{"id":42067,"date":"2026-04-06T05:08:55","date_gmt":"2026-04-05T21:08:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=42067"},"modified":"2026-04-06T05:08:55","modified_gmt":"2026-04-05T21:08:55","slug":"super-mario-galaxy-movie-doesnt-need-defenders-for-bad-reviews","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=42067","title":{"rendered":"Super Mario Galaxy Movie doesn’t need defenders for bad reviews"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Patch Notes<\/strong> is a weekly newsletter bringing you the best of Polygon, sent on Fridays and published on the site on Sundays. You can <\/em>subscribe here<\/em>.<\/em><\/p>\n

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After months of slow-drip teasers, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie<\/em> is finally here. Illumination and Nintendo\u2019s latest film collaboration is another reference-filled ode to Mario history that\u2019s low on narrative substance but high on visual splendor. Audience scores are positive, it\u2019s raking in tons of money, and the cast members have been charming their way through the press circuit as they share their dream Wario castings and pick their second favorite Luigis. For many, it\u2019s a fountain of joy.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n

It\u2019s also pissing a lot of people off. Well, more accurately, critics are pissing a lot of people off. Before the film opened to the public, a wave of not-so-flattering reviews tore it to shreds. While Polygon\u2019s own Mike McWhertor was simply lukewarm on it, film critics at major publications like Variety and The New York Times tore into it for its nonsensical story and overabundance of hollow Easter eggs. In a rare zero-star review, The Wrap\u2019s Kevin Maher called it a \u201csupremely vacuous anti-movie.\u201d<\/p>\n

Just how bad are the reviews? It currently has an aggregate score of 35 on Metacritic \u2014 the exact same critical average as 1993\u2019s notoriously disastrous Super Mario Bros.<\/em> movie. Mamma mia!<\/p>\n

The reception has kicked off a fresh round of heated debates in the usual social media arenas about criticism: Why are critics so out of touch with general audiences? <\/em>It\u2019s a discourse so ancient that I\u2019m pretty sure you can find sentiments like that chiseled into Egyptian tombs. (At the very least, you can find it in any number of engagement-baiting Facebook threads complaining about IGN\u2019s 6\/10 review of Crimson Desert<\/em>.) I\u2019m not here to relitigate the value of a discipline that seeks to interrogate artistic craft and dissect how the media we thoughtlessly consume actually communicates with us. If you\u2019re not interested in reviews, don\u2019t read them.<\/p>\n

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\"mario\n <\/picture>
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie<\/figcaption>Image: Illumination, Nintendo<\/small><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

What I will comment on, though, is a second thought-killer hovering around The Super Mario Galaxy Movie<\/em>\u2019s review cycle: What do you expect, it\u2019s a kid\u2019s movie! <\/em>That refrain has been played like an Uno Reverse card over the past few days, with the movie\u2019s most loyal soldiers suggesting that it\u2019s silly to hold a goofy animated movie to a high critical standard. The suggestion is that a Mario movie aimed at children is going to be inherently juvenile, and reviewers are failing audiences by refusing to limbo down to its level. If kids (and adult Nintendo fans) are having a good time, the argument goes, it\u2019s doing its job \u2014 character arcs be damned!<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a strange defense, one that both slaps The Super Mario Galaxy Movie<\/em> with a backhanded compliment and devalues children\u2019s media as a whole. Why shouldn\u2019t we have standards for the media our kids engage with? Think about all the movies you watched as a kid, or the games you played. How many of those were formative experiences that shaped your life? Sesame Street <\/em>taught me the value of community. Aladdin <\/em>made me a braver, bolder child. And Mario games unlocked my imagination, showing me that the world is always bigger and more wonderful than one can imagine. Those are real life lessons.<\/p>\n

So, why should we expect \u2014 or want <\/em>\u2014 anything different from The Super Mario Galaxy Movie<\/em>? A high critical standard shows respect for young viewers who are too often treated like little dummies that need to be distracted. Here\u2019s an iPad, stop bugging mom!<\/em> Kids are smarter than we give them credit for, and they deserve media that doesn’t take the impact it can have on their brains for granted. That\u2019s part of what makes Studio Ghibli\u2019s work so special. Hayao Miyazaki’s films are colorful and filled with cute little guys, but they also want children to walk away with a spiritual appreciation of nature.<\/p>\n

None of this is to say that you can\u2019t love The Super Mario Galaxy Movie<\/em>, or that you shouldn\u2019t take your kids to it. Even if it\u2019s devoid of substance, you can still have a nice time at the movie theater pointing out all the colorful Easter eggs. But be careful not to fall into the trap of believing that your kids have to settle for a mishmash of hollow references designed to sell Switches. Having a high critical bar can be an act of love.<\/p>\n

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\"Artwork\n <\/picture>Image: Illumination, Nintendo<\/small><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Michael McWhertor gives his down-to-Earth take on the pretty but hollow sequel.<\/p>\n

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\"Shigeru\n <\/picture>Photo:\u00a0Sami Drasin for Universal Pictures, Nintendo and Illumination<\/small><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Shigeru Miyamoto shoots down your dreams in an interview alongside Chris Meledandri.<\/p>\n

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\"Bowser\n <\/picture>Image: Illumination, Nintendo<\/small><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

But if you want a tease of what is <\/em>coming next, here\u2019s what the movie tees up.<\/p>\n

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\n Plus this:
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\"Taylor\n <\/picture>Image: Nintendo, Polygon<\/small><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n