Product: Super Mario Bros. [VHS] (1993)
Rating: 5.0
Imagination gone wild. Cyberpunk for kids
I first saw the trailer for this movie when I was 13 years old and I went and saw TMNT 3 in the theater back in 1993. And I couldn't have been more excited for a movie than I was for Super Mario Bros. It was my favorite video game becoming a live action movie. I was lucky enough to see a sneak preview of it before it opened, and unlike the critics, I loved every minute of it and I still do. Sure, the story is a bit all over the place and at times lacks focus. But it is a visually stunning looking film that I truly believe should have at least been nominated for Set Design. Alot of people have said this film is like "Blade Runner For Kids". And I can definitely see the resemblence in the visual style of both films. The actors do a really good job for the type of material it is. Dennis Hopper eats up the scenery every chance he gets, and for this type of role, thats a good thing because he just goes all out. Hoskins And Leguizamo have gone on record as not enjoying doing this film, (and according to Hoskins, thats an understatement). But they have a good rapport with each other and you can tell that these brothers really care for each other. The special effects are fantastic and the film score by Alan Silvestri is just the right amount of playful and adventurous. Samantha Mathis, a crush of mine since I was 11. Is great as the princess. She's definitely tough but a tad vulnerable. As I said, the storyline could have used a little more focus and direction, but according to the behind the scenes stories I have read, that was hardly the writers fault, but the fault of 2 directors who let the big budget get ahead of them and sabotage an already iffy production. This movie is frequently cited as the poster child for why video game movies don't work. But let's be honest here, there have been MUCH worst video game films. *cough* Uwe Boll *cough*. Lately I have seen a small cult following that this movie has amassed. And while I don't think it will have the kind of following that "Rocky Horror" or the like has, I still think people needs to look past the jumbled narrative and just have fun with an old fashioned "Save the princess" type of movie. It's really worth a second glance.