of creative control over the project was what resulted in its failure,<ref>Rosenberg, Adam (October 30, 2017). [http://mashable.com/2017/10/30/nintendo-reggie-fils-aime-interview-super-mario/#w59IWSyrYgqo How Nintendo bounced back from the awful 'Super Mario' movie]. Mashable. Retrieved January 1, 2018.</ref> a sentiment that [[Illumination]] founder [[Chris Meledandri]] agreed with in a 2018 ''Variety'' news article.<ref>Lang, B. (November 6, 2018). [https://variety.com/2018/film/news/super-mario-bros-animated-movie-illumination-1203021006/ Inside Illumination’s Plans for Animated ‘Super Mario Bros.’ Movie]. ''Variety''. Retrieved November 7, 2018.</ref>

{| class="wikitable reviews"

!colspan="3"style="font-size:120%; text-align:center; background-color:silver;"|Reviews

|"''It's not enough to say the script, by another tag-team of writers, including Parker Bennett, Terry Runte ("Mystery Date") and Ed Solomon (the "Bill & Ted" movies), is obvious, the wisecracks flat or the characters--except for a few brief Brooklyn scenes at the beginning--thin as a razor and not as engaging. The level of inspiration here can be clued by the name of the dinosaur alternate world's Manhattan--it's called "Dinohattan." Does it make sense to make movies from video games? (Should Pac-Man be dangled in front of Danny DeVito?) Of course it does: commercial sense. Given the massive international popularity of the four Nintendo Mario Bros. games, this movie is virtually "pre-sold." But a built-in audience should be a challenge as well as a reassurance. On the non-technical level, "The Super Mario Bros." (MPAA-rated PG) dodges the challenge, drowns in the reassurance. The movie knocks your eyes out, at the same time it dulls the mind's eye. Ultimately, it's one more stop in the arcade, beckoning, waiting to soak up time and money.''"

|'''Siskel:''' "''It is ''[''a complete waste of time and money'']'', and I think you know the timing would have been right with this explosion in infotech (or whatever you want to call it, the computers and all that); kids are very sophisticated now, and if you could mirror that in some way, you could be a big bonanza. This film doesn't even try.''"<br>'''Ebert:''' "''What this movie shows is that it's a lot harder to make a high-tech movie like this than you would think, and when you see ones maybe that still have problems with, like, Batman Returns, it's so much better than this; that you would admire it more when you see something like this.''"

!colspan="3"style="font-size:120%; text-align:center; background-color:silver;"|Aggregators

|colspan=2|[https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/super_mario_bros 28%]<br>"''Despite flashy sets and special effects, Super Mario Bros. is too light on story and substance to be anything more than a novelty.''"

==Soundtrack==

[[File:OSTMario.jpg|thumb|Cover to ''Super Mario Bros. (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)'']]

===Tracklisting===

====Notes====

===Manga===

{{main|Super Mario: Makai Teikoku no Megami}}

''Super Mario: Makai Teikoku no Megami'' (スーパーマリオ {{ruby|魔界帝国|まかいていこく}}の{{ruby|女神|めがみ}}, "Super Mario: Goddess of the Demon World Empire") is a 34-page, one-shot manga published in {{wp|Shogakukan}}'s ''Gekkan {{wp|CoroCoro Comic}} Haruyasumi Zōkangō'' on March 23, 1993. It bears the same name as the film does in Japan, and was published shortly before its release to promote a behind-the-scenes book and a Japanese novelization. The manga loosely follows the events of the film, but omits a lot of characters and story points; for example, Lena, Bertha, Yoshi, Daniella, and Anthony Scapelli do not appear.  

The film ends in a cliffhanger, with Princess Daisy entering Mario and Luigi's home and asking them for help, saying "You're not going to believe this." This moment set up the possibility of a sequel film, but due to the critical failure of the film in both the box office and in critical reception, a sequel never came into fruition.

An unofficial webcomic sequel, written by Steven Applebaum and Ryan Hoss and illustrated by Eryk Donovan, was being written and published under the name ''Super Mario Bros. 2''. One of the film's surviving original writers, Parker Bennett, helped outline the webcomic's storyline.<ref>[http://smbthecomic.com/about/faq/ Super Mario Bros 2's FAQ page]</ref> The comic is loosely based on the American ''[[Super Mario Bros. 2]]'', directly following the end of the original film, and features Mario and Luigi trying to stop the game's villain, [[Wart]], from taking over the parallel world. It has not been continued since 2015.<ref>[http://www.smbthecomic.com/ Super Mario Bros. 2: The Sequel Comic]</ref>

===Subsequent animated ''Super Mario'' film===

On November 14, 2017, ''{{wp|The Wall Street Journal}}'' reported that a subsequent movie based on the ''Super Mario'' franchise was being planned by {{wp|Universal Pictures}} and [[Illumination]]. On February 1, 2018, Nintendo officially confirmed that Illumination would be developing an animated ''Super Mario'' film, co-produced by [[Shigeru Miyamoto]] and {{wp|Chris Meledandri|Chris Meledandri}}, aiming for a purported 2022 release. It was eventually released as ''The Super Mario Bros. Movie'' in April 2023, and stars [[Chris Pratt]] as [[Mario]], [[Anya Taylor-Joy]] as [[Princess Peach]], [[Charlie Day]] as [[Luigi]], [[Keegan-Michael Key]] as [[Toad]], [[Seth Rogen]] as [[Donkey Kong]], [[Jack Black]] as [[Bowser]], [[Fred Armisen]] as [[Cranky Kong]], [[Kevin Michael Richardson]] as [[Kamek]], and [[Sebastian Maniscalco]] as [[Foreman Spike|Spike]].

Though the story is only loosely inspired by the games, the movie includes many in-jokes and references relating to the games. Some can only be caught in a frame-by-frame viewing, such as the presence of Shigeru Miyamoto in the crowd{{ref needed}}. The following is a list of some of these references:

[[File:SnifitsMovie.jpg|thumb|The Snifits featured in the film.]]

*The junkyard workers are referred to as [[Snifit]]s with a vague resemblance, while a group known as the "[[Fungus Unit]]" resemble Snifits from the source material and (debatably) [[Shy Guy]]s.

*Several neon signs displayed in shots of the city read names of Mario characters/enemies. These include "Thwomp", "Bullet Bill's", "[[Hammer Bro]]s. tattoos", "[[Lil Sparky|Sparky]]'s", "[[Rex]]x", and "[[Ostro]]". There is also graffiti with references such as "[[Toad]]" and "[[Shy Guy]]".

|Cat=Super Mario Bros.<ref>[http://www.eldoblatge.com/fitxa/3638 www.eldoblatge.com] ''eldoblatge.com''. Retrieved May 5, 2024</ref>

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*[https://www.smbmovie.com/''Super Mario Bros.'' The Movie Archive]

*[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108255/ ''Super Mario Bros.'' on IMDB]

*[https://www.tc-ent.co.jp/sp/mario_movie_1993_jp/ 2023 4K rescreen website]

*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXbIYfAIgos "Super Koopa Cousins" Post-Credits Scene]

*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5S0v_lrGlg John Leguizamo's ''Super Mario Bros''. 20th Anniversary Message]