The Super Mario Movie

The Super Mario Movie (commonly referred to as Super Mario) is a 2004 American live action/CGI-animated action-adventure film written by Shigeru Miyamoto and directed by Conrad Vernon, John A. Davis, and Miyamoto. Based on "Super Mario" by Shigeru Miyamoto and Nintendo, it is the 2nd Mario adaption film after "Super Mario Bros." (1993), and the first CGI Mario adaption film. The film stars Charles Martinet, Samantha Kelly, Kenneth W. James in their respective roles, and guest stars Mike Myers, Alec Baldwin, Scarlett Johansson, Colleen O'Shaughnessey, Debi Derryberry, and Jim Carrey.

The film was conceived in March 2002 when Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies approached Canadian animation studio Games Animation Inc., and American animation companies O Entertainment and DNA Productions. John A. Davis of DNA Productions later approached Nintendo CEO Shigeru Miyamoto with plans to make a CGI film. Miyamoto's initial reaction was that he didn't want an adaption of Super Mario, as he was feared it would flop like "Super Mario Bros." (1993). But when John A. showed Miyamoto animation concepts of what the film would be, Miyamoto agreed on production for the film.

In May 2002, the film production began. DNA Productions was its CGI animation provider, along with Games Animation Inc. for traditional animation sequences, and O Entertainment for animation supervision.

Released on June 12th, 2004 in the United States by Paramount Pictures, and internationally by DreamWorks Pictures, the film was a critical box office success, grossing $1.695 billion against a budget of $75 million. The film received positive reviews from critics praising its story, voices, and animation. John Powell's musical score for the film was praised the most. Due to the commercial success, Shigeru Miyamoto allowed production for "The Super Mario Movie 2" (2007), which was animated by Blue Sky Studios.

Synopsis
After the princess of the Mushroom Kingdom got captured by Bowser, Mario and Luigi must go on a dangerous mission to save the princess, before it's too late.

Plot
It's another day in the Mushroom Kingdom, and Mario (Charles Martinet) had been protecting Princess Peach (Samantha Kelly) for years. But one night, the villainous Bowser (Kenneth W. James) kidnaps Peach, and takes her to his castle, Bowser's Castle. When Mario goes to check on Peach, she wasn't there. His first instinct was that she was out in the backyard planting flowers. But when he checked in the backyard, she wasn't there either. There was only one other possibility on what had happened to her; she got kidnapped by Bowser.

Then, a toad (Colleen O'Shaughnessey) informs Mario that the Princess was captured by Bowser. Then, Mario enlists the help of his brother, Luigi (Charles Martinet), to save the Princess from Bowser's wrath. But on the way, they ran into multiple helpers of Bowser's, most notably the Koopalings (Alec Baldwin, Kenneth W. James, Mike Myers, Scarlett Johansson), the Goombas (Alec Baldwin, Debi Derryberry), Koopa Troopas/Paratroopas (Mike Myers, Alec Baldwin), Lakitu (Jim Carrey), and Bowser's son, Bowser Jr. (Colleen O'Shaughnessey).

When they reach Bowser's Castle, the two are faced with the villainous Bowser, and the battle began. Mario was thrown to the edge of the bridge, just inches from falling off into the lava. But, a quick-thinking Luigi helped him up, and the two went back to the ongoing battle. Peach was undoubtedly worried for Mario, as he was the love of her life. The duo got across the bridge, and made it to the axe of the bridge. One swoop of the axe, and the chains would break, causing the bridge to collapse. Mario grabbed the axe, and swung with full force at the chain. The bridge collapsed, and Bowser fell into the lava, never to be seen again.

The duo unlocked the cage with a key, and they freed Peach from it. Peach was relieved that she was saved from the wrath of Bowser, and she was knowingly terrified. Mario told her all the hell was over, and that she was okay. The movie ends on a message; you can never have too many people, especially a beautiful princess for Mario.

In the post credits scene, Dry Bones Bowser, a skeleton version of Bowser, emerged from the lava below. A growl is heard, and it fades to black.

Voice cast
Charles Martinet as Mario and Luigi, two Italian brothers from the Mushroom Kingdom.

Samantha Kelly as Princess Peach, the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom, and Mario's fiance.

Kenneth Wendell James as King Bowser Koopa, an evil Koopa turtle with a spiky shell, and red flame hair, and is best known for willingly capturing Princess Peach. Kenneth also voices Ludwig von Koopa, one of Bowser's sons.

Mike Myers as Larry, Roy and Morton Koopa, three of Bowser's sons, Paratroopas, and Koopa Troopas.

Scarlett Johansson as Wendy O. Koopa, Bowser's daughter.

Alec Baldwin as Iggy and Lemmy Koopa, two of Bowser's sons, Koopa Troopas, Paratroopers, and Goombas.

Debi Derryberry as Goombas.

Colleen O'Shaughnessey as Bowser Jr., Bowser's biological son.

Jim Carrey as Lakitu, a Koopa riding a cloud, dropping Spinies.

