‘The Super Mario Bros. Movie’ Is Unapologetic Nostalgia Bait. That’s a Good Thing!
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There are roughly 47,000—oh, wait, a new Netflix Original just dropped; make that 47,001—TV shows and movies coming out each week. At Obsessed, we consider it our social duty to help you see the best and skip the rest.
We’ve already got a variety of in-depth, exclusive coverage on all of your streaming favorites and new releases, but sometimes what you’re looking for is a simple Do or Don’t. That’s why we created See/Skip, to tell you exactly what our writers think you should See and what you can Skip from the past week’s crowded entertainment landscape.
See: The Super Mario Bros. Movie
The Super Mario Bros. Movie might not reinvent the wheel (get it, they drive karts!), but it provides stunning, colorful animation and plenty of sweet nostalgia for even the most casual fans of the franchise—even if its actual plot comes second.
Here’s Allegra Frank’s take:
“Video game adaptations are in vogue this spring—and they’re actually … good? HBO’s The Last of Us premiered in January to critical acclaim, convincing naysayers that maybe you can translate the interactive medium to a more passive space. But it’s the long-awaited, The Super Mario Bros. Movie, now in theaters, that’s both the most anticipated entry into the genre and its biggest test.
‘The Super Mario Bros. Movie’ Perfectly Captures the Games’ Spirit
The reasons are obvious: Mario is the biggest gaming franchise in the world. Since he first appeared in 1981’s Donkey Kong, the jumping plumber’s appeared in more than 200 games, with nearly one billion copies sold across them all. Nintendo just opened its second theme park attraction dedicated to the Mushroom Kingdom and its characters—that’s the mark of some strong IP.
Unlike The Last of Us, which had prestige drama bonafides to lean on, Mario Bros. had some extra hurdles to cross before it could win over Nintendo diehards. The games have a gigantic fanbase, for one, making it impossible to please everyone. But there’s also the fact that Illumination Entertainment, the American studio best-known for the very annoying Minions movies, was handling it. Despite Minions’ massive success at the box office and stronghold over small children, ironic TikTok teens, and Facebook moms, Illumination was an eyebrow-raising choice for anyone over the age of 12.”
See: Beef
Beef incites a gripping L.A. road rage incident and twists it into a kinetic, refreshingly original portrait of what happens when two humans reach their breaking point at the exact same time. It’s about time Netflix had something truly well-done.
Here’s Nick Schager’s take:
“A single car-horn honk and flipped middle finger is all it takes to ignite two powder kegs in Beef, creator/writer Lee Sung Jin’s series about a pair of Korean-American strangers whose lives chaotically intertwine following a calamitous confrontation. Anyone who’s ever wanted to rage against a fellow motorist will feel piercingly seen by this 10-part Netflix affair (produced by A24), and if it eventually goes somewhat off the rails toward its conclusion—albeit in a manner meant to echo its characters—it remains a surprising and amusing investigation of behind-the-wheel fury and the underlying forces that fuel it.
‘Beef’ Makes Outrageous TV Out of a Case of Vicious L.A. Road Rage
‘With episode titles (displayed against monstrous modern art pieces) that sound like songs off a Nine Inch Nails album, and action scored to a variety of cheeky ’90s rock hits, Beef careens wildly down its winding path, with Jin and directors Hikari and Jake Schreier rarely taking their foot off the pedal.
Yeun and Wong are an expertly matched duo, casting their respective characters’ vehemence as a consequence of their fundamental misery—some of which, flashbacks elucidate, dates to childhood. Sexual, familial, economic, and social burdens and discontent turn out to be more than either Danny or Amy can properly process, and their battle resonates as a vision of 21st-century anxiety, despair, and anger writ humorously large.”
See: Showing Up
Showing Up’s wry character study dissects what it really means to be a working artist. Nothing like a heaping helping of a mumbling Michelle Williams to convince you that you, too, can live the dream: being a slouchy sculptor, languishing in Portland.
Here’s Coleman Spilde’s take:
Director Kelly Reichardt is certainly no stranger to staring down criticisms of her artistry. Reichardt is as acclaimed as she is divisive, with most of her films categorized as ‘slow cinema,’ a genre defined by work that is leisurely but willfully dense. When she broke out of that reductive classifier for the 2014 thriller, Night Moves, Reichardt received praise for crafting her ‘most accessible film to date.’ In a way, the response to Night Moves was almost an exercise in how critics and audiences approach films, always looking for similar genres or familiar themes to cling to. Reichardt’s art was understood by what it could be compared to, not for what it was.
In ‘Showing Up,’ Michelle Williams Brilliantly Taps Into an Artist’s Inner Hell
In her latest film, the splendid Showing Up (now in theaters), Reichardt reteams with her longtime collaborator Michelle Williams to tackle the peculiar interiority of being an artist. Over the course of one chaotic week, a sculptor named Lizzy (Williams) scrambles to prepare for her latest show. Amidst an onslaught of drama with her family, friends, and day job, Lizzy has to contend with the fact that balancing her personal life with her creative one is an art in and of itself. The result is a lovely, enchantingly funny meditation on what it’s like to crave a modicum of control, while continuously hindered by how big your heart is.”
See: Rye Lane
Rye Lane breathes new life into the rom-com genre, which has been mired by uneven entries lately. The tale of two South London residents falling head over heels plays as a love letter to love stories, with a cameo rom-com fans will die for.
Here’s Fletcher Peters’ take:
“Romantic comedies have gotten into the habit of doing too much. Sure, the Nancy Meyers kitchens are dazzling—and Netflix should’ve paid her that lofty $150 million; she’s worth it—but we’ve gotten to a point where so many of the big budget rom-coms come across as forced. George Clooney and Julia Roberts have great chemistry, yes, but Ticket to Paradise was a monumental travesty on every other level. Susan Sarandon, Diane Keaton, and Richard Gere starring together in one twisted rom-com romp sounds like a treat. Nope; instead, it’s too bland to work. Even Hulu’s new musical rom-com series set in New York, which sounded like a magical delight, was a massive disappointment.
‘Rye Lane’ Revitalizes Rom-Coms Beyond Its Legendary Cameo
At least Hulu has made up for this mistake in the form of Rye Lane, a dazzling new film that truly promises to revitalize the rom-com genre. Perhaps we don’t need Meg Ryan directing her own movie, J.Lo starring in a number of rom-coms with gonzo premises, or the flirtations of Roberts/Clooney. (Still: We’ll take all of the above, if you’re offering, regardless of if they’re good.) What it does need, however, is a new generation of charismatic stars, hilarious scripts, and unique premises to put a spin on the classic rom-com tropes. Rye Lane has all of this (and more!) bundled into a tight 82-minute runtime.”
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