Super Mario Bros. (film)

"Super Mario Bros.: The Movie" redirects here. For the 2023 animated film, see The Super Mario Bros. Movie.

Super Mario Bros.
Mario and Luigi wear blue overalls and large boots, standing outlined by a large metallic "M".
Theatrical release poster by Steven Chorney
Directed by
Written by
Based onMario
by Nintendo
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyDean Semler
Edited byMark Goldblatt
Music byAlan Silvestri
Production
companies
Distributed byBuena Vista Pictures Distribution (United States)[1]
Entertainment Film Distributors (United Kingdom)[2]
Release date
  • May 28, 1993 (1993-05-28)
Running time
104 minutes[3]
Countries
  • United States[2]
  • United Kingdom[2]
LanguageEnglish
Budget$42–48 million[4][5]
Box office$38.9 million[6]

Super Mario Bros. (also known as Super Mario Bros.: The Movie) is a 1993 fantasy adventure[7] comedy film based on Nintendo's Super Mario video game series. The first American feature-length live-action film based on a video game,[8] it was directed by the husband-and-wife team of Rocky Morton and Annabel Jankel, written by Parker Bennett, Terry Runté, and Ed Solomon, and distributed by Buena Vista Pictures through Hollywood Pictures. It follows brothers Mario (Bob Hoskins) and Luigi Mario (John Leguizamo) in their quest to rescue Princess Daisy (Samantha Mathis) from a dystopic parallel universe ruled by the ruthless President Koopa (Dennis Hopper).

Development began after producer Roland Joffé obtained the Mario film rights from Nintendo. Given free creative license by Nintendo, which believed the Mario brand was strong enough for experimentation, the screenwriters envisioned Super Mario Bros. as a subversive comedy influenced by Ghostbusters (1984) and The Wizard of Oz (1939). The setting was inspired by the game Super Mario World (1990) with elements drawn from fairy tales and contemporary American culture. The production innovated and introduced many filmmaking techniques considered pivotal in the transition from practical to digital visual effects, including the use of Autodesk Flame. Filming took place from May to July 1992.

Released on May 28, 1993, Super Mario Bros. was a critical and financial failure, grossing $38.9 million worldwide against a budget of $42–48 million. Although the film received generally unfavourable reviews at release and appeared on several lists of the worst films ever made, it has developed a cult following over the years.[9][10][11] In 2013, a webcomic sequel was produced in collaboration with Bennett.

After Super Mario Bros., Nintendo would not license another film based on the Super Mario game series until the 2023 animated film titled The Super Mario Bros. Movie.

  1. ^ a b c d e "Super Mario Bros. (1993)". AFI Catalog of Feature Films. Archived from the original on February 19, 2018. Retrieved February 18, 2018.
  2. ^ a b c "Film #53146: Super Mario Bros". Lumiere. European Audiovisual Observatory. Archived from the original on June 16, 2020. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
  3. ^ "Super Mario Bros. (PG)". British Board of Film Classification. June 9, 1993. Archived from the original on March 21, 2023. Retrieved April 26, 2016.
  4. ^ "Super Mario Bros.". The Numbers. Nash Information Services, LLC. Archived from the original on May 29, 2020. Retrieved June 22, 2021.
  5. ^ "Super Mario Bros.". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved June 22, 2021.
  6. ^ Klady, Leonard (January 3, 1994). "Int'l top 100 earn $8 bil". Variety. p. 1.
  7. ^ "Super Mario Bros". Allrovi. Rovi Corporation. Archived from the original on January 25, 2012. Retrieved September 19, 2011.
  8. ^ "Super Mario Bros.: The First Movie Based On A Video Games". www.warpedfactor.com. Geek Dave. Archived from the original on November 24, 2020. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
  9. ^ Rafael Sarmiento (May 19, 2020). "5 Reasons The Super Mario Bros. Movie Isn't That Bad (And 5 Why It Is)". Screen Rant. Archived from the original on December 7, 2020. Retrieved December 6, 2020.
  10. ^ Kate Raposo (November 24, 2020). "It ain't no game indeed!". The Strand. Archived from the original on December 7, 2020. Retrieved December 6, 2020.
  11. ^ Brittany A. Roston (August 17, 2019). "1993 Super Mario Bros. movie deleted scene discovered on old VHS". Slash Gear. Archived from the original on December 7, 2020. Retrieved December 6, 2020.