Super Mario Bros. The Movie Extended Edition Review (The Morton Jankel Cut)

This week we review the first live action Video Game movie Is "The Morton Jankel Cut" of Super Mario Bros the Movie. Is it better than the 1993 theatrical version?

Super Mario Bros. (also known as Super Mario Bros.: The Movie) is a 1993 adventure comedy film loosely based on the Mario video game series by Nintendo. It is the first feature-length live-action film to be based on a video game. The film 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. Its story follows the Mario brothers (Bob Hoskins and John Leguizamo) in their quest to rescue Princess Daisy (Samantha Mathis) from a dystopic parallel universe ruled by the ruthless President Koopa (Dennis Hopper).

Given free creative license by Nintendo, the screenwriters envisioned the film as a subversive comedy with a "weird and dark" tone, with influences from Ghostbusters (1984) and The Wizard of Oz (1939). The setting was primarily inspired by the game Super Mario World (1990), with other elements drawn from fairy tales and contemporary American culture. The production innovated and introduced many filmmaking techniques now considered pivotal in the transition from practical to digital visual effects, including the use of Autodesk Flame. Filming took place from May to July of 1992.

Released on May 28, 1993, the film was a critical and financial failure, grossing $38.9 million worldwide, against a budget of $42–48 million. Reviewers praised the innovative special effects, creative artistic direction, and the performances of its actors, but criticized the confusing narrative, lack of similarity to the games and inconsistent tone. Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto felt the film tried too hard to replicate the games instead of being a good film.

Despite a poor reception, the film gained a cult following in later years and has been recently regarded as a cult classic. In 2012, a webcomic sequel was produced in collaboration with Bennett. It remained the only live-action film based on a Nintendo game property until Pokémon: Detective Pikachu (2019). As of 2018, an animated Mario reboot film is in development by Universal Pictures through its Illumination division, with Miyamoto serving as co-producer alongside Illumination founder Chris Meledandri, with the film's release planned for 2022.

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