The Super Mario Galaxy Movie (2026)

Where the hell were Bob Hoskins and John Leguizamo???

That said, some stuff did tickle me. The Star Fox cameo absolutely rips. The puppet sequence with the Bowsers doing the puppeteering is the single most creative thing in the movie and I want to know who fought for it in the room. And honestly, watching them slowly tick boxes for what is clearly a Nintendo Cinematic Universe leading to some Avengers-ass Smash Bros movie is fascinating in a horrifying way.

But man, the voice cast is asleep at the wheel. You could splice in a Chris Pratt “woo hoo” soundboard and I don’t think anyone would notice. Donald Glover as Yoshi is a choice I will be turning over in my head for the rest of the week. And why does Yoshi have an origin story now. Why is he in a New York sewer. I wasn’t asking these questions before the movie answered them, and now I have more questions than I started with.

The biggest crime is the score. Mario has some of the most beloved music in any medium, full stop. Koji Kondo’s stuff is jazzy and weird and instantly recognizable and they just… didn’t really use it. Imagine making a Star Wars movie and going “yeah we’ll do our own thing on the music.” Insane.

Cynical, dumb, occasionally fun in spite of itself.

Also on Letterboxd