Steven Applebaum and Ryan Hoss, founding members of site Super Mario Bros. The Movie Archive snagged an interview with half of the infamous film’s final screenwriting team, Parker Bennett.

The lengthy interview covers the span of the film’s creative development, the trials of being over-budget and out of time, the tribulations of turning a thin damsel-in-distress fairy-tale story into a feature film, and the humiliation of having Dennis Hopper harass you into looking up the word “act” in a dictionary. 

How does a flimsy fantasy story become a fractured, gritty, semi-realistic film? How does one work game references into the film? Why doesn’t Luigi have a mustache? 

Bennett recalls these experiences with depth, gravity and humor (as best he can). It’s quite an interesting read; we suggest following the link and giving it a read. 

–Lana Polansky

[via]