The Super Mario Bros Movie
EST V ACT domestic box office revenue
$550 – 610MM/$575MM
Mythosis universal quests used
4
Audience appeal
15.30 – 16.95%
Script Score
0.54
The Super Mario Bros Movie is a 2023 animated movie based on a popular game franchise. While the reviews from critics were mixed to negative, audiences loved the movie. We traced the source of the movie’s plot structure to Ramayan, an Epic from Hindu mythology.
1. The invisible plot structure of The Super Mario Bros Movie
1A. The script of The Super Mario Bros Movie borrows 90% of its events from 4 mythological tales
Mario’s quest mirrors the tale of Ram from Hindu mythology, where both ensure stability by defeating a powerful adversary.
Bowser’s quest mirrors the tale of Ravan from Hindu mythology, where both are driven by the desire to dominate others.
Peach’s quest mirrors the tale of Hanuman from Hindu mythology, where both are driven by the desire to be loyal to a clan or order.
Luigi’s underdeveloped quest mirrors the tale of Sita from Hindu mythology, where both are driven by the desire to be in secure surroundings.
Donkey Kong’s quest is subsumed in Mario’s quest since he plays the role of Sugreev, who offers his army to Ram for the war.
NOTE: Detailed mirroring of each character’s primary quest to their respective mythological tales is in section “3A. Quests of characters and their mythological counterparts”
Mythosis plot structure
# 19,123
Tales interweaved
Ravan, Ram & Hanuman
I. How does interweaving mythological tales lead to infinite story plots?
II. Can the pursuit of a Desire have more than one quest?
2. The potential of The Super Mario Bros Movie's plot structure: $550-610MM
The interweaving of 32 mythological tales can generate a billion unique stories. By using these 32 tales, we can extract the plot structure of any story across various genres. Our study of blockbuster, hit, and flop plot structures led to the discovery of the Mythosis Code, a set of principles for creating compelling stories. The plot structure of a story is analyzed to see how well it adheres to these storytelling principles.
2A. Plot structure evaluation of The Super Mario Bros Movie
- All Blockbusters have at least 3 universal quests. The Super Mario Bros Movie uses 3 universal quests of Power, Order & Honour.
- In Blockbusters, each universal quest is mirrored by ONLY ONE character. Mario mirrors the quest of Order, Bowser mirrors Power and Peach mirrors Honour.
- Every Blockbuster character borrows at least 35% of the universal quest. Mario borrows 53% of events from the quest for Order. Bowser borrows 39% of events from the quest for Power. Peach borrows 21% of events from the quest for Honour.
- Blockbusters have a quest interweaving threshold of 0.5. Interweaving occurs when events of 2 quests occur simultaneously in the story. The Super Mario Bros Movie’s quest interweaving score of 0.67 is above par.
An example of interweaving the quests of Mario & Bowser:
2B. Box office revenue estimation of The Super Mario Bros Movie
The Super Mario Bros Movies’ plot structure satisfies every principle except “depth of quests” – only the characters of Mario & Bowser surpass the threshold of 35%.
The Script Score measures a plot structure’s adherence to the four principles of Mythosis Code. We use the Script Score to estimate a movie’s audience appeal & revenues. Blockbuster plot structures have a score of at least 0.64 and appeal to 20% of the audiences.
Script Score
0.54
Audience appeal
15.30 – 16.95%
I. How is Mythosis Code used to estimate revenues?
II. Aren’t box-office revenues influenced by several factors beyond just the story plot?
3. The ideal plot structure of The Super Mario Bros Movie
We have identified 32 mythological tales, the superset of all tales across cultures. The quests of these tales have also recurred over time periods. They represent human behaviours that are deeply embedded in our shared memories. Each tale is the richest expression of the pursuit of a human desire. The tales have a unique pattern of events spread over 5 major arcs.
Mapping a character’s quest to the relevant mythological tale reveals the gaps in their quest, if any. Plugging these gaps with the missing events deepens the character quest. The missing events also provide an opportunity for interweaving the various quests. These events strengthen the story and unlock its hidden potential.
3A.Quest of characters and their mythological counterparts
Quest 1: Mario mirrors the universal quest for Order
Mario’s desire for Order stems from the need to maintain stability. The tale of Ram from Hindu mythology is the universal quest for Order.
Quest 2: Bowser mirrors the universal quest for Power
Bowser’s desire for Power stems from the need to dominate others. The tale of Ravan from Hindu mythology is the universal quest for Power.
Quest 3: Peach mirrors the universal quest for Honour
Peach’s desire for Honour stems from the need for loyalty to a clan or order. The tale of Hanuman from Hindu mythology is the universal quest for Honour.
3B.Gaps in the current plot structure
The plot structure can be strengthened by deepening the quest of Peach.
3C.Unlocking the hidden potential
The plot of The Super Mario Bros Movie is a sub set of Mythosis Plot Structure # 19,123. It interweaves the tales of Ravan, Ram & Hanuman.
Contact us for Mythosis Plot Structure # 19,123
Tags: Ram, Order, Ravan, Power, Hanuman, Honour, Sita, Tranquillity, 2023, Character Arcs, Mythology, Story Plot, Screenwriting, Storytelling, Matthew Fogel, Aaron Horvath, Michael Jelenic, Universal, Nintendo, Illumination