plus, there's only so much they can do with an hour and a half long kids movie. we're not watching it for groundbreaking story and character development, WE'RE WATCHING IT FOR MARIO STUFF.
it's been WAYYY too long since we've gotten a movie that's just... fun. no complicated lore, no crazy story, just fun, all the way through. stop looking at The Mario Movie through the eyes of a critic. look at it through the eyes of a Mario fan.