Super Mario Bros., let’s analyze the poster of the expected Nintendo movie

On 6 October, the first trailer of the Super Mario Bros film will be shown through a special Nintendo Direct. Illumination Entertainment (authors of the Minions, among others) and Nintendo. It is an image extremely rich in elements, very colorful and blatantly saturated; Peach’s Castle dominates everything, on which the gaze falls both because it is observed by Mario (below, in the middle), and because it is the most isolated and visible element. In the background, the blue sky that has characterized the series since the first episode.

Without going into in-depth analysis and before commenting on the details of the poster, we would like to point out that the will is to embrace the whole Mariesque universe. The image looks like it came out of Super Mario Odyssey, with the difference that it is much richer and full of elements, as well as graphically detailed. The setting is, predictably, the Mushroom Kingdom; the vertical structure is reminiscent of the Super Nintendo World. The antiques shop, lower left, denotes the importance of the first two-dimensional era, but also its temporal distance. There are elements from Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario 3D Land. In short, no age of Super Mario history is forgotten, at least apparently. And now, let’s analyze the poster of the Super Mario Bros..

Peach’s Castle

There is nothing particularly important to note here, other than the Castle reminiscent of the one seen since Super Mario 64: from the rose window depicting Princess Peach to the towers, which over time have become circular. The location at the top of the Mushroom Kingdom is a novelty of the film, as is the odd shape of the hill that hosts it.

Toad or Captain Toad?

Many on the web were thrilled to see Captain Toad, the explorer mushroom star of the spin-off series of the same name, who had not yet been announced as a character in the film. The problem is: that mushroom isn’t necessarily Captain Toad. True, she has many travel tools and a large backpack, but the dress is not the typical “hero” one in question. Could it become that in the course of the film? In any case, this Toad would seem to have a privileged role over the others.

The antiques shop

The antiques shop is the one that, immediately after the Castle, the majority of the public noticed: it is a bazaar full of objects from the first episodes of the series, which are also the best known and most characteristic ones. In the film, to underline the temporal distance passed, these power-ups have been represented in voxels, so as to make them credible in the narrated universe but, at the same time, different from the “contemporary” elements. They are sold (we imagine) souvenir style by the Toads, so much so that the price is displayed in gold coins. In the foreground there are gods objects that we can’t recognize (apart from what looks like a key from Super Mario World and … some feathers?), piled on top of the barrels; next to them, a treasure chest of the Mushroom Houses of Super Mario Bros. 3. On display the Switch P, which turns coins into bricks and vice versa, and the Music Box (also by Super Mario Bros. 3), capable – at the time – to put the Hammer Bros to sleep. In the background, we do not know if it is part of the shop or not, we can see – behind what looks like a Boomerang – even a Yoshi egg!

Donkey Kong and the Antiques Shop

We know that Donkey Kongvoiced by Seth Rogen, will be featured in some way in the Super Mario Bros. movie. In the antique shop there are two quotes to the chapter that saw them debut together, dating back to 1981: one of the barrels pulled by the gorilla (with the addition of the word “POW”), hung as a relic (but not in voxel!), and the hammer of the sign, which allowed the protagonist to shatter the barrels themselves.

Yoshi fruit

At the bottom right there is an opening that leads to another “shop”, of an unspecified nature. The sign represents, this time as an effigy, the Super Mario Bros. 3 casket we have already talked about; just below, there is a sign depicting fruit, historically associated with Yoshiand specifically Yoshi’s Story.

Coccinelli and Pisces Smack

Among the characters present, excluding Captain Toad, these are those of more recent origin. THE Coccinelli appeared for the first time in Super Mario 3D Land, in 2011. Next to them you can see a typical animal / enemy of the series, present since Super Mario Bros. (1985), namely the Smack Fish: here they are sold by a Toad (we assume from the plastic bag) as a pet. The same “enemy” is present on a sign shown above.

Platform Trails

This poster looks like something out of a Super Mario game, it is very faithful to the canonical imagery of the saga. Respect for the original source is revealed by the path that leads from the “city” (below) to Peach’s Castle (above): it is a very dangerous path, which could literally be played as a platformer. It is full of Mariesque elements, such as the falling platforms, the pipes and some surfaces refer directly to the diamond-shaped ones of New Super Mario Bros. There is of course the giant mushrooms and, as in Super Mario Galaxy, the flying / autonomous islands (which many have linked to The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, but which have always been present in Super Mario).

Mario and Toad’s clothes

Both Mario’s and Toad’s clothes are much more realistic than what we’re used to. Already in Super Mario Odyssey the do you live of the plumber had become more credible than usual, especially for the care of the materials, but here everything is even more detailed. Look at the seams of the jeans, the finish of the shoes, the uneven fabric, or the “cut” on the gloves so that you can put them on more easily. The Toads are also involved in this process: it has always been pretty clear that their pants were loose and soft, Aladdin style, but in the transition from old illustrations to current representations this detail was lost, so much so that some people think that the ” white part “was itself inherent to the character, and not a dress. In the film they have definitively restored old habits, even adding laces to support the pants.

By the way: some on the internet are complaining about the sit down, apparently too flat, by Mario. We report without commenting.

Mario ?!

In these hours, disclosed by a user on Twitteris turning the face of the alleged Super Mario of the film, taken from an equally alleged “poster” of McDonald’s Australia. Well, let’s be honest: if it were a fake, it would be done very well. It’s a vaguely westernized version of the character, with slightly more realistic eye proportions. The shape of the gloves, with the cut, perfectly follows that seen in the official poster: here, had this image emerged a few hours earlier, at that point there would have been no doubts about its veracity. Our greatest uncertainties concern precisely the gloves, in reality: they seem to be made of a different material, more fake, almost plastic. Also, the hand on our left appears to have four fingers, while the one on the right has five – and, beyond how many Mario usually has (five for the record, we checked), it would be a rather odd choice. Also, instead of the usual shirt, Mario has an unusual polo shirt.