- Starring
- Chris Pratt, Anya Taylor-Joy, Charlie Day
- Directors
- Aaron Horvath, Michael Jelenic
- Rating
- PG
- Genre
- Action, Adventure, Children, Fantasy
- Release date
- April 13, 2026
Overall Score
Rating Overview
Rating Summary
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie: In the cold, star-filled void of deep space, Mario and Luigi are hurled into a sprawling galactic wilderness where entire planets drift like islands in the darkness. Tasked with recovering stolen Power Stars, the brothers leap across hostile worlds and crumbling celestial ruins, facing Bowser’s most ruthless forces yet.
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie Review
We’ve seen this pattern play out countless times: a studio, eager to capitalize on the success of a breakout hit, cranks every perceived strength of the original up to eleven, only to watch the whole thing collapse under its own excess. What once felt fresh becomes bloated, mechanical, and hollow. That’s exactly what’s happened with The Super Mario Galaxy Movie.
One of the major criticisms of 2023’s The Super Mario Bros. Movie was Luigi’s marginalization. Instead of functioning as a true co-lead, he was pushed to the sidelines while Peach was elevated into a leadership role that felt, at best, unearned. Worse, this shift reduced Mario himself to something closer to a supporting character in his own story. It was a strange creative decision, but at least it didn’t completely derail the film.
Here, that imbalance isn’t corrected—it’s doubled down on. Following the massive success of the 2023 film, Illumination and Nintendo seem convinced they’ve cracked the cheat code, and The Super Mario Galaxy Movie reflects a studio fully indulging that belief. Mario and Luigi are now firmly secondary players, orbiting Peach as she takes center stage on what is framed as her hero’s journey. The problem is, the film never does the work to justify that shift. Instead of expanding the dynamic, it flattens it, leaving the franchise’s core duo feeling like afterthoughts.
That would be easier to overlook if the journey itself were compelling, but it isn’t. Nostalgia, which played a significant role in the original film’s success, is no longer a feature here; now it’s a bug. Where the first film sprinkled in references that audiences could enjoy organically, this sequel drowns itself in them. Every scene feels engineered to trigger recognition rather than emotion.
The result is less a cohesive story and more a string of loosely connected set pieces. The film barrels through characters, locations, and iconography at such a relentless pace that nothing is given room to breathe. We’re meant to care about the relationship between Peach and Rosalina because we are meant to, not because the dramatic work is put in to foster those feelings organically. What passes for a plot is little more than a delivery system for Easter eggs—nostalgia bait stretched thin over a skeletal narrative.
Structurally, the movie plays like a series of game levels rather than a film, and that choice completely undermines the pacing. The core cast is shuttled from one environment to the next via increasingly convenient contrivances, but without any sense of buildup, transition, or payoff. Scenes don’t flow into one another, and at each stop, the ever-increasing cast encounter a new character—often functioning more like brand placement than a meaningful addition—who just happens to provide exactly what’s needed to clear the next minor obstacle. Then it’s on to the next level, rinse and repeat. The result is a film that feels oddly sluggish despite constant movement. There’s no escalation, no tension, and no narrative momentum. Instead of being swept along, you’re left waiting for something—anything—to actually matter.
Meanwhile, the film tries to juggle multiple side plots, none of which receive enough attention to matter, thanks to the filmmakers’ need to cram in every side character and digital locale from your childhood. Mario’s ongoing internal debate about asking Peach to be his girlfriend feels both out of place and underdeveloped, lacking the emotional groundwork needed for it to resonate. At the same time, Bowser—voiced once again by Jack Black and one of the standout elements of the previous film—is largely reduced to sitting on the sidelines, engaging in repetitive conversations with his son. What was once a highlight becomes background noise.
To the film’s credit, it is undeniably beautiful. The animation is vibrant, detailed, and often genuinely impressive, bringing the worlds of Mario to life with a level of polish that’s hard to fault. The voice performances are also perfectly serviceable across the board. But none of it lands with any real impact. Strong visuals and capable performances can elevate good material—but they can’t compensate for a story this thin. The actors are left doing what they can with flat, underwritten characters, and it shows.
In the end, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie isn’t just a case of a sequel missing the mark—it’s a case study in misunderstanding what made the original work in the first place. More characters, more references, and more spectacle don’t automatically translate to more enjoyment. Without a strong narrative core to hold it all together, the film collapses into a noisy, disjointed experience—one that feels less like a movie and more like a highlight reel stitched together by obligation rather than inspiration.