Production
The film was conceived in March 2002 when Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies approached Canadian animation studio Games Animation Inc., and American animation companies O Entertainment and DNA Productions. John A. Davis of DNA Productions later approached Nintendo CEO Shigeru Miyamoto with plans to make a CGI film. Miyamoto's initial reaction was that he didn't want an adaption of Super Mario, as he was feared it would flop like "Super Mario Bros." (1993). But when John A. showed Miyamoto animation concepts of what the film would be, Miyamoto agreed on production for the film.

In April 2004, a trailer was previewed on DVD and VHS.

Animation
Test animations were created in April 2002, and animators at DNA Productions knew the film had to follow the exact style of Mario. A script was written by Davis and Miyamoto, and the full animation soon began on May 2nd, 2002. Paramount Pictures knew that if it was going to be a Mario movie, it had to be done right. Tweaks in the CGI animation was made in August 2002, and a 30 minute animation preview was shown at DNA Productions. It was well animated, and of course needed to be extended. Paramount went for a 90 minute runtime for the film.

Lines provided by Charles Martinet, Samantha Kelly, Kenneth W. James, Mike Myers, Alec Baldwin, Scarlett Johansson, Colleen O'Shaughnessey, Debi Derryberry, and Jim Carrey were recorded at Paramount Recording Studios in Santa Monica, California. In May 2003, the film animation was in its halfway point.

In May 2004, the film was finally finished, and DNA animators were checking for CGI animation errors and mistakes made within the film production. The film had very little animation mistakes and errors, and the animators left the movie as is, and sent the final movie to the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA). The film received a "PG" rating, indicating Parental Guidance. It was rated PG for mild language, peril, thematic themes, and violence.

Overall, the budget was approximately $75 million.

Music
The Super Mario Movie 's score was composed by American film composer John Powell. What John A. Davis and Shigeru Miyamoto wanted in the score was dramatic and soft/lighthearted tones of music, and John Powell soon delivered. In the beginning of the movie, John Powell's recreation of the Mario theme is heard playing, which caught Miyamoto's attention drastically.

The following songs are: 'Super Mario! Theme (length: 2:13), The Mushroom Kingdom (length: 1:39), Bowser Captures Peach (length: 0:50), We Must Save The Princess! (length: 4:54), Battle With The Koopalings (length: 5:49), Bowser's Lair/The Showdown (length: 5:46), You're Saved' (length: 1:54).

End credits songs include: Hang On by Smash Mouth (length: 2:55), and 'Super Mario! Theme' (length: 2:13).

Release
The Super Mario Movie premiered at the Paramount Backlot Theater on June 9th, 2004, to positive acclaim by test audiences. The film was soon released to the USA on June 12th, 2004. The film received generally positive reviews from critics, and became a commercial success.

Home media
The Super Mario Movie was released onto DVD and VHS in the United States on August 20th, 2004. The film was later released on Blu-Ray on January 14th, 2008.

Box office
The Super Mario Movie opened theatrically on June 12th, 2004 and grossed $194 million in its opening weekend, ranking first in the North American box office, ahead of Garfield: The Movie and The Chronicles of Riddick. The film ended its theatrical run on December 12th, 2005, having grossed $684 million in the United States and Canada, and $361 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $1.239 billion.

2020 re-release
In February 2020, before the COVID-19 pandemic, The Super Mario Movie premiered in theaters for a second theatrical re-run. The run ended in July 2020, and the film grossed $177 million in the United States and Canada, and $279 million in other territories, for the current worldwide total of $1.695 billion.

Critical response
Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 92% "Certified Fresh" approval rating based on 84 critics, with an average rating of 9.2/10. Its critical consensus reads: "Packed with action themes and a dramatic number of sequences, "The Super Mario Movie" is a perfect film adaption to a beloved gaming franchise." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 98 out of 100 based on reviews by 58 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film a rare grade of "A+" on an A+ to F scale.

Paramount+ Streaming
The Super Mario Movie was streamed on Paramount+ on May 29th, 2021.

Video game
Nintendo and Paramount Interactive released the video game "Super Mario Movie: The Game". It was released on April 15th, 2005 in the United States and Canada, April 29th in the United Kingdom, May 3rd in New Zealand and Australia, and May 10th in other European territories.

The game opened to positive reception, with Metacritic giving it a 95 out of 100 based on 39 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim". GameSpot ranked the game a 9/10, giving it praise for its gameplay and visual effects.

Sequel
After the box office success of the film, Shigeru Miyamoto allowed plans for a sequel to the movie. In 2006, DNA Productions, the company that animated the first film, went defunct due to bankruptcy issues, and the company was absorbed into Omation Animation Studios.

The lease with Paramount Pictures expired in July 2005, and the deal was acquired by the late 20th Century Fox Film Corporation for $350 million in 2005. After Fox bought the lease of the CGI Mario film series for $350 million, Blue Sky Studios, having just been done with Robots (2005), began making drafts for the sequel.