Photo: Universal Pictures/Nintendo
My family and I brought a lot of baggage into The Super Mario Bros. Movie. We bought three tickets when we should have been buying four. I would have paid any amount for that fourth ticket, if it meant our family's biggest Mario fan, my son Rader, had not died by suicide six years ago at age 15.
Every time there's a new advancement in the Mario universe, something that happens without Rader, it's hard for all of us. The first time I remember that feeling is when Super Mario Odyssey came out for the Nintendo Switch.
Nintendo released the Switch console in March 2017, but Odyssey, the Switch's first big Mario game, didn't come out until October. Rader died in June. As a gamer, he was pretty singularly focused on Mario games, so we had planned to wait and buy the Switch in the fall. We did get one when Odyssey was released, but with Rader gone, it was bittersweet — this great new game that he never got to play, on a console he never owned. He should be here for this.
Everyone who knows me knows that in memory of Rader, I'm a Super Mario superfan. It's obvious from my wardrobe of Mario pins, t-shirts, and denim, to our family collection of Mario figurines, coins, and artwork, to the longstanding tradition of Mario Monday posts on our foundation social media.
So it's also no surprise that if a Mario movie comes out, the Wards are going to see it. For various reasons, we didn't see The Super Mario Bros. Movie right away, but finally last Tuesday, William, Matthew, and I got our tickets at a local theater, bought some snacks, and sat down to enjoy it.
Or try to enjoy it, until the appearance of an adorable childlike character with a death wish: Lumalee.
Our family-favorite Mario game is Super Mario Galaxy, which takes place in a part of the universe inhabited by glowing, plump, star-shaped creatures called Lumas. We all loved them, but Rader did especially — so much so that he wanted one for Christmas the year the game came out, 2007. Nintendo wasn't making official Luma merchandise yet, so we ordered him a custom plush from a creator on Etsy (Katie Creider of Penguinotic) who had unlocked the secret to the Luma's tricky shape (after we tried — and failed — to sew one ourselves).
We love Lumas, but all three of us were deeply disturbed by the one in the movie. Read on to hear why.
Photo: Universal Pictures/Nintendo
It's not cute:
Luma's death wish could harm struggling Mario Movie viewers
As the conflict ramps up in The Super Mario Bros. Movie, we find Luigi imprisoned by Bowser. He's suspended in a cage hanging from a chain over a lake of lava, surrounded by dozens of other folks who have run afoul of the King of the Koopas.
The scene unfolds and my heart sinks — not because Mario's brother is in peril, but because he's immediately confronted by one of the other prisoners. You think it's going to be cute, but the adorable star-shaped Luma's words are nihilistic. Lumalee has lost all hope, and he doesn't hold back in telling us about it. He grins and swings his cage with glee as he exclaims there's no escape and that he looks forward to death. Every time we see him again, he has something worse to say.
I've been having a pretty good time up until now. Suddenly I'm not enjoying myself anymore.
"It's just a cartoon," you might say. "Can't you take a joke?"
Indeed, that seems to be the prevailing position. I read several other reviews focused on Lumalee — calling him the movie's 'cutest character,' and its 'best running gag.' More than one reviewer suggested he should star in a sequel or spinoff.
Here's the problem with that. If you're someone who happens to be struggling with depression, and especially with self harm or suicidal thinking, having a cute animated character confirm your dark thoughts for you over and over again isn't healthy or safe.
Negativity bias — our tendency to give more weight to negative information than to positive — is real, and can be challenging to overcome. It doesn't help to have our negative thoughts reinforced by surprise bad influences in what should be innocuous media. I'm not at all saying every character in every movie should be pure sunshine and roses. That's silly. But I don't think it's unreasonable to draw a line that says a cute character in a kids' movie shouldn't spout a slew of suicidal thoughts.
Lumalee also is portrayed and observed by other characters as unhinged, that he's lost his mind. Conflating lunacy with suicidality is problematic, contributing to stigma that stops some people from seeking help. Suicide can and does affect people across all demographics. Struggling doesn't mean you're "crazy."
I'm a Super Mario superfan, but I definitely will not see this movie again, nor buy its merchandise. (I'm appalled, in retrospect, that the affiliated McDonald's Happy Meal merch included a Lumalee toy. Glad I didn't go buy all of that.)
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text the suicide and crisis lifeline at 988 or chat 988lifeline.org.