The Wizard
| The Wizard | |
|---|---|
| |
| General information | |
| Director(s) | Todd Holland |
| Writer(s) | David Chisholm |
| Starring | Fred Savage Beau Bridges Christian Slater |
| Composer(s) | J. Peter Robinson |
| Country of origin | United States of America |
| Original language | English |
| Rating | PG |
| Production | |
| Editor(s) | Tom Finan |
| Production company | The Finnegan/Pinchuk Company Pipeline Productions Cinergi Pictures Universal Pictures |
| Cinematography | Robert Yeoman |
| Runtime | 100 minutes |
| Budget | $6 million |
| Distribution | |
| Release date | December 15, 1989[?] |
| Box office | $14.3 million |
The Wizard is a family film directed by Todd Holland, released by Universal Studios on December 15, 1989, that stars Luke Edwards, Fred Savage, and Jenny Lewis. The movie featured several cameos and direct references to Nintendo-related products, as well as many video games released for the Nintendo Entertainment System. Due to this, the movie has been criticized for its excessive product placement of Nintendo material, but has nevertheless gained a cult following.
Super Mario references in The Wizard
Super Mario Bros. 3 is featured as the game played in the final event of the Video Armageddon competition at the end of the film, predating its western release on the NES. As the scene progresses, protagonist Jimmy Woods (Luke Edwards) manages to find the Magic Flute in the World 1 Fortress and wins the competition by warping to World 4 (which would not actually score extra points in the game itself, implying that the competition had a different scoring system). Additionally, the emcee at the Video Armageddon announces several level names incorrectly (for instance, calling level 1-3 "World 2"). Super Mario Bros. 2 is mentioned and seen being played occasionally at earlier points in the film. Sound effects from Super Mario Bros. can be heard at a few points as well. Mario was prominently featured in the background of the film's poster artwork (which was later reused as the box art for the VHS and Blu-ray release[1]).
Gallery
Super Mario Bros. 3 being played by the title character of The Wizard.
