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The strongest aspects of this movie is the visual quality and the dark and suspenseful atmosphere they made for the kids. These are both masterfully done. The project when making this movie seems to be a blend of Super Mario nostalgia, lore building and creating an experience that will enhance the experience of all things Mario. The big challenge in such a project is to balance all the references with the need to make a coherent story that can stand on its own feet. I believe they are rather successful in overcoming this challenge and keep the movie within a 90 minutes format. I guess this must have been a really hard for the producers, also knowing that Super Mario Odessey (the game) does combine nostalgia and the story experience absolutely brilliantly, but in a different format. I also appreciated the adaptations done to fit the film into contemporary social commentary. As such, the movie feels empowering, emphasizing trust and friendship, failing and learning. The aspects of failing and learning function as the overarching mantras from gaming to movie. And the mantras can be summed up in: "Do not give up! Try again!". Some examples of contemporary adjustments consists of moving away from the passive "Damsel in Distress" trope (referencing Princess Peach here, obviously), and reinventing Donkey Kong with a lot more depth and character. The kids, aged 7 and 11 landed on a solid 9 and 8, respectively. I landed on 7 as I expected a little more multilayered dialogue that caters to the adults, like you are used to from Pixar's animations.

The strengths here are the drama and the scenery, but it falls short on tempo and how plot twists are connected to the main storyline and cues. It's not like you would think "Of course! Why did I not think of that? That was clever!" Instead, it is like you watch some drama that you become invested in, but in the end, it does not matter much. So, they could have portrayed almost anything to provide filling time. Based on a book I haven't read, I cannot comment on the adaptation, but I strongly suspect you would not feel the same disconnect reading the book. Ultimately, this mini series feels unsatisfying as a murder mystery series, which unfortunately was my main expectation going in. But, if you just want some slow moving drama spiced with murder mysteries and a 70's collective imagery to go with it (and along with that, contentions on sexual liberty and political themes of the day), this is totally worth watching. And then you might land on a better rating as well.

If you like horror movies, like myself, you've basically seen this before. You will be able to guess both particular events and the structure of the narrative including its end. And as such, it is a disappointment. I was hopping for some originality, but unfortunately everything unfolded as predicted. It is, however, well executed technically, and displays great craftsmanship. The acting is mainly good, but falls short in some instances, and that is not only due to the scripting of rather flat characters. (The mediocre parts in regard of acting were in fact annoying at times.) So, if you are not well versed in horror, will this movie satisfy your occasional need for something scary? Yes it will. It is a proper horror movie. For movie buffs, you can safely skip this one.