PARENTAL NOTES
Living on the Edge
- There’s an occasional borderline edginess to some of the humor.
- More than one evil character discusses killing the heroes. Rather than allude to it or use ambiguous euphemisms, someone will use the word “kill.”
- Bowser’s son openly wants to “destroy the universe.”
- As a callback to the original, the psychotic blue star returns as a prison guard this time around.
- He says things like, “Hello maggots” and “the approaching drumbeat of death,” all delivered in a soft and creepy voice.
- More than one evil character discusses killing the heroes. Rather than allude to it or use ambiguous euphemisms, someone will use the word “kill.”
WOKE REPORT
Peach Tea
- There was a hint of this in the last movie, but The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is a Princess Peach movie with Mario in it… occasionally.
- The story completely revolves around her. She drives the action and is the film’s hero.
- Just like the last film, she saves the day as Mario and Luigi run interference.
- Mario and Luigi exist as little more than sidekicks and occasional comic relief.
- The story completely revolves around her. She drives the action and is the film’s hero.
Snoitome
- Mario is consumed by his desire to ask Peach to be his girlfriend (his primary arc). He and Luigi talk about their feelings and relationships like a couple of girls. Meanwhile, Peach clears entire levels’ worth of bad guys in a matter of seconds.
Literal ‘Girl Power’
- Peach (who is an extra girl-boss in this one) and Rosaline (who is an extra girl-boss demi-god) must come together to combine their girl power into literal cosmic-level girl power.
Have Your Villains Spayed and Neutered
- Bowser spends virtually the entire movie as a soft and caring non-entity who has to be reminded of his toxic need to conquer and destroy.
James Carrick
James Carrick is a passionate film enthusiast with a degree in theater and philosophy. James approaches dramatic criticism from a philosophic foundation grounded in aesthetics and ethics, offering insight and analysis that reveals layers of cinematic narrative with a touch of irreverence and a dash of snark.
Might as well just call this the Super Peach Galaxy Movie!
I think this review slightly understates how much Mario is in it. Mario and Luigi both get a big amount of screentime, and their “running interference” is them participating in the most important fight of the movie. Luigi, in particular, enjoys an expanded role from the last film.
Lots of references, lots of fanservice, and the plot is nothing that you won’t see coming from a mile off. But my kid enjoyed it, as did (seemingly, based on laughter etc.) many other children in the theater.
I loved the movie, and I didn’t see anything woke in it aside from the fact that Peach gets angry a couple times (never at Mario, though).
I think if you’re expecting a plot, you’re going to the wrong movie theater. It’s Mario, man. Some people have forgotten that he’s a children’s game adapted into a children’s movie. It’s made for kids. If you want a plot with emotional payoff, go see Nolan’s “The Odyssey” next year. I appreciated being able to take the kids to see a clean movie with no hidden agenda.
SPOILER ‼️
If this were a drama with a target audience of grown ups, I might agree with the bad review and ratings. It’s a kid’s movie. It’s a high tech cartoon.
I took my 8 and 10 year old grandkids, with their Dad, to see it. They loved it. They laughed all through it. The whole theater laughed and seemed to enjoy it as much as we did. They were mainly teenagers. I’m happy somebody makes movies without Woke nonsense. I personally saw no Woke or even a hint of Woke.
I you want a fun afternoon with your kids go to the theater, get popcorn, candy and sodas and enjoy Mario, Luigi, Peach and all the of the rest of the Nintendo characters for a couple of hours.
This movie was… OK. It was rather disjointed and frenetic. I don’t remember all of the scenes, there were just too many. Mario and Luigi did not seem like the main focus of the movie. The main focus of the movie seemed to be the princesses. And the whole mom thing was a bit much for me. It wasn’t bad. It was what I was expecting, really. A saccharine movie with highly saturated colors and lots of frenetic action. Good for keeping young kids who like the Mario franchise entertained for a little bit. I think it hit that target demographic reasonably well. All in all, a forgettable movie, but not an unpleasant time. If you just want a bit of forgettable entertainment, this is fine. If you want a better movie, and your kids aren’t too young (assuming you kids), see Project Hail Mary.
Biggest movie of the year. “Get woke, get broke” is dead in 2026
***WARNING!!! SPOILERS AHEAD!!!***
Now, to be fair, those feminist BS moments don’t last that long, and as long as they are NOT happening:
– The movie has tons of fan service, and I mean TONS OF IT, especially for very old gamers (like me).
