Movie is fun but lacks depth

By George Gust

The Hollywood commodification of existing intellectual property has become more transparent over the past few decades. While it’s no new trend that people want to see characters and stories they recognize, the Marvel phenomenon being the most successful thing in movies for almost 20 years has turned up the volume on existing characters. And for nearly 40 years there may not be a more recognizable character than Nintendo’s Mario, whose been a fixture in the homes of America for generations. Now we have the merger of the makers of “Minions” and the makers of the Super Mario franchise resulting in a movie that is fun and endlessly recognizable but lacks the ambition to be elevate the material past the superficial.

“The Super Mario Brothers Movie” follows a Brooklyn plumber named Mario (voice of Chris Pratt) who travels through the Mushroom Kingdom with a princess named Peach (voice of Anya Taylor Joy) and an anthropomorphic mushroom named Toad (voice of Keegan Michael Key) to find Mario’s brother, Luigi (voice of Charlie Day) and to save the world from a ruthless fire breathing Koopa named Bowser (voice of Jack Black).

“The Super Mario Brothers Movie” is a good-looking animated movie in the style of the “Despicable

Me” and “Sing” movies with the classic rendering of the classic Mario characters, a far departure from the mangled interpretation of the early 90’s live action adaptation. Fans of the characters and players of the many iterations of Mario games throughout the years will recognize countless Easter eggs during the 90-minute run time; from the various powerup items to the subtle nods the score makes to the impeccable video game soundtracks of the series. These visual, audible and story references are exactly what you would want and expect from a children’s interpretation of Mario, but in terms of film going experience there’s not much more beneath the surface. There are seedlings of character arcs in this movie, but the adventure storyline and inclusion of all the familiar aspects of what people love about Mario push those seeds to the side to fit in more references and set up the next action sequence.

Overall, “The Super Mario Brothers Movie” is exactly as advertised, a fun and entertaining children’s movie about the beloved plumbing brothers. The voice performances were all spot on for what the movie asks; Pratt’s voice work is decent here when the original outrage was that he didn’t sound like the video game voice, but the movie is able to explain this change in a satisfying way and Black really stands out for his larger-than-life performance and surprisingly musical interpretation of the big bad Bowser. And ultimately “The Super Mario Brothers Movie” does lack depth when compared to the Pixar style of storytelling, but for what Illumination and Nintendo were going for in this kind of kids focused video game movie it perfectly fits the bill for an entertaining afternoon at the movies with your family.

“The Super Mario Brothers Movie” is rated PG for action and mild violence.

3.8 out of 5 stars

To reach George Gust for a comment on this review, please e-mail gust.george@gmail.com

Answers on Page 19 makers of “Minions” comes the family friendly adaptation chioed plumber in ‘The Super Mario Brothers Movie.

Integris hires new doctor

Aaron Morgan, M.D., is a fellowship-trained hand surgeon with INTEGRIS Health Baptist Medical Center in Oklahoma City.

His areas of interest include adult hand surgery, particularly fingertip to forearm including trauma (broken hands/arms/work injuries), arthritis, nerve compression, nerve injuries, brachial plexus injuries, spinal cord upper extremity care, amputee care for prosthetic function, and pain control for both the upper and lower extremities (targeted muscle reinnervation).

He attended medical school and completed his plastic surgery residency at Oklahoma University Medical Center.

He then went on to specialize with a Hand and Peripheral Nerve Fellowship at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. He spent nearly five years at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, teaching residents and fellows before returning home to Oklahoma City.

He offices at INTEGRIS Health Medical Group Hand Surgery located at 5401 N. Portland Ave., Suite 600. He is accepting new patients. Call 405604-8485 .

Crossword Puzzle

Answers on Page 19