The Super Mario Bros. Movie not doing that great...

[MrPromey]

Where basically the draw to the project is more about the throw-backs, easter eggs, etc more than the actual film. The 80s retro stuff got so huge with Stranger Things, etc that people were focusing more on the set or nods... than actually creating good content.

Like most things... there is such a thing as 'too much of a good thing'. I think SMB has a good balance... the inclusions are not over the top and it doesn't feel forced all the time. You can still appreciate the characters/etc without a connection to their source.

I'm not so sure how much this movie can be appreciated without a connection to the source but I also don't feel like that connection is in place of a movie.

There is a lot they just don't explain. Some of that is because nobody familiar with the source needs an explanation and some of it is because there is stuff they've never explained in the source (that I'm aware of) and that's all stuff none of us really want a complicated back-story to make sense of.

We don't know how blocks float or how rainbow road is a thing or how Coopas become undead but we also don't really need or want to. We accepted all of this a long, long time ago.

When a certain turtle yells a certain color, we all know what it means - no explanation and no confusion about what just happened, there.

As a person with no point of reference, some of this would, I think, be confusing or make certain aspects of the movie seem a little too convenient or rushed.

But that's what makes this movie unique. It's hard to think of another franchise/IP where they could gloss over so much of it and have such a large audience be perfectly okay with that.

 

[flynnibus]

I'm not so sure how much this movie can be appreciated without a connection to the source but I also don't feel like that connection is in place of a movie.

There is a lot they just don't explain. Some of that is because nobody familiar with the source needs an explanation and some of it is because there is stuff they've never explained in the source (that I'm aware of) and that's all stuff none of us really want a complicated back-story to make sense of.

We don't know how blocks float or how rainbow road is a thing or how Coopas become undead but we also don't really need or want to. We accepted all of this a long, long time ago.

When a certain turtle yells a certain color, we all know what it means - no explanation and no confusion about what just happened, there.

As a person with no point of reference, some of this would, I think, be confusing or make certain aspects of the movie seem a little too convenient or rushed.

But that's what makes this movie unique. It's hard to think of another franchise/IP where they could gloss over so much of it and have such a large audience be perfectly okay with that.

I think you are over analyzing it.

Do you miss out on significance when you don't have the history? Of course... but it's not needed to follow or even get many of the gags.

Guy throws banana peel... you get, even if you never played mario kart. Stomping on turtle and it goes into a shell... or throwing a shell as a weapon... again, you don't need the reference to follow along with the concepts and their use.

Floating blocks... rainbow roads... ok, it's a video game world... again, don't need the history to decide if you will accept that as just part of the universe.

Even those with just a passing awareness of the SM universe will get many of the gags and references... and no one even needs it to just go along for the ride. The cuteness, the character plots, the conflicts, etc all come through on their own.

The biggest miss maybe "whats the story with these pipes?" -- but again the idea of a "through the looking glass" is not some concept people need the backstory on to recognize it as just some dimensional portal and leaving it at that.

 

[MrPromey]

I think you are over analyzing it.

Do you miss out on significance when you don't have the history? Of course... but it's not needed to follow or even get many of the gags.

Guy throws banana peel... you get, even if you never played mario kart. Stomping on turtle and it goes into a shell... or throwing a shell as a weapon... again, you don't need the reference to follow along with the concepts and their use.

Floating blocks... rainbow roads... ok, it's a video game world... again, don't need the history to decide if you will accept that as just part of the universe.

Even those with just a passing awareness of the SM universe will get many of the gags and references... and no one even needs it to just go along for the ride. The cuteness, the character plots, the conflicts, etc all come through on their own.

The biggest miss maybe "whats the story with these pipes?" -- but again the idea of a "through the looking glass" is not some concept people need the backstory on to recognize it as just some dimensional portal and leaving it at that.

Me?!

Over analyze?!

Surely you jest.

I think I'm just trying to reconcile a 57% critic score vs. a 96% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.

Reading through several of those reviews, it seemed like a lot of the reviewers simply didn't "get it" and weren't happy that they were expected to.

Not that this has anything to do with anything but after the end credits scene, a little boy in a front seat of our packed 3D viewing stood up and yelled "I'M KING OF THE WORLD!" at the top of his lungs while throwing his hands up into the air.

Everyone in the theater laughed and clapped.

I'm trying to remember the last animated Disney movie I've been to that ended with that kind of audience energy.*

I say that not as a dig but a lament.


*and yes, we still see 'em all in theaters.

 

[flynnibus]

I think I'm just trying to reconcile a 57% critic score vs. a 96% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.

Simply put.. Critics can't survive on just telling people "I liked it!" -- They **need** to analyze things or look for things to disect or compare simply because they have space to fill. Many focus on the process or the originality of the writing. Obviously things that are not going to score well for something that is a derivative product aimed at duplicating and reusing content that has been around for 40 years.

They are more fixated on the 'how' or critiquing more than simply "does it work?". Sometimes the outcome is simply better than it's individual parts and critics just aren't always a good litmus test for different demographics.

As much as they don't like films that are massively popular, they also adore films that many people can't tolerate at all.

The 57% thing I think people will forget super quick as long as the box office numbers support it as being perceived as well received. People are going to connect with "#1 film last week" far more than a rotten tomato's critic's avg.

 

[MoonRakerSCM]

Just saw it... And yes, I'm the target audience for the nostalgia and references, they were fun.

Overall though, meh. It was ok. Fun, but just ok.

No time for story or character development, things need to happen!!!!!!

 

[erasure fan1]

"Older" people just don't get the video game industry, at all. It's probably why so many people, from Comcast itself to this forum are in utter shock.