– The scenes with Mario & Luigi are super fun and enjoyable.
– The animation, colours, music and sound effects they used are exquisite, it looks and sounds AMAZING.
– It DOES have a damsel in distress.
– The action NEVER stops, and that’s a very good thing. You NEVER get bored, it never feels like a too-long movie.
– Even though Peach feels invincible (facepalm), she still uses some of her Smash Bros. moves, like the hip attack, which is a very nice feminine touch.
– Speaking of Peach, females actually look like women, boobs and everything (which is more than I can say about that Hoppers crap), as they should look, without being oversexualized for kids at all.
– There are no LGBTQ characters except for Birdo, who is on screen for about 13 seconds and acts perfectly normal, who cares?
– No visual DEI that I can recall or any BS like that.
– Mario, Luigi, and Bowser (all men) openly express several times that they are attracted to women, as it should be.
– Whenever there are kisses on the cheek between males, or a slight acting-gay moment, it’s 100 % clear that it is pure old-school comedy and NOTHING ELSE (Looney Tunes style).
– One of the main plot points is that people don’t change, which is amazing, considering that woke propaganda is often ‘be whatever you want to be’, even if it makes no sense or is the complete opposite of what you actually are.
– The movie contains a ‘Do a barrel roll!’ moment, which on its own is just… absolutely… AWESOME.
I enjoyed it a lot at the age of 43. I’ve watched it twice, and it felt even better the second time since I was watching it with with a friend who also experienced the NES era. I’m planning to watch it again at least 3 more times. I could NEVER call this a kids’ movie, though, it totally hits you with nostalgia, making you (a grown up) feel like a kid again.
I actually disagree with this review. I love this website and is pretty much right on, but its ok to disagree…and I do lol. thought there was plenty of Mario, and he showed sacrifice and strength. It was fun and exciting, and nothing really woke to me. Think its a good family movie that kids will enjoy
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fun to watch, nostalgia bait, silly gags – modern try hardism to turn everything scary into cute or funny. dont like that last part the most. I agree it was flat on the story depth part. Mario RPG the video game was pretty amazing as a story and yet hollywood still falls short on delivering something similar. And yes, Mario as more of a supportive character in his own movie. He was Shamed for liking Princess Peach, and as the modern feminists would have it – goes out of his way to do her solids while still in the friend zone.
I’m glad they didnt bring back the obnoxious and terribly voice acted Donkey Kong.
Despite too much flashing lights, i preferred this Mario movie to the first one. But Hollywood coulda done better story wise in this day and age – we all know this. They also coulda done worse so i am not sure how i feel exctly. Happy they didnt go full woke? yes, Happy with the final product? well. its forgetable. but its a kids movie so…..
btw. the first movie in the series really made use of the traditional Hollywood propaganda Machine showing how “Family’ is ###### up, doesnt accept you and only makes fun of you – until its convenient and they see you are successful. this one didnt really do that – however there was a start contrast here between “feminine” family and “masculine” family. i mean… wasnt overtly drawing attention to it so i let it slide. but some of you might catch my drift.
Thank you James for your Review!
I get it. As a Mario lore fest it’s superb, an A+. But as a well paced film, it’s average or below average, a C or D. Generational Nintendo fans are just happy this ain’t your fathers’ Mario movie with shrunken head goombas in trench coats.
Me (the adult) says it was not bad. Kids will say it was good. The younger the kid, the more they will like it. (Assuming they are familiar with the video games).
Very little in the way of woke elements. The two princesses get as much star time as Mario and Luigi (maybe more). That’s about it.
I can’t say I liked it quite as much as the first one, but there are very few family-friendly kids movies being made. So please go and support them when they come.
Even less “woke-ish” than the first movie. I’m sure the author gave woke points for rather dumb reasons.
A pale comparison to the first.
The only thing about this movie that could even be loosely considered Woke is the fact that you do still have Peach spending most of the movie in an active role as opposed to being captured. Rosalina, however, does spend most of the movie in a “damsel in distress” zone and is in need of rescuing.
The Mario/Luigi bits are good, and while the movie isn’t the best thing ever, I would say it’s worth seeing if you’ve got kids. My kid, as well as all the others in the theater, seemed to have a good time.
I had an enjoyable time and didn’t see anything that I flagged as particularly objectionable. If you enjoyed the first movie, you’ll probably enjoy this one.