The Super Mario Galaxy Movie
It's entertaining and sweet. I liked that we saw more of Luigi and Mario together, the travel through the worlds and Star Fox appearance. A lot of action, many jokes, some cute moments. Luigi had hands down the best moments. What lacks most is the story. Some here say "Mario doesn't have a deep story anyway".
Alright, but this is a movie, not a game, right? Whole other dynamic. I would even argue that most newer Mario games also lack in the story. Sunshine is one of my favorite Mario games as it gives us a great own world and a pretty entertaining flow to follow. Wonder, for example, is just boring and doesn't bring in real new ideas, which does disappoint me but the games are fun (playing together) anyway. But this wont work as easily for a movie, which is the reason so many fans didn't like it as much.
It's chaotic and a tad too random. In the first movie we had a clear villian, a good easy introduction with Mario's family and the nice idea of having this real world and the world through the tubes. Most easter eggs were related to older games. In Galaxy I wish they would have kept only the Galaxy theme and perhabs Smash Bros references, without also a lot of Odyssey and Sunshine mixed in. Especially the finale felt rushed and way too much without being a proper highlight.
I wouldn't hate or even say it's a bad movie though. It's less good than the first but still enjoyable. The first had a nice mixture of references but telling it's own story, this one felt more like a easter egg mix. I hope they will become a bit more focused and creative for continuations. Hopefully without having to bring up again overused tropes of romances, difficult father-son relationships or similiar.
Jul 21, 2026