The strange thing is, it does seem a lot of younger people here, Well younger than me anyway and I'm an 80s kid, discount the medium as well. Old people have always struggled to understand video games. I think the issue with people on this site is they are programed to defend Disneys honor. They have a real problem admitting that Universal is a step ahead of Disney on this one.

It's sort of like Avatar as well being more successful than Galaxy's Edge since it brought in a "different" type of theme park goer, even though Star Wars had more going for it according to "experts.” I mean, Disney itself was so confident in it that they pulled a Disneyland Paris with its opening.

Well I think the experts were right about star wars having more going for it. And that's where the lesson of the Mario movie comes into play. Mario has a gigantic fan base just like star wars. The difference is Nintendo gave the core fans exactly what they expected/wanted. Disney decided against that with star wars. Disney, and so many of the defend Disney brigade here, said the core fan isn't needed anymore. We need these new fans who aren't really all that invested in the franchise.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

I saw they made more money on the first 5 days than any Disney/Pixar movie made in their entire run in the last 3 years

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Just saw it... And yes, I'm the target audience for the nostalgia and references, they were fun.

Overall though, meh. It was ok. Fun, but just ok.

No time for story or character development, things need to happen!!!!!!

…yep. Literally dozens of people are excited for the Marvels and the Rey Awakens…

…it’s the brand.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

The strange thing is, it does seem a lot of younger people here, Well younger than me anyway and I'm an 80s kid, discount the medium as well. Old people have always struggled to understand video games. I think the issue with people on this site is they are programed to defend Disneys honor. They have a real problem admitting that Universal is a step ahead of Disney on this one.

Well I think the experts were right about star wars having more going for it. And that's where the lesson of the Mario movie comes into play. Mario has a gigantic fan base just like star wars. The difference is Nintendo gave the core fans exactly what they expected/wanted. Disney decided against that with star wars. Disney, and so many of the defend Disney brigade here, said the core fan isn't needed anymore. We need these new fans who aren't really all that invested in the franchise.

It’s just more reinforcement of how BADLY new management and strategic revision is needed at TWDC. Textbook examples.

Mario is the latest…avatar was prior (a reminder: Disney did NOT make that movie)…and maverick before that.

You can do fan service while still not making the audience feel stupid. It creates an environment where people can have fun with no guilt.

That’s what the original Star Wars did. And that’s what they don’t get about movies now. Endgame was the last such movie released by Disney…now everything is “entangled” with baggage.

 

[Disstevefan1]

Well, personally I think Disney is better off making more Lucas and Encantos than Chicken Littles going forward.

Lucas and Encanto were good movies. I did not run to the theater to see them. We have not been to the movies since sometime in 2019.

We watch everything at home on streaming. I can't think of ANY movie I would go to see rather than watch it at home (even Top Gun!).

Are there enough movie goers that feel this way to make today's "Box Office" numbers invalid?

 

[MoonRakerSCM]

Movie going is crap these days and I don't blame people for not going to the theatre.

The kid in our 915p showing last night... Who was bored... And who's parents turned on a different movie for them to watch on their phone... With full volume sound... Just during our movie...

Idiots like that are why I want to watch films in a theatre with other people... Yup.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Well, personally I think Disney is better off making more Lucas and Encantos than Chicken Littles going forward.

I liked both those movies…a lot.

But since it wasn’t free money and a live action remake…brainless Bob just greenlit Toy Story 14

 

[Phroobar]

Movie going is crap these days and I don't blame people for not going to the theatre.

The kid in our 915p showing last night... Who was bored... And who's parents turned on a different movie for them to watch on their phone... With full volume sound... Just during our movie...

Idiots like that are why I want to watch films in a theatre with other people... Yup.

I had a guy that would laugh really loud during scenes that didn't call for a such a reaction. His wife kept checking her Instagram through the movie. I was going to have the usher come talk to them. The problem is people aren't used to putting away their phone since they watch tv this way at home.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Movie going is crap these days and I don't blame people for not going to the theatre.

The kid in our 915p showing last night... Who was bored... And who's parents turned on a different movie for them to watch on their phone... With full volume sound... Just during our movie...

Idiots like that are why I want to watch films in a theatre with other people... Yup.

It’s been building for years…

But the Covid shift to direct release of movies and “event tv” has really affected how people approach movies

 

[MrPromey]

It’s been building for years…

But the Covid shift to direct release of movies and “event tv” has really affected how people approach movies

My method is to always approach slowly from the front directly centered, whenever possible, with my hands open and visible but still close to my body in an effort to not display myself as larger than I am and with no sudden loud noises.

I find that this entirely non-aggressive advance usually works for me.

 

[erasure fan1]

You can do fan service while still not making the audience feel stupid. It creates an environment where people can have fun with no guilt.

I've been saying it for years. There is NOTHING wrong with fan service. When done properly, it is a very powerful tool that will enhance your film.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

I've been saying it for years. There is NOTHING wrong with fan service. When done properly, it is a very powerful tool that will enhance your film.

And create the franchise longevity Disney covets so desperately…

Or you suck Akbar out of a window for the purple hair Jurassic park lady

(Sorry…some wounds never heal )

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

My method is to always approach slowly from the front directly centered, whenever possible, with my hands open and visible but still close to my body in an effort to not display myself as larger than I am and with no sudden loud noises.

I find that this entirely non-aggressive advance usually works out for me.

Wait…they have bears/Rottweilers in you’re theaters?!?

COOL!!!

 

[MrPromey]

Wait…they have bears/Rottweilers in you’re theaters?!?

COOL!!!

No. Just... How can I put this?

... I live in Florida.

 

[Phroobar]

No. Just... How can I put this?

... I live in Florida.

That explains everything.