Some of you that are friends with me on The Book may remember that I posted a trailer about this flick long ago on my page out there. Still not sure what prompted me to do it. I've seen better animation before. It must have been the fact that it touched on the video game nostalgia from my childhood alongside the fact
that it featured the voice of John C. Reilly. Yep...that was actually good enough reason.
"Wreck-It Ralph" is the latest Dinsey animated film that tells the story of video game villain Ralph (voiced by Reilly). After years of being overshadowed by Fix-It Felix (Jack McBrayer), the hero of the video game, Ralph longs to get his own recognition. We find out that all the video games are a part of the same world as Ralph jumps from game to game trying to find his own glory. He makes new friends in doing so but jeopardizes the existence of his own video game.
I loved how they connected all the video games with one another with one central location similar to a Grand Central Station type place. All of the video game characters were actually employees that were on the clock when the arcades were open then return to their own homes once the arcade closes. It reminded me of that one commercial they play before the movie begins that asks if your cell phone has a life of its own after its turned off. This movie explores the possibility of what if video game characters did.
All of the philosophies they employed in this one were brilliant. Like how Ralph and other video game villains had to have group therapy so that they could keep doing their daily jobs of being villain. Or how if a game is "out of order" long enough then it would become unplugged and eventually fade into oblivion. It's the little attention to detail to things besides just the animation that continues to put Disney animated films above the rest.
What I really liked was how they brought back some of the classics that us old folks hadn't seen in years. Like Qbert. I had forgotten all about that game. I never liked it, but just the thought of it reminded me of arcades that I used to frequent. And it was even better when they came up with the clever idea of combining the legends of the past with some of the newer video games to help keep the current ones fresh. Even if it meant that we were supposed to buy into the fact that arcades are still around.
I knew soon as I saw the trailer that "Wreck-It Ralph" would be a great family film. It catered today's kids with the video game premise while attracting us nostalgic folks who still remember the shoddy graphics of those video games of yesteryear. Plus, it had a great message just as you would expect from a Disney film. I think the one here was be comfortable in the skin you're in? Or maybe I still have that lotion commercial fresh in my head. At any rate, make sure you check this one out.
My rating: A -
