In the annals of video game adaptations, few films stand quite as infamous as Super Mario Bros., released in 1993. Starring Bob Hoskins as Mario and John Leguizamo as Luigi, the film was bereft with strange directorial and production choices that left the film resembling nothing like its source material, an almost cursed production with terrible treatment of extras and cast-members, and a puzzingly inept interpretation of what should've been an easy narrative, all owed almost exclusively to the terrible writing and strange auteur-stylings of its married director team.
So terrible was this film that it actually turned Nintendo off from any future film adaptations of their properties until Detective Pikachu in 2019, to average but generally pleased reviews by audiences and critics. Thus when it was announced in 2018 that Nintendo was working to create yet another adaptation of their most famous property, people immediately took note, not entirely positive either.
This attention grew even higher when it was announced that Chris Pratt, the man who I have begun to refer to as the modern John Wayne (in that he only ever really plays himself in most of his films), would be voicing one of the world's most popular video game mascots. I, like the internet, was utterly shocked and befuddled by this choice, especially when Charles Martinet, the actual voice actor for Mario, wasn't even considered for the role. It left everyone anxious for just what kind of film Nintendo was willing to adapt to the screen.
Thus when the 2022 Nintendo Direct revealed the first teaser for The Super Mario Bros. Movie, the internet latched on with the force of a leech. With so much excitement, how could I not make it the subject of my next Trailer Talk?
Short answer? I couldn't. So let's take a look at the trailer and see what catches my attention.
