Mario doesn't do a lot of talking in the Super Mario Bros. video games. Charles Martinet has been providing his voice since the nineties and fans could probably count Mario's catchphrases on two hands. He likes to say "It's a me, Mario," "Here we go," "Mama Mia," "Let's a go," and so on.
Mario definitely says a lot more in The Super Mario Bros. Movie though, as too do the rest of the cast. There are some great lines in it for a movie for children that will make any kid or parent laugh. So, let's a go through the best quotes that don't callback to Mario's roots.
This article will contain spoilers for The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
8 “You’d Be Surprised.”
One of Luigi’s biggest characteristics is that he is afraid of seemingly everything in the video games. That is certainly true in The Super Mario Bros. Movie as well and Mario even calls him out on it. “You’d be surprised” is Luigi’s response to Mario telling him that he can’t always be afraid.
Even though he doesn’t have an arc that makes sense, Luigi does indeed grow up in the movie and loses his fears in the heat of battle. He even jumps in to save Mario sans power-ups when they are back in Brooklyn.
7 “That Hurt Right?”
Toad is just called Toad in the movie even though he looks like Captain Toad. He has the backpack but he is missing the outfit, so his design might be half a reference. When Mario meets him in the forest of mushrooms and thinks he is dreaming, Toad whacks Mario with his stick and asks this question.
He doesn’t get a lot to do in the movie, but every action and line from Toad is great. Toad screaming about Luigi’s imminent death right after this scene is fun too.
6 “Down The Hatch!”
Fans have seemingly come to The Super Mario Bros. Movie to see what classic power-ups it was going to show. The first one is the Super Mushroom, which Peach jams down Mario’s throat before the exercise course.
That’s when she says this line, kind of like when the Sultan jams crackers down Iago’s throat in Aladdin. Mario has an aversion to mushrooms which is a new piece of lore for the movie. Eventually, he does swallow his pride, and mushrooms, to get big and strong for Peach.
5 “Peaches, Peaches, Peaches, Peaches, Peaches!”
The Super Mario Bros. Movie is not a musical movie, but there are songs in it. After all, how can an animated movie not have a musical number or two when Jack Black is in the house?
Bowser writes this little ballad about how cool Peach is and at one point he just keeps saying her name on repeat before Magikoopa interrupts his jam session. It’s a great scene to showcase how vulnerable Bowser is when it comes to love. The scene works overall because Jack Black has great pipes.
4 “Time Like Hope Is An Illusion.”
There are some scary scenes in the movie which may give young children nightmares. For example, the Dry Bones erupting from the hollowed earth of the Dark Lands is kind of horrific for a movie targetting kids. There are also moments of nihilism that will shoot right over the heads of children.
There is a Luma in the movie which Bowser captures, seemingly from Super Mario Galaxy. This little blue Luma has a lot of dark lines and they are all hilarious in the context of being present in an animated movie by Illumination. This one about time being an illusion is probably the Luma’s best.
3 “What?!”
Bowser may seem like a ruthless dictator on the outside but he overall lacks confidence in himself. He plays the bad guy because he is insecure and bad at love. All he wants is for Peach to love him, which is why he always captures her in the video games.
Bowser wants to marry her in the movie, like how he does in the games, specifically Super Mario Odyssey. This scene has him practice lines with Magikoopa, and, when they get interrupted, they both scream “What” as if what they are doing is anywhere close to normal.
2 “Yeah Well, Your Dad’s Right!”
Bowser is not the only character in the movie that lacks self-esteem. One of the overall themes of The Super Mario Bros. Movie is self-confidence. Luigi is afraid of everything, Mario wants to show his family that he is not a screwup, and Donkey Kong has the same issues as Mario because Cranky Kong sees his son as a screwup.
Donkey Kong and Mario seem like they are having a moment inside the giant eel when they start talking about their fathers. However, just as the two seem to be coming to some sort of mutual understanding, Donkey Kong throws it right back at Mario with this line.
1 “Told You I’d Get You A Turtle.”
Peach is flabbergasted at the idea that in the real world, turtles are not evil. Mario tells her that people keep them as pets which is not entirely true. People have small turtles as pets but there are so many other species out there that are much bigger and impossible to keep as pets.
Semantics aside for a movie for children, Mario makes Peach’s wish comes true when he hands Bowser over in a little jar. Mario and Luigi are able to defeat Bowser and shrink him down to size with the help of a Mini Mushroom.