Bloody Hell, Shigeru: Why The Super Mario Galaxy Movie Critics Didn't Get the Memo (And Why Miyamoto Is Baffled)
AI Gaming News Author · kotaku ·
Shigeru Miyamoto is genuinely baffled by the poor critical reception of the Super Mario Galaxy Movie, even as it rakes in hundreds of millions at the box office and delights fans with endless Easter eggs.
I’ve been tinkering with this story all morning, and bloody hell, it’s wilder than it first appeared. You know that feeling when you cast a spell and it works a bit too well? You get the gold, you get the glory, but you also accidentally turn the town’s esteemed scholars into very confused frogs? That’s essentially what’s happening with Nintendo’s latest foray into Hollywood.
We’re currently about three weeks into the theatrical run of *The Super Mario Galaxy Movie*, and the numbers are, frankly, astronomical. It’s raked in over $350 million, proving that the Mario brand is basically the digital equivalent of a philosopher’s stone—everything it touches turns to gold. But while the box office is singing, the critics are sharpening their daggers. We’re looking at a 43-percent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. For those keeping score at home, that’s lower than the first film’s 59-percent. It’s a bit of a tumble, isn't it? Like missing a triple jump and sliding right into a lava pit.
Now, here’s where it gets interesting. The legendary Shigeru Miyamoto—the man, the myth, the wizard who essentially built our childhoods brick by 8-bit brick—is actually surprised. In a recent chat with *Famitsu*, Miyamoto admitted he’s a bit baffled by the reception. He reckoned that because he took the notes from the first film, this second outing would be the one to finally win over the high-brow crowd.
“It’s true: the situation is indeed very similar,” Miyamoto noted. He acknowledged that the critics had a point with the first movie, but he truly thought things would be different this time around. He even went as far as to say he felt the critics should be championing their hard work because they’re trying to “revitalize the film industry.”
Bless him. It’s a bit like a wizard being shocked that the local villagers are upset about the dragon he summoned to “revitalize” the local economy. Sure, the dragon is shiny and everyone’s talking about it, but there’s still the small matter of the charred rooftops.
Let’s be real for a second, mate. The disconnect here is as wide as the gap between a casual gamer and a speedrunner. On one side, you’ve got an 89-percent audience score. The fans are loving it. The kids are losing their minds because they saw a Luma or heard a familiar jingle. And honestly? That’s brilliant. There’s something genuinely magical about seeing our favorite pixels transformed into a cinematic spectacle. But the critics? They’re looking for a story, a bit of meat on the bones, something more than just a ninety-minute highlight reel of “remember this?”
I’ve seen this pattern before, especially in the Web3 space. You get these massive projects that are all about the “community” and the “brand,” and they’re incredibly successful at launch because the hype train is moving at Mach 10. But when you look under the hood, sometimes the “utility”—or in this case, the plot—is a bit thin. We’re seeing a trend where “references over substance” is becoming the new standard. It’s like buying a legendary sword that looks amazing on your character profile but breaks the moment you actually try to hit an orc with it.
Critics are calling it “key jingling.” It’s the cinematic equivalent of waving a shiny object in front of a toddler to keep them from crying. And while that works for a two-year-old, it’s a bit of a tough sell for people who grew up with the storytelling depth of *The Last of Us* or even the clever humor of the *Spider-Verse* films. Miyamoto seems to think critics are being “passive,” but maybe they’re just tired of being treated like they’re four years old?
There’s a bit of a “it’s just for kids” defense being thrown around, which I always find a bit lazy. Some of the best stories ever told—*Toy Story*, *The Iron Giant*, *Avatar: The Last Airbender*—were “for kids,” but they respected the audience enough to give them actual stakes and character arcs. You can have the spectacle and the soul; they aren't mutually exclusive.
It’s fascinating to watch Nintendo navigate this. They’ve spent decades being the masters of gameplay, where the “story” is often just a thin excuse to jump on a turtle’s head. And it works perfectly in a game! But film is a different beast entirely. You can’t just rely on the player’s agency to fill in the emotional gaps.
Despite the critical drubbing, Nintendo isn’t exactly crying into their tea. With $350 million in the bank and counting, the “buzz” is working exactly as Miyamoto predicted it would during the first film’s cycle. It turns out that a 43-percent rating is just as good at selling tickets as a 90-percent rating if the brand is big enough. It’s a bit cynical, isn’t it? But that’s the industry right now.
So, where do we go from here? I reckon Miyamoto and the team at Illumination will keep doing exactly what they’re doing, because why wouldn’t they? The audience is happy, the bank account is overflowing, and the kids get to see Bowser being a bisexual icon (if you believe the latest fan theories swirling around this sequel).
But I do hope—and I’m being cautiously optimistic here—that for the third film, or the inevitable *Zelda* movie, they realize that a great story is the ultimate power-up. You can have all the Easter eggs in the world, but without a heart, it’s just a very expensive screensaver.
What do you lot think? Are you happy to just sit back and soak in the Mario-themed vibes, or are you starting to feel a bit of “reference fatigue”? Is Miyamoto right to be baffled, or is he just a wizard who’s spent a bit too much time in his own tower? Either way, I’ll be here, reading the digital tea leaves and wondering if that Luma really did drop an F-bomb. (Spoiler: It probably didn't, but a man can dream, can't he?)
Stay curious, stay skeptical, and for the love of Peach, let's hope the next script has more than three pages of actual dialogue.
Tags: Nintendo, Super Mario Galaxy Movie, Shigeru Miyamoto, Gaming Culture, Movie Reviews
Original article: kotaku