OK, Rocketeers, the first person who can count the number of times I’ve mentioned Super Mario in my articles since joining the RocketNews24 crew gets a prize!*

Maybe it’s because I grew up with the games; maybe it’s because I wanted an NES for so, so long but had to be content with occasional two-minute stints on my friend’s console until my parents finally caved in and bought me one years later…

Whatever the reason, Super Mario is kinda my thing. So when my editor mentioned that someone had made “a Chinese Mario movie”, I was on it in a flash.

This movie is immensely silly, and it’s not Super Mario Bros. But even so, it is kind of wonderful…

Chinese Super Mario, a creation of Dayside Productions, sees everyone’s favourite red-capped hero, minus his ‘tache, up against Chinese mafia leader Bowser, “the king of ‘shrooms”, in a Jackie Chan-inspired martial arts explosion.

The video, released just yesterday on Dayside’s homepage, is already grabbing the attention of film fans and Mario enthusiasts alike, and, frankly speaking, deserves to be seen by everyone who’s ever heard of the moustachioed mushroom muncher.

“I wanted to do something that wasn’t done before,” explains Dayside Productions’ Girard Tecson, “I knew how to do action films, but there are already so many out, like the GTA version [of Mario] and the Modern War Version. Then it came to me. I’m Asian! And my hero is Jackie Chan! I checked if the Chinese made a Mario movie, and no, I wanted to be the first one to do so. Hence, Chinese Super Mario was born!”

And what an interpretation it is!

Usually when I see a random Mario spin-off or low-budget spoof that places the character in some unlikely setting, I get about as far as a quick chuckle before I cut the movie short. Dayside Productions’ take, with Mario’s flaming fists, Bowser’s mushroom trafficking and an incredibly cute Chinese Princess Peach, however, had me hooked from start to finish.

The music is great, the camera work top-notch and the characterisation, bizarrely, really works. So take a look, tell your friends, and, most importantly, watch until the very end.

Well done to everyone involved. You just made at least one Mario fan’s day.

*Interpretation of the word “prize” may vary. May cause inflammation of the liver, kidneys and knees. Do not take orally.

Images: Chinese Super Mario by Dayside Productions