Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Toad, Bowser, and more Nintendo favorites are back in The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, which opens in theaters this week. The first reviews of the animated video game adaptation are now online and mixed. Some say it’s even better than the previous feature, 2023’s The Super Mario Bros. Movie, while others say it’s so much worse. Of course, either way, the fans will still eat it up, and it’s made specifically for them.
Here’s what critics are saying about The Super Mario Galaxy Movie:
Does it live up to expectations?
If the first film got you on the train, just know this sequel isn’t losing any passengers anytime soon; it’s simply picking up speed.
— David Gonzalez, The Cinematic Reel
If you’re ready to turn off your brain…there’s a lot of fun to be had in this sugar rush of a sequel.
— Jordan Williams, Screen Rant
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is my most enjoyable movie theater experience of the year already.
— Julian Lytle, RIOTUS
I was surprised, like anyone, to enjoy The Super Mario Galaxy Movie…The sequel levels up.
— M.N. Miller, InSession Film
It’s a good time. Just don’t expect it to stick with you once it’s over.
— Roberto Tyler Ortiz, Geek Vibes Nation
It never stops feeling like the product of someone mashing lifeless action figures together.
— Wilson Chapman, IndieWire
It’s more a loud, overstuffed reel of loosely connected comedy and action beats presented in mind-boggling onslaughts of color and detail.
— Eli Friedberg, Slant Magazine
How does it compare to the first movie?
It’s a far superior sequel to The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
— M.N. Miller, InSession Film
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie surpasses its predecessor by refining its tonal balance between nostalgia and entertainment.
— Katie Smith-Wong, Movie Marker
The operative word for this sequel to 2023’s smash hit The Super Mario Bros. Movie is “more,” as in more action, more characters, more Easter eggs, more everything.
— Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie offers a similar mind-numbing experience.
— Wilson Chapman, IndieWire
It’s fine, but doesn’t have the same spark as the original film.
— Kristen Maldonado, Pop Culture Planet
The first movie… was one of the best animated films in years. The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is one of the worst.
— Owen Gleiberman, Variety
Is it mostly for the fans?
This is very clearly made for fans of the Mario universe, and on that level, it delivers.
— Roberto Tyler Ortiz, Geek Vibes Nation
The sequel hits the sweet spot in terms of what its target audience wants.
— Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter
[It] is sure to appease long-time fans who are looking for the trip down memory lane, but the sequel offers something more than just nostalgia.
— Katie Smith-Wong, Movie Marker
It may feel like more of the same to some, but anything that takes me back to a CRT TV and SNES is a feeling I’ll take 100 out of 100 times.
— David Gonzalez, The Cinematic Reel
I look for times when I can get that just pure fan enjoyment… What Illumination and Nintendo do here is just make a pure love letter to what Super Mario is.
— Julian Lytle, RIOTUS
While the film leans into “newer” character tendencies to attract younger viewers, it honors the original enough to embrace both the old and the new with enjoyable results.
— M.N. Miller, InSession Film
Will anyone else enjoy it?
Adult non-aficionados will find little of interest other than the starry vocal cast.
— Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter
Anyone expecting a Pixar-like narrative with moving themes, carefully developed characters, and a memorable story won’t find it.
— Jordan Williams, Screen Rant
This isn’t a film that’s going to win over its skeptics.
— David Gonzalez, The Cinematic Reel
How is the animation and world-building?
This may be one of the studio’s best-looking efforts yet, with The Super Mario Galaxy Movie feeling even more visually alive than its already stunning predecessor.
— David Gonzalez, The Cinematic Reel
Featuring some of the most beautiful and dazzling animation you will ever see, it is, at times, truly jaw-dropping.
— M.N. Miller, InSession Film
The whole universe feels alive and rich. Luscious skies and so many textures from plants, seas, water animals, and skin textures. From bubbles to fires and ice to clouds, it just keeps throwing things at you, and it all looks so good.
— Julian Lytle, RIOTUS
Much like the first movie, the visually stunning animation continues to be a highlight in The Super Mario Galaxy Movie.
