Yahoo Movies The Super Mario Bros Movie levels out with polarising reviews
Critics say fans of the Nintendo classic will enjoy the film, but its lack of plot or jokes might mean they'd rather just play the game.
The Super Mario Bros Movie has received polarising reviews - powering up with some critics while for others it was game over.
The big screen animation of the popular Nintendo character features the voices of Chris Pratt, Charlie Day, Anya Taylor-Joy, Jack Black and Seth Rogen.
The movie has achieved a 55 percent rating on review platform Rotten Tomatoes and 49 percent score on Metacritic.
Read more: The Super Mario Bros. Movie: Meet the star-studded voice cast
But the film scored as little as one star from come film reviewers, with the Daily Telegraph's Robbie Collins calling it a "monstrosity" and "one of the worst motion pictures ever made". He concedes Super Mario Bros will "inevitably" be a hit, but only because it has no direct competition as a family friendly film newly released in cinemas.
The Independent's Clarisse Loughrey accepts the movie's "comfortable mediocrity" saying, "its source material has been historically devoid of plot". But she adds that audiences should be allowed to expect more than "mere competency".
Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian calls the film "visually bland", "utterly inert" and is baffled by what he calls "a fierce insistence on not being ironic or funny". He claims even fans of Super Mario might prefer playing the game to watching the movie.
Digital Spy's Ian Sandwell says the film, "lacks any depth and will bore adults unless they're nostalgic for Mario." But he added the the film's quality is "irrelevant" as fans of the game will enjoy the extensive Easter Eggs.
Entertainment Weekly's Christina Holub describes the film as "quite fun, with a good sense of humor and a consistent computer-animated aesthetic". He cites the 90 minute running time as being a big plus, making the movie "short, sweet, and over before anything can get annoying." But even he admits playing the game might be better tan watching the film.
Watch: Charlie Day and Chris Pratt talk about voicing the Super Mario Bros
Kyle Anderson writing for Nerdist describes the animation as "absolutely stunning", adding the "colours pop, the action cooks, and you’ll never tire of looking at the whole frame." While he admits adults may find the film "little more than a colorful kids movie", he advises parents can still have a "good time watching it with their kids, as long as they "bring your inner child".
Read more: The Super Mario Bros. Movie: How the first film flopped but became a cult classic
And Deadline's Pete Hammond celebrates how watching the film feels like playing the game, and insists a lack of wit is not a weakness as the movie is still "immensely likable and loaded with laughs."
