The other Mario movie
By: Melissa Mario Sister   
   

I don't know why, but many people think that "Super Mario Bros: The Movie" was really bad. I think it was a good translation to give the story a more "realistic" feel. But still, there are those hardcore Mario fans who think that the movie should have been made exactly as the games have it. I even read somewhere, "It should have been animated." Well, good news for you, folks- there IS an animated Mario movie! Problem? It's in Japanese.
    Around the time Super Mario Bros. became popular, there was a Mario movie playing in Japan called "Great Mission to Rescue Princess Peach". It was an hour long, and supposedly released in July, 1986. It was directed by Hata Masami, who had worked on MANY films as animator and director.
    Not much else is known about this film, but I suspect it was a special presentation of some sort. The reason for this was the following: I first found out about this movie when a friend of mine sent me an auction from e-Bay with pictures. The item being auctioned was the playbill for "GMTRPP." The description didn't mention the title specifically, but it did say it was from a Mario movie, the illustrations looked very cartoony to me, and the auction was straight from Japan- need I give more proof? I will send the pictures as soon as find them in the cluttered mess of my computer. If anyone can find additional information about this movie, please e-mail me at sailor_mmsis@sailormoon.com . I hope you've found this article informing and interesting. *~Best wishes from the Mario Sister!~*