— Jordan Williams, Screen Rant
The animation is genuinely great. It’s bright, very detailed, and constantly creative in how it brings these worlds to life.
— Roberto Tyler Ortiz, Geek Vibes Nation
There’s no sense of discovery when it comes to these planets, meticulously created to resemble the games without nary a wrinkle of surprise to be found.
— Wilson Chapman, IndieWire
Are there plenty of Easter eggs?
Even though the Star Fox character is nothing more than a way to introduce a sequel, the other supporting characters and easter eggs throughout are richly rewarding.
— M.N. Miller, InSession Film
For ardent fans, it amounts to the meme of Leonardo DiCaprio pointing at the screen for 100 minutes, as familiar and deep-cut characters, locations, objects, musical cues, and icons appear.
— Jordan Williams, Screen Rant
It’s as if it exists only for us to pick out the game-referencing background details in panoramic action shots… and to threaten us with us with a Super Smash Bros. cinematic universe, given the multiversal cameos by non-Super Mario Nintendo characters.
— Eli Friedberg, Slant Magazine
The film keeps throwing things at you. It’s an orgy of video-game Easter eggs.
— Owen Gleiberman, Variety
Is the action worthy of the source material?
The action is exciting and inventive.
— M.N. Miller, InSession Film
The action is thrillingly staged with enough verve.
— Casey Chong, Fortress of Solitude
[Mario and Peach] shine as two distinct heroes with awesome action sequences.
— Katie Smith-Wong, Movie Marker
There’s always something happening in the background, and the action sequences are staged so incredibly well that it makes it so fun to watch instead.
— Roberto Tyler Ortiz, Geek Vibes Nation
The film’s surplus of action and chase scenes follows the same rigid formula of swooping camera movements and game power-up deus ex machinas that no sequence ever proves particularly exciting.
— Wilson Chapman, IndieWire
Does the movie’s pace seem to have gotten a mushroom boost?
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie doesn’t leave you time to catch your breath.
— Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter
Most of the time, the film exists to speed-shuttle audiences to the next visually overwhelming set piece.
— Eli Friedberg, Slant Magazine
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie doesn’t forget to take a breath every now and then.
— Casey Chong, Fortress of Solitude
If anything, the film only loses energy as it goes on, with the final confrontation proving particularly anemic and rushed, as if the film is hurrying along to avoid having to delve into its storylines with more than a surface skim.
— Wilson Chapman, IndieWire
How is the script?
Matthew Fogel’s screenplay, which mostly pays lavish fan service to its inspiration, also weaves in a few emotional elements.
— Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter
I’m glad the movie doesn’t let the fan service get in the way of telling a significantly improved story than the last time around.
— Casey Chong, Fortress of Solitude
It isn’t aiming to be a grand, life-affirming story, but pure escapism. That approach doesn’t always land, but when it does, it delivers a charming, whimsical ride.
— David Gonzalez, The Cinematic Reel
The sequel’s plot is unusually heartfelt, with the villains being three-dimensional, which is welcome.
— M.N. Miller, InSession Film
The story feels disjointed and lacks the emotional punch it’s building toward.
— Kristen Maldonado, Pop Culture Planet
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie doesn’t have a story to tell or themes to express so much as stick to a mandate of audience boxes to check.
— Eli Friedberg, Slant Magazine
Does it do a good job adapting the game?
It has a story that embraces the simplicity of the original game.
— David Gonzalez, The Cinematic Reel
I love the care Illumination does at continuing to translate all these little things into a story that feels right for Mario and the whole gang.
— Julian Lytle, RIOTUS
While [it’s] all clearly designed to appeal to young gamers, I don’t mean that the film replicates the experience of playing one of the Super Mario Bros. games. The first movie actually did.
— Owen Gleiberman, Variety
Somehow on screen, it all registers as flat, imagination packaged into the most cleanly corporate and focus-group approved form possible.
— Wilson Chapman, IndieWire
Is it funny?
Most of the jokes land, ranging from cute to amusing to downright funny.
— M.N. Miller, InSession Film
The humor mostly works. It’s silly, a little self-aware, and doesn’t take itself too seriously.
— Roberto Tyler Ortiz, Geek Vibes Nation
There’s a funny visual gag revolving around Mario’s inability to draw. And there are some amusing lines that seem designed to make us feel like we’re in on the jokes.
— Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter
In-jokes consistently remind audiences why Mario is the key player in Nintendo’s gaming history.
— Katie Smith-Wong, Movie Marker
One of the most successful gags in the movie is essentially a reskin of the famous Sloth DMV bit in Zootopia.
— Wilson Chapman, IndieWire
How’s the voice cast?
It’s an embarrassment of vocal riches… Many of the stars’ contributions here, especially those of Black and Glover, are outstanding.
— Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter
The voice cast… is easily the strongest part of the film.
— Roberto Tyler Ortiz, Geek Vibes Nation
Jack Black remains the most powerful and effective vocal performance in Galaxy after being the 2023 film’s standout, serving as the source of the most laughs throughout the story.
— Jordan Williams, Screen Rant
The voice cast delivers across the board… The real standout is Jack Black and Bennie Safdie as Bowser and Bowser Jr.
— David Gonzalez, The Cinematic Reel
Notable standouts include Safdie, who joyfully leans into Bowser Jr’s evilness, and Glen Powell, who seems to be revisiting his Top Gun: Maverick role as cocky pilot (and Star Fox series protagonist) Fox McCloud.
— Katie Smith-Wong, Movie Marker
Glen Powell is pretty perfect here as McCloud. I was glad it was more than a cameo.
— Julian Lytle, RIOTUS
Is Yoshi a great addition?
Donald Glover taps into a Groot-like tone for Yoshi, and it works surprisingly well.
— David Gonzalez, The Cinematic Reel
Yoshi’s scene-stealing appearance brings an added energy to the buddy movie-style dynamic between Mario and Luigi, possessing special powers beyond his cuteness overload.
— Casey Chong, Fortress of Solitude
I loved how they just folded him in without much exposition. It felt honest to the history of the character.
— Julian Lytle, RIOTUS
Don’t expect him to get that much to do, though: he’s here because he’s an iconic character rather than as a part of the story.
— Wilson Chapman, IndieWire
Are the villains still the best characters?
I found myself relating to the bratty Bowser Jr. way more than the lead heroes.
— Wilson Chapman, IndieWire
The one storyline that does stand out is the dynamic between Bowser and Bowser Jr. It’s still simple, but there’s at least a clear emotional throughline there.
— Roberto Tyler Ortiz, Geek Vibes Nation
Somehow, two Bowsers add up to less of a wowser than one.
— Owen Gleiberman, Variety
Does it have any other major problems?
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie doesn’t necessarily fix the frustrations that held the first film back. The story still leans thin, certain characters feel underutilized, and those looking for something deeper won’t suddenly find it here.
— David Gonzalez, The Cinematic Reel
The growing cast allows for plenty of fresh dynamics between Nintendo’s iconic characters, but The Super Mario Galaxy Movie hardly allows enough time to capitalize on them.
— Jordan Williams, Screen Rant
Charlie Day offers nothing to the Luigi character other than, to put it politely, a distinct voice that brings a beloved character down, which is grating.
— M.N. Miller, InSession Film
Will it leave us wanting more?
Franchise fans who enjoyed the original and just want to see more of their favorite iconography will leave The Super Mario Galaxy Movie itching for a third film.
— Jordan Williams, Screen Rant
Mario fans will not only be delighted with what’s on screen, but also be excited for what’s to come.
— Katie Smith-Wong, Movie Marker
There’s a distinct romantic vibe between Mario and Princess Peach (which I can’t wait to be explored in the next installment).
— Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is a fun placeholder while we wait for a Super Mario Bros. film worthy of the titular characters that fans deserve.
— M.N. Miller, InSession Film
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie opens in theaters on April 1, 2026.
Thumbnail image by ©Amazon MGM Studios
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