Nice of the Princess to invite us over for a sequel, eh Luigi?
Yes, like this film, I too can dig up references. This movie, a sequel to the 2023 flick, once again centers on the plumber Mario “Jumpman” Mario (Chris Pratt) and his taller green-clad brother (Charlie Day). The two have become full residents of the Mushroom Kingdom, ruled by the benevolent Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy), and help her by taking care of various issues.
Life is going fairly normal for the brothers and Peach, until an intergalactic threat emerges. It turns out the son of first film antagonist Bowser (Jack Black) has set out to build a planet busting weapon and break his dad out of prison. Because of the threat, the princess and the plumbers, as well as a new cosmic character have to stand in the way.
As the early sentences imply, this is a movie that does include references and certainly caters to those who grew up with the main “Mario” installments across Nintendo’s home consoles. However, much more than its predecessor, this one feels like a more earnest attempt to tell a proper story.
The movie includes a sprawling, large-scale adventure with an appropriately fast pace and, more importantly, some heart. A lot of that comes from the character Peach, whose intriguing, mysterious backstory pays off in important ways. The film also manages to flesh out its villains to a good extent.
Plus, unlike the first flick, we actually get to see the Mario Brothers on screen together for most of the runtime for a good, central buddy narrative. Mind you, none of this is deep character work. It doesn’t rise to the level an audience has experienced with the likes of Pixar, Disney and Dreamworks over the years, but it’s serviceable in this action romp.
One thing people wondered about with this film was how it would incorporate other elements of the Nintendo brand. The last film did quite a bit of this and it didn’t always fit in with the plot’s flow. Thankfully, that’s not the case in “Galaxy.” Unlike Donkey Kong, who felt shoehorned in simply to be there, another Nintendo great appears midway through the movie and it feels entirely natural.
According to both the film’s logic, and the video game’s for that matter, it makes sense. Plus, this character doesn’t steal the spotlight. His inclusion fits in well with what’s unfolding. In the previous movie, the inclusion of Rainbow Road felt like a forced connection to the “Mario Kart” series.
However, because this is a galactic adventure, it feels genuine that the new character from the “Star Fox” franchise is featured. That’s also true for the overall planet-hopping nature of the protagonist’s journey. It’s not rare for science fiction flicks in space to include going from planet to planet, so it felt entirely in place as the heroes go to different worlds on their quest.
It should also be noted that the action set pieces of this movie deliver. There’s a stand out bit during a moment in a casino, and a few others keep a viewer entertained. The voice acting is, admittedly, a bit mixed. It’s hard to know if one will ever be used to Pratt as Nintendo’s iconic character. However, Joy is great as Peach and Brie Larson is stellar as a new hero. Ditto for Glen Powell voicing a “Star Fox” character.
This is a film that definitely has its flaws. For example, Yoshi is added to the main group and is immediately a full member of the main characters without any sort of emotional connection built. Plus, all things considered, the overall plot and character development is still middle of the road.
However, as a fun, breezy space-themed action flick for the family, this works, and it has some emotional stakes at play to keep one invested. 3.5 out of 5.
Matthew Liedke on Film